Born in Rome and now living in the motorsport-rich Tavullia, Franco Morbidelli took the Superstock 600 title in 2013 alongside World Championship wildcard outings in Moto2™ at Misano, Motegi and Valencia. He went on to sign with Italtrans Racing Team for a full campaign in 2014 and continued with them in 2015, making his podium debut in Indianapolis. Unfortunately a broken leg sustained during a motocross training session saw him miss several races after Brno, with Morbidelli returning to finish the season but far from fully fit. For 2016 he signed with the highly successful Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS team and took an incredible run of podium finishes, ending the year just outside the top three in the title fight after an impressive campaign. For 2017, Morbidelli stayed with EG0,0 Marc VDS and came out swinging to take the first three wins of the year - in the lead in the standings during the entire season and taking the title at the Malaysian GP...from STK600 to World Champion in four years.
He moved into the premier class within the same EG 0,0 Marc VDS team in 2018 and took the Rookie of the Year honours. 2019 saw Morbidelli join Petronas Yamaha SRT, picking up a solid seven top six finishes. It got even better for the Italian as a masterclass in Misano saw him take a maiden MotoGP™ win, and he added two more in the Teruel and Valencia GPs for a joint best three race wins in 2020, with two more podium finishes seeing him leap to second in the Championship standings. That form saw him among the leading contenders for title glory in 2021, but a knee injury hampered his season. Returning to action at Misano, Morbidelli partnered Fabio Quartararo at Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP after gaining promotion from Petronas Yamaha SRT. The Italian signed a deal to remain a factory Yamaha rider until at least the end of 2023, but after more struggles, Morbidelli and Yamaha parted ways at the end of the campaign. In 2024, an exciting switch to Prima Pramac Racing awaits Morbidelli as he aims to return to fighting at the front again in MotoGP™.