Dovizioso to retire from MotoGP at Misano, Crutchlow returns

LONDON : Italian rider Andrea Dovizioso will retire from MotoGP after his home race at Misano next month with Britain's Cal Crutchlow standing in for the rest of the season, Yamaha announced on Thursday.

The 36-year-old had announced last month he would quit at the end of the year but decided over the summer break to go earlier.

Dovizioso was a three-times MotoGP championship runner-up with Ducati but has scored only 10 points this season and has not finished in the top 10 at any race so far. He is 22nd in the standings.

"My adventure will end in Misano, but the relationship with all the people involved in this challenge will remain intact forever," he said in a statement.

Crutchlow retired at the end of the 2020 season but remains Yamaha's official test rider and raced last year as a stand-in for injured non-works rider Franco Morbidelli and Maverick Vinales, who left the factory team.

The British Grand Prix is at Silverstone this weekend, with Austria following before the San Marino and Rimini Riviera Grand Prix in Misano on Sept. 4.