Dixon retains Petronas MotoGP ride for Aragon, McPhee in Moto2

Petronas SRT have confirmed that John McPhee will make his Moto2 debut at the next round in Aragon, while Jake Dixon remains in MotoGP.

After missing out on a Moto2 ride the last two seasons, this will be McPhee’s first opportunity to showcase his ability on bigger machinery - something Dixon did to good effect during the Silverstone Grand Prix weekend in the premier class. 

As was the case with Dixon before his step up from Moto2 last weekend, it’s been a difficult year for McPhee in Moto3 as the Scottish rider is without a podium thus far. It’s the first time since 2014 that McPhee has gone 12 rounds without a rostrum. 

McPhee called it ‘a fantastic opportunity’ as he replaces Malaysian rider Adam Norrodin, who himself stepped in for Dixon at Silverstone.  

McPhee said: "It’s a fantastic opportunity for me to try the Moto2 bike in Aragon. As with every rider, it’s their dream to progress through the categories, and I feel like I am at the level, and have the ability to make this step up to Moto2. 

"Of course, the challenge will be extremely difficult because it’s my first time ever racing a big bike, with my only real experience being 15 laps of Barcelona in 2019 which was a ‘thank you’ from the team after my win at Le Mans. 

"I’m really excited and motivated for the challenge and really looking forward to trying the bike. 

"There’s no real expectation, I’m just going to enjoy it a lot and feel like if I can improve session by session and keep closing the gap with the fastest riders, then this will be a job well done. Thank you to my team for this opportunity."

Both riders will take up their contracted Moto2 and Moto3 seats following Aragon as Andrea Dovizioso returns to MotoGP with Petronas Yamaha alongside Valentino Rossi, while Franco Morbidelli moves up to the factory Monster Energy team.