Sylvain Guintoli names Moto2 rider "perfect" for MotoGP - he has two big offers

Diogo Moreira would “make a perfect MotoGP rider” according to ex-racer Sylvain Guintoli.

The Brazilian rider, currently in his second season of Moto2 with the Italtrans team, took his second victory in the intermediate class last weekend at the Austrian Grand Prix and now sits third in the riders’ standings, 35 points behind championship leader Manuel Gonzalez who retired in Austria due to radiator damage.

It was a victory which impressed former MotoGP rider and 2014 World Superbike Champion Sylvain Guintoli, who now works as an analyst on TNT Sports’ MotoGP broadcast.

“At the last two rounds, Diogo [Moreira] was unable to finish,” Guintoli said on TNT Sports after the Austria Moto2 race.

“He had a troubled period.

“He came back strong after the summer.

“The class of the man – the way he rides, how smooth he is, the little inputs of his body position are perfect.

“He would make a perfect MotoGP rider, and he proved it.”

Two options for Diogo Moreira in MotoGP

Moreira has been linked with a MotoGP ride for 2026 since he won his first Moto2 race at Assen before the summer break.

The opportunities for him are at Honda, where he could replace Somkiat Chantra at LCR Honda, or Yamaha where he could end up as Toprak Razgatlioglu’s teammate in an all-rookie line-up at the Pramac Yamaha.

According to Sky Sport Italy, Moreira has similar proposals from the two Japanese factories, with each reportedly offering him a three-year contract in the premier class which would carry him into the second season of the 850cc regulations which begin in 2027.

Additionally, it is reported that Honda has offered Moreira a potential seat in the factory team for the second and third years of its proposal to the Brazilian.

That would be in place of either Joan Mir or Luca Marini.

The Italian is seemingly set to renew with HRC for the 2026 season, but no official announcement has yet been made.

Mir’s current contract also ends at the end of 2026.