Augusto Fernandez 'Busy Anyway' in 2027 Despite MotoGP Wildcard Ban

Yamaha MotoGP test rider Augusto Fernandez says he will still be well occupied in 2027 despite a ban on wildcards in grand prix’s premier class.

Fernandez joined Yamaha’s test team at the end of the 2024 MotoGP season when he was dropped by Tech3 KTM and found himself without a spot for the following year. Since then he has wildcarded for the test team nine times including this weekend at Silverstone, but next year this will not be a possibility for the Spaniard who will have his 29th birthday in September.

A ban on wildcards could dissuade a rider still in their 20s from wanting to continue as a test rider, but Fernandez says he will be “busy anyway” next year as Yamaha develops its 850cc MotoGP bike.

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“Well, in the end, when I signed I didn’t know that I was not going to do wildcards in 2027, but it is what it is,” Augusto Fernandez said after Practice at the British MotoGP. “Of course, we have a lot of tests – the testing programme is huge for next year with the new bike, also for the winter, so I’ll be busy anyway.”

Friday at Silverstone had been a tough day for Fernandez, who was slowest in Practice. As has been the case at almost every wildcard he’s done since last year, he felt he had to take the first day to get back up to race speed, and by now the amount of 850cc testing is not helping.

“This morning I didn’t try anything,” he said when asked what he’s testing this weekend. “Also I didn’t want to try anything because I wasn’t on the pace. [You have to have] a competitive pace to try things. It’s too different from the 850cc, so I need to get the feelings back from this bike before trying anything.”