Viñales without a MotoGP seat for 2027: “I need a miracle. A test rider? I don’t know if I’m ready.”

Maverick Viñales is currently without a bike for the 2027 MotoGP season. With all 22 spots on the grid already taken, the Spaniard finds himself out of contention for next year's championship, but he has no intention of giving up. At Phillip Island, he admitted that the road back would be an uphill struggle and said he was open to a different role from that of a full-time rider.

“I need a miracle to get back,” the Spanish rider said. His words capture a difficult situation, but do not rule out a presence in the premier-class paddock.

Several riders left without a MotoGP seat have chosen to switch categories. Franco Morbidelli, Brad Binder and Jack Miller will move to the World Superbike Championship. For Viñales, however, that is not an option: the Spaniard still wants to try his luck in MotoGP.

It is a firm decision, but one that narrows his options. With no full-time seat available, the alternatives for staying involved in the premier class are a role in the garage, as a test rider or as a stand-in ready to step in if needed.

The idea of becoming a test rider does not entirely convince him. Viñales still sees himself as a race rider and made that clear, suggesting he would prefer an arrangement that allowed him to return to the track on Grand Prix weekends. “Test rider? I don't know if I'm ready. I still want to race,” he told Sky Sport. “Maybe I'll be a reserve rider. I wouldn't wish an injury on anyone, but it can happen that a rider is sidelined for a long time, as I was this year.”

He was referring to his own experience this season, which was marked by a lengthy spell away from racing. For that very reason, Viñales knows how valuable an experienced reserve can be for a team forced to do without its full-time rider.

His potential future role was also discussed in recent days by Michele Pirro, who defended Ducati's continuity in a key year for the development of the Desmosedici and commented on the unconfirmed possibility of Viñales becoming a test rider. For now, however, the Spaniard has just one priority: not to stop racing. It remains to be seen whether anyone will offer him the chance to stay in the MotoGP fold in 2027, while he waits for the miracle he himself speaks of.

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