Moto2 and Moto3, alarm over Italy’s talent pipeline: Italy on the back foot, few flashes and many question marks

Weak signals for Italy in the 2026 World Championship: between sporadic podiums and costly zeros, the Moto2 and Moto3 talent pool is worrying.

We can say that the situation is very critical in terms of talent in the World Championship. We’ve said it before, but this year we have to repeat it again at the 2026 mid-season mark. In MotoGP the situation is still holding up, but it’s the up-and-comers in Moto2 and Moto3 who aren’t breaking through, except with occasional flashes. It’s a complicated moment for Italian youngsters and it will likely remain so for a while yet, unless some interesting riders emerge from the feeder series who can also shine when it comes time for the difficult step up. For now, let’s look at the 2026 situation.

Our Italians in the category are Celestino Vietti, Tony Arbolino and rookie Luca Lunetta. The latter can only be partially assessed, since this is his apprenticeship year in the intermediate class, although there have been a few encouraging signs: he boasts two top 10s, with the hope that these are sparks of growth for the second half of the season. Now let’s look at the experienced riders: Celestino Vietti has recorded three podiums and one pole position, and up to Brno he had always finished in the top 10, but then came a double crash at Assen and the Sachsenring that’s hard to explain, which has significantly distanced him from the top of the category. Tony Arbolino, unfortunately, is a question mark: the return to KALEX after the Boscoscuro challenge (with which he had taken a podium) isn’t paying off so far. He’s struggling in the various sessions, has often gone through Q1, and has never come close to the podium. A critical picture...

In the smaller class the situation is essentially the same. Matteo Bertelle has shown a bit more (we must always remember the rebuild after last year’s serious injury): two podiums on the board, the latest at the Sachsenring in a photo finish, which make him the only Italian in the top 10 in the overall standings, even if miles away from the lead. Guido Pini, who ended a long KTM stint to test himself with Honda, took a stunning first world victory in Austin, but alas the story ended there. Many crashes across the weekend sessions, and in the races the results are hard to come by: two fifth places and two P15s don’t balance out a hefty six zeros between retirements and finishes outside the points. Finally, Nicola Carraro is unfortunately consistently hovering at the back of the standings and this year has yet to reach the points zone.

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