We wrote it a few days ago, but it's now official. Xavi Vierge will be Yamaha's new rider for 2026. He'll, in fact, be joinging Andrea Locatelli in the adventure that awaits him with the R1, picking up Johnny Rea's baton.
Below is the manufacturer's statement.
Another piece of the 2026 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship's silly season puzzle snaps into place. After four seasons of consistent form atop the factory Honda CBR1000 RR-R, Xavi Vierge (Honda HRC) will split ways with one Japanese manufacturer in favor of another. Vierge's new home will see him don Yamaha blue as he joins Andrea Locatelli in the garage, jumping onto the seat left behind by retiring legend Jonathan Rea (Pata Maxus Yamaha).
And so we now have the answer we were waiting for regarding Vierge's future, who has shown consistency in his years with Honda. The Spanish rider has earned one less podium finish than Iker Lecuona but preceding him in the standings in every season, except 2022.
VIERGE: experience in Moto2
Xavi Vierge raced in the 2014 and 2015 European Moto2 Championships, with a second place finish in 2015, thanks to six wins and ten podiums. In 2016, he participated in the Moto2 World Championship while, in 2017, he earned his first podium riding the Tech 3 Honda. Between 2017 and 2021, he always scored at least one pole position or podium.
IN PLACE OF A LEGEND: Vierge replaces Rea
At Yamaha, he'll be replacing six-time World Champion Jonathan Rea (Pata Maxus Yamaha). It's going to be interesting to see if the Yamaha R1 will adapt well to the 28-year-old rider's style, so that he can continue progressing and fight for the podium.
Yamaha Motor Europe's Road Racing Sporting Manager, Niccolò Canepa, stated, "We are pleased to have reached an agreement with Xavi Vierge, that will see him join the Pata Maxus Yamaha WorldSBK Official Team in 2026. He brings a lot of experience to our project, both from within the Superbike and his time in Grand Prix racing. We are excited to see what he can achieve and look forward to starting our journey together. Through the winter, we will continue to work hard on developing the R1, and with Vierge joing Locatelli at Pata Maxus Yamaha, and Manzi moving up from the Supersport to joing Gardner at GYTR GRT Yamaha, we have four young and hungry riders on our bike next year, which is an exciting prospect."