Road to MotoGP - Who can make it to the Moto3 World Championship in 2027? (Part 1)
If you have followed me for a while, you know that Palmen in Motorradsport follows closely not only MotoGP, WorldSBK and various national championships, but also the feeder series that lead young riders towards the MotoGP World Championship. In other words, the Road to MotoGP. Among these series, two in particular serve as the direct pathway to the Moto3 and Moto2 World Championships: MotoJunior, which also includes the Moto3 Junior World Championship and the Moto2 European Championship, and the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup.
Based on how the opening races of the season have gone, along with several other factors that we will look at together, I want to make some predictions about which riders will make, or at least could make, the jump to the Moto3 World Championship in 2027. Here is Part 1.
DISCLAIMER: This article, as well as upcoming Part 2, contains analysis and predictions based on results and other factors. Therefore, it does not contain confirmed news, nor any absolute truth.
Italy
Italy has a strong chance of having at least one rookie on the Moto3 World Championship grid in 2027.
Giulio Pugliese has struggled a bit in the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup, although he has still delivered some strong results there. On the other hand, his performances across the first three rounds of the Moto3 Junior World Championship include one victory, one podium and two additional top five finishes out of five races, which keep him at the top of the standings tied with Carlos Cano and Travis Borg. His 2026 results, the progress he has made over the years and the fact that he has been racing with the CFMOTO Aspar Team for several seasons make him one of the leading contenders not only for the Moto3 JWC title, but also for a Moto3 World Championship seat.
Leonardo Zanni has recorded one victory and two more top six finishes in the Moto3 JWC, but he also crashed in Race 2 at Barcelona and in Race 1 at Jerez while leading. With some even better race management than he has shown in the opening rounds, Zanni can genuinely challenge for the title and aim for a place in the world championship. Alongside his speed and steady improvement, the rider from Rome also benefits from the backing of the increasingly influential Momoven Racing, the team he has raced for since 2023 (when it was still sponsored by Finetwork), and whose team owner Javi Martínez has put great trust on him.
Leonardo Abruzzo should not be ruled out either. Abruzzo had some chances of moving up to the Moto3 World Championship already in 2026 (according to several reports, he was among the candidates to replace Noah Dettwiler at SIC58 Squadra Corse). In the end, however, he remained in the Moto3 Junior World Championship and secured a ride with the established Team Laglisse. However, the start to the season has not gone as expected for him, partly because of bad luck and two back-of-the-grid starts due to penalties.
Prediction: at least one rider among Pugliese, Zanni and Abruzzo will line up on the Moto3 World Championship grid in 2027.
Spain
Although Liberty Media is trying in some ways to limit the number of Spanish riders in the MotoGP paddkc, it will never be able to stop them from coming through. That is simply because Spain continues to produce lots of talented riders.
The standout is undoubtedly Beñat Fernández, who has claimed three victories and three additional podiums during the opening four rounds of the 2026 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup. He is now leading the standings with 148 points, 42 more than his closer rival Ryota Ogiwara. Setting aside his Sportbike World Championship campaign with KOVE (which is to be seen separately for several reasons), "Pelontxu" has everything required to win the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup. If he does, he would almost certainly secure a Moto3 World Championship ride with Red Bull KTM Ajo, most likely replacing Álvaro Carpe (who, according to Rosario Triolo, is strongly targeting a move up to Moto2).
Carlos Cano and Fernando Bujosa have also impressed in both the Rookies Cup and the JuniorGP Moto3 Junior World Championship. The two riders have a lot in common.
- Both won the European Talent Cup title, Cano in 2024 and Bujosa in 2025 (when he defeated Cano);
- Both were born in 2009;
- During their rookie seasons in both championships they have already claimed podium finishes, with Cano also taking victories.
Both have the potential and realistic chances of finishing in the top three in one of these series, which would earn them promotion to the Moto3 World Championship at just 17 years old. If they both achieve that, however, Cano would have stronger chances, since he is racing with CFMOTO Aspar team and he is followed by an important manager such as Emilio Alzamora.
David González cannot be completely ruled out either. He actually came very close to a Moto3 World Championship seat for this season, with considerably stronger prospects than Leonardo Abruzzo (at one stage, the deal was almost signed to race with IntactGP). However, the rider born in 2008 in Medina needs to recover from a tough first half of 2026, in which he has shown excellent speed but has also collected numerous DNF's due to mistakes and bad luck. Unless he produces an extraordinary second half of the season, his chances of reaching the world championship currently appear rather low.
Asia
Asia Talent Cup (now known as Moto4 Asia Cup), MotoJunior with the Junior Talent Team and then Honda Team Asia in the Moto3 World Championship. This pathway began in 2014 with the creation of the Asia Talent Cup and has since produced riders who reached MotoGP, including Somkiat Chantra and especially Ai Ogura, as well as more recent World Championship graduates such as Taiyo Furusato and Veda Pratama.
The 2026 season is proving no different. Three highly promising Asian riders are making headlines across MotoJunior and the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup.
Kiandra Ramadhipa (2009, Indonesia): after collecting podiums and victories in both the Rookies Cup and the European Talent Cup during 2025, he has already claimed one victory in the Rookies Cup in Race 2 at Jerez and another in the Moto3 Junior World Championship at Estoril during the first half of 2026. Although he has lacked consistency, the rider from Sleman has shown impressive speed and remains firmly in contention for the title, especially in the Moto3 JWC
Ryota Ogiwara (2008, Japan): following the opening four rounds of the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup, he already has two victories and another podium, placing him second in the standings behind Beñat Fernández. He has not been in such high positions in the Moto3 JWC, but the 2025 Asia Talent Cup winner has consistently finished inside the top ten and demonstrated solid consistency.
Kiattisak Singhapong (2005, Thailand): He is approaching his 21st birthday, but he has shown significant improvement compared with 2025. He secured his first Rookies Cup podium in Race 1 at Jerez, and in the Moto3 Junior World Championship he has kept a similar level as Ogiwara.
Prediction: At least one of these riders will step up to the Moto3 World Championship in 2027, and possibly even two of them.
In the Moto3 World Championship, Veda Pratama is being a huge sensation during his rookie season, and it cannot be ruled out that he could win at least one race this year and even move up to Moto2 in 2027 to replace Mario Aji (who has never truly impressed and has often suffered injuries). If Ramadhipa maintains his speed and finds the consistency that has missed so far, he should be able to finish in the top three of one of the two feeder series mentioned above and therefore reach the Moto3 World Championship at just 17 years old, effectively replacing Pratama. If that does not happen, either Singhapong or Ogiwara is likely to earn that seat, with Singhapong holding a slight advantage thanks to both his experience and his Thai passport (particularly valuable for Honda).
It is also worth keeping a close eye on Zen Mitani's performances in the Moto3 World Championship. Across the first ten Grands Prix, he has scored only two points, both solely because Adrián Fernández was disqualified from the opening six races. If Mitani does not receive another opportunity and he delivers a strong 2026 campaign, Ogiwara may have higher chances to join the Moto3 World Championship in 2027. It's unlikely to happen, but in this sport you never know...
Part 2 will be coming soon.
