RW rider Sasaki is leaving: Why the hugely talented rider is leaving the paddock

When Ayumu Sasaki moved up to the Moto2 World Championship for the 2026 season as runner-up in the world championship and a Grand Prix winner, the Japanese rider was regarded as one of the greatest hopes in the MotoGP paddock, not least because the often over-eager Sasaki had recently shown significantly improved consistency whilst riding for Peter Öttl’s team – and, as winner of the 2016 Red Bull Rookies Cup, had received the highest accolade for young talent.

But the Moto2 venture has failed. One thing is certain: after three years in the intermediate World Championship category, Sasaki will be leaving the Grand Prix paddock. SPEEDWEEK.com has already reported that the 26-year-old will continue his career in the Supersport World Championship in 2027 and, as an officially supported Triumph rider, will once again be riding the well-known three-cylinder bike from England.

During the Malaysian Grand Prix, the rider for the Dutch RW Racing team was not yet able to officially confirm the move. At the same time, Sasaki explained to SPEEDWEEK.com why a change is inevitable.

Finishing between 10th and 15th offers no prospects for the future

“Even though I haven’t signed yet – one thing is certain: I won’t be riding here next year. I can’t say anything negative about my current team, but the situation has reached an impasse,” said Sasaki. He continued: “It would have been possible to carry on with RW – but only under the exact same conditions as at present – and I didn’t want that. Time has shown that I simply can’t finish any higher than 10th–15th. And that’s not what I want – nor is it what I’m capable of. Perhaps I’m not the fastest Moto2 rider in the world – but I’m certainly better than my current position.”

The three-time GP winner concluded: “So I need to make a change. And as I have no chance of moving further up the order in Moto2, I’ll be moving on – I expect to be riding a bike capable of winning by 2027.”

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Indeed – Sasaki’s record in the Moto2 World Championship is sobering. After a tough first year and numerous crashes at the VR46 Mastercamp (26th in the World Championship), things didn’t improve with the move to RW either. No consistency, no podium finish in almost two years and no breakthrough into the top 20 of the overall standings.