Andrea Iannone Returns to MotoGP Paddock and Joins Harley-Davidson Bagger World Cup

• Iannone will compete for Indonesian team Nitiracing starting at the Italian GP in Mugello (May 29 to 31)
• The bagger racing machines are based on the Harley-Davidson Road Glide and produce over 200 hp
• After the failed World Superbike project Cainam Racing, Iannone finds a new competitive home

Andrea Iannone is back in the Grand Prix paddock. Not on a MotoGP machine, not on a Superbike, but on a race-prepared Harley-Davidson. The Italian from Vasto will line up for Indonesian team Nitiracing starting at the second round of the FIM Harley-Davidson Bagger World Cup at the Italian Grand Prix in Mugello. It marks his first race appearance in 2026 and a chapter that virtually no one saw coming.

Why was Andrea Iannone without a ride in 2026?

Iannone had lost his seat at GoEleven after the 2025 season, with the team signing Lorenzo Baldassarri instead. His plan to compete in the 2026 World Superbike Championship with his own project Cainam Racing (the name is his nickname “Maniac” spelled backwards) collapsed before the season even began. The team, led by Iannone and his manager Gelete Nieto, missed deadlines for ordering the Ducati machines and participated in neither the pre-season tests nor the season opener at Phillip Island. The project never progressed beyond its announcement.

This left the one-time MotoGP race winner without a competitive ride at the international level for the first time since his 2024 comeback. According to Italian media, a move to the Bagger World Cup had already been discussed as a possible alternative before Cainam Racing definitively fell through.

What is the Harley-Davidson Bagger World Cup?

The FIM Harley-Davidson Bagger World Cup is a newly created racing series for 2026, held as a support event at selected MotoGP weekends. The series effectively replaces the suspended MotoE class as a support championship. Six rounds with two races each are scheduled for the inaugural season. The machines are specially converted Harley-Davidson Road Glide motorcycles based on the Grand American Touring platform. Developed by Harley-Davidson Factory Racing, they feature a modified Milwaukee-Eight 131R V-Twin engine producing over 200 hp (over 147 kW). According to the manufacturer, they can reach speeds of up to 300 km/h (186 mph).

The season opener took place in late March at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin (USA). In the first race in the series’ history, young Australian Archie McDonald from Joe Rascal Racing took the win after his teammate Eric Granado crashed while leading. Jake Lewis (Saddleman Race Development) finished second, Filippo Rovelli (ParkinGO Team) third. In Sunday’s second race, Oscar Gutierrez of Nitiracing, Iannone’s future teammate, won. Gutierrez overtook both Joe Rascal riders in the second half of the race and set the series’ lap record at COTA on lap five with a time of 2:12.348 minutes. McDonald crossed the finish line second but received a three-second penalty for failing to complete the mandatory long lap after twice exceeding track limits. This promoted Granado to second place.

After the first race weekend, McDonald leads the overall standings with 41 points. Gutierrez and Jake Lewis follow with 33 points each, Granado sits fourth with 30, and Rovelli fifth with 27.

What does Iannone’s entry mean for Nitiracing and the series?

With Iannone, the grid grows from nine to ten riders. Nitiracing expands its roster to three motorcycles: alongside Gutierrez and former Moto2 rider Dimas Ekky Pratama from Indonesia, Iannone joins as the third man. This likely gives the Indonesian team one of the strongest lineups in the young series.

For the championship itself, signing a name like Iannone sends an important signal. Jeffrey Schuessler, Director of Global Racing Programs at Harley-Davidson, describes it as a clear statement of the series’ ambitions: “Having a rider like Andrea join the championship shows what we’re building with the Bagger World Cup. He’s a proven winner at the highest level, with the talent and personality to bring even more energy to the grid. These are exactly the kinds of profiles we want to attract as the championship continues to grow.”

Team manager Angela Khuu sees the signing as a logical next step after the successful season opener in Austin: “With Oscar and Dimas, we already have a strong foundation. Adding a rider with Andrea’s experience and speed gives us an additional dimension as a team.”

How does Iannone’s career fit into this?

Andrea Iannone, born August 9, 1989, is one of the most recognized figures in motorcycle racing over the past decade. He began his World Championship career in 2005 in the 125cc class, moved to Moto2 in 2010, and won a total of eight races with three third-place finishes in the overall standings. In 2013, he stepped up to MotoGP with the Pramac Ducati team and quickly earned a spot on the factory squad, which he joined in 2015.

His greatest individual achievement in MotoGP was the victory at the 2016 Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring, delivering Ducati’s first premier-class win since 2010. After the internal rivalry with teammate Andrea Dovizioso, which culminated in a consequential collision in Argentina, Iannone lost his factory seat to Jorge Lorenzo and moved to Suzuki in 2017. There, he scored four podium finishes across two seasons before joining Aprilia in 2019.

At the end of the 2019 season, Iannone tested positive for drostanolone, an anabolic steroid, following the Malaysian Grand Prix. The FIM initially imposed an 18-month ban. After a failed appeal, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) extended the suspension to four years, retroactive to December 17, 2019. Iannone denied taking the substance and cited contaminated meat in Malaysia, but CAS found the arguments insufficient.

In 2024, the Italian returned via the World Superbike Championship, riding for GoEleven Ducati and impressing with a podium finish in his very first race at Phillip Island. At Aragon, he won his first race after the ban. Overall, he achieved five podium finishes in the 2024 season and finished eighth in the overall standings. In 2025, he added three more podiums, though he slipped to ninth overall. In parallel, he briefly returned to MotoGP in 2024: as an injury replacement for Fabio Di Giannantonio, he competed for the VR46 Ducati team at the Malaysian Grand Prix in Sepang, his 119th MotoGP start and the first in five years.

How is Iannone approaching the new project?

Iannone is heading into his first bagger race without any testing whatsoever. While the other riders were able to gain experience with the machines during pre-season testing in Austin, Mugello will be his first contact with the racing Harley.

“I like challenges that push beyond the comfort zone. This is something completely new for me, and that’s exactly why I said yes,” Iannone explained. I’ve always admired Harley-Davidson and the community of H-D fans and riders. For all of us, adrenaline, a spectacular show, and genuine passion for riding play the central role.”

On the unconventional racing machines, he said: “The H-D racing machines have character, they command respect, and at the same time they want to be pushed hard. In that regard, we’re quite similar, and I think that’s why this project suits me so well.”

Iannone does not see going in without a test session as a disadvantage, but rather as an expression of his mentality: “I’m going into my first race without having tested the bike, but the others have an advantage over me anyway. I seek the challenge and I embrace it. Mugello is the perfect place for my first start, in front of Italian fans, on a track I know inside out. I’m not coming here just to participate; I want to learn the motorcycle quickly and be competitive right away.”

Iannone also emphasized his personal connection to the team: “On a more personal level, I feel a strong bond with Indonesia. I deeply appreciate the people there and I’m incredibly excited to get started together with Nitiracing and such a community.”

What does the 2026 Bagger World Cup calendar look like?

After the season opener in Austin, five more race weekends are scheduled exclusively in Europe. The remaining dates at a glance:

Mugello (Italy): May 29 to 31, Assen (Netherlands): June 26 to 28, Silverstone (Great Britain): August 7 to 9, MotorLand Aragon (Spain): August 28 to 30, Red Bull Ring (Austria): September 18 to 20.

Iannone will compete in all remaining rounds. At Mugello, he will face Filippo Rovelli from ParkinGO Team as another Italian on the grid. For Italian fans, having two homegrown riders should provide additional identification with the new series.

The MotoGP weekend at Mugello will also feature a corresponding support program around the Bagger World Cup: a Harley-Davidson Village, publicly accessible Bagger World Cup pit garages, and a dedicated grandstand at Correntaio are designed to bring fans close to the action.

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➜ This article is part of our comprehensive overview: 2026 MotoGP Season: The Complete Overview – Teams, Riders, Calendar & Championship Standings. Find all key information on this topic in one place.