The American outfit, Trackhouse Racing Team, has taken over the grid slots that were previously held by the RNF Racing team, which folded at the conclusion of the 2023 campaign.
RNF Racing, led by Razlan Razali, faced exclusion from the 2024 grid by MotoGP promoter Dorna Sports due to “repeated infractions and breaches of the Participation Agreement affecting the public image of MotoGP.”
This decision was a result of the title partner and majority team shareholder, CryptoDATA, failing to settle outstanding bills with the championship and various suppliers.
In an interview with Motorsport.com following the announcement of his team’s collapse, Razali, who retained a 40% minor stake in the squad, attributed the team’s folding to CryptoDATA.
NASCAR outfit Trackhouse Racing had initially been considering a MotoGP entry for 2025 but expedited the process for 2024, taking over the vacant RNF team. As a result, Trackhouse Racing becomes Aprilia’s satellite outfit, inheriting RNF’s personnel and structure, along with riders Miguel Oliveira and Raul Fernandez.
The formal announcement of Trackhouse Racing’s MotoGP team took place in December, and the 2024 season was officially launched in Los Angeles with a red, white, and blue color scheme—a development of the livery introduced when the team initially entered MotoGP.
Trackhouse Racing is establishing a closer working relationship with Aprilia compared to RNF, and it is set to field a factory bike for Oliveira in 2024. RNF had previously run two-year-old RS-GPs for Oliveira and Fernandez, achieving a best result of fourth at the British Grand Prix with the former.
The entry of Trackhouse Racing into MotoGP aligns with the series’ efforts to expand in the North American market, signaled by the appointment of former NBA chief Dan Rossomondo as Dorna’s chief commercial officer by Bridgepoint Capital, the owner of Dorna, last year.
The team is scheduled to make its home debut at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin for the Americas GP on the weekend of April 12-14, marking round four on the calendar.
Trackhouse Racing’s MotoGP debut is set for March 10 in Qatar, and the team already faces a penalty from a collision involving Oliveira in the Qatar GP last November, which resulted in a long lap penalty. Due to injury, Oliveira’s penalty carries over into the new campaign.
Trackhouse Racing becomes the fourth team this year to unveil its 2024 livery, following Gresini, the factory Ducati squad, and VR46, all of whom held their launch events in the previous week.