Hector Barbera will race for the Pramac Ducati team in MotoGP next year. The 25-year-old Spaniard, who has raced for the Aspar Ducati squad for the past two years, will make his first appearance on one of Paolo Campinoti's bikes during Tuesday's test at Valencia.
Barbera, who finished 11th in this year's championship, believes that switching teams will enable him to race farther toward the front of the grid on a more consistent basis.
"This will be my third year riding a Ducati and I want to thank the Pramac Racing Team and Paolo Campinoti, who have given me this opportunity.
"In the last two seasons, I have not achieved the results I wanted and I hope that now, after the experience I have gained, I can get better results. Both I and Pramac Racing have high aims. I am coming from one of the hardest moments of my career and I want a change.
"Ducati is working hard, this was a difficult year but I am sure that with the test on Tuesday and Wednesday and especially with the winter break, where they will have time to work, they will be able to give us a very competitive bike at the beginning of next season."
Team boss Campinoti, who fielded Randy de Puniet and the now-retired Loris Capirossi this year, believes Barbera's signing will help bring the team forward.
"We are confident that his experience riding a Ducati in the last two years may take him on to achieve an even better season with us," he said.