Alex Rins has agreed a new two-year deal to remain with the factory Suzuki MotoGP team through to the end of the 2020 season.
Rins stepped up to the premier class last year with Suzuki having finished third in the 2016 Moto2 World Championship, though his maiden MotoGP season was blighted by injury.
Missing five races, Rins salvaged 16th in the standings having managed two top five results in the latter stages of the year.
Rins has so far only finished once from the first four races in 2018, though scored a debut podium in Argentina, and was running comfortably inside the top eight in the Qatar, Americas and Spanish Grands Prix before crashing.
“I’m very happy about this contract renewal,” he said.
“Even when I was still in Moto2, and I was planning to move to MotoGP, it was always the Suzuki project which looked brightest and most interesting in my eyes.
“My debut last year was complicated; there was my back injury in the 2016 Valencia test, then the ankle injury while training, and finally the arm injury in Austin.
“So after only two races we had already been through a very tough time, but I always felt the affection and support of Suzuki and the whole team.
“We were able to turn the situation around through being patient, working hard, and being consistent, and finally this year we got the first podium together with my third place in Argentina.
“But no matter the results, whether good or bad, the mood in the box has always been positive.
“The project that the team have set up for me is fantastic, I can fully trust the capabilities of the Company and the Team when it comes to development and improvement, and I’m sure we can continue to aim for big results.
“Now we only have to keep on working.”
The identity of Rins' team-mate for next year remains unknown at this stage, with current Ducati rider Jorge Lorenzo linked to a shock switch to the team having endured a largely difficult 22 races with the Italian marque.
However, Andrea Iannone's run of back-to-back podiums in Texas and at Jerez, as well as solid top 10 results in the opening two races, may just have boosted the Italian's chances of remaining with Suzuki, despite a lacklustre 2017.
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