British Superbike star Jake Dixon will make his full-time Moto2 debut in 2019, after agreeing a deal to join the Angel Nieto KTM team.
21-year-old Dixon made his maiden Moto2 appearances with the Intact GP team at Silverstone last year as replacement for the injured Marcel Schrotter, finishing a respectable 25th.
2017 also saw Dixon make his full-time debut in BSB with Lee Hardy Racing, taking two wins at Knockhill on his way to sixth in the standings, while adding a further three victories to his tally this season to move him into second in the series currently.
Linked to a Moto2 switch for next year for some time, Dixon has now been confirmed by the Nieto team, who will return to the class in 2019 after its MotoGP grid slots were taken over by the SIC Petronas Yamaha squad.
“I want to say thank you to Jorge Martínez “Aspar” and the Ángel Nieto Team for believing in me and giving me this opportunity,” said Dixon.
“This is a team with a lot of experience and several world titles behind them and I am looking forward to being part of a new project with the Ángel Nieto Team and KTM.
“The first season will be for gathering as much information as possible, learning as much as I can and then fighting for the championship after that.
“I’d also like to say thanks to RAF Regular & Reserve Kawasaki, my team for the past two seasons, for everything they have done for me and to everybody that has helped make it possible for me to make the step up to the Moto2 World Championship.”
Dixon is the second British rider confirmed for next year's Moto2 campaign, with Sam Lowes returning to Gresini next year, while current Speed Up rider Danny Kent's options to remain in the class appear slim following a fruitless 2018 for the former Moto3 world champion.
In Moto3, the Nieto team will continue to field Le Mans race winner Albert Arenas, while the team's CEV Junior World Championship rider Raul Fernandez will join Arenas next year.