With the imminent announcement that Andrea Dovizioso has snaffled the remaining factory Ducati MotoGP seat from under the nose of Monster Yamaha team-mate Cal Crutchlow, the Britain looks to have a brace of options in the blue riband class.

First off, he can remain in the satellite Tech3 squad and partner fellow Brit and rookie Bradley Smith or the Coventry man may have the option to join a new initiative called the Junior Team, currently being evaluated by Ducati boss Alessandro Cicognani.

It would work along the same lines as Tech3 but have two factory-spec bikes in one team instead of Pramac running one and AB Cardion running another. It would also run under the watchful eye of the factory and carry out testing and development work.

Cicognani told our friends at Motomatters.com he would be looking at younger riders to bring forward and the team have already tested Scott Redding and Andrea Iannone at Mugello, with the Briton lapping in the 1'50s bracket but there may be space for Crutchlow, who had been offered, verbally at least, a place in the factory team a few weeks ago but Rossi's defection back to Yamaha has shaken up the placings.

There has also been some talk of Ducati inventing a team for the British rider, run by Ducati Corse to sit alongside the factory effort with a single-bike Junior team also in the paddock.

Tech3 boss Herve Poncharal has said there is still a space for Crutchlow at his existing team and it would be the first all-British premier class line-up of the modern era but it also isn't the works bike Crutchlow so craves.