French MotoGP star Johann Zarco feels he is ready to go back to a factory ride in 2021 just a year after walking out of the works KTM team.

Zarco was so unhappy with the Austrian manufacturer, he asked to be released from his deal in the middle of last season but now, after being told he will can remain with Ducati for a further year, his thoughts have turned to the seat next to Jack Miller.

It is believed that Zarco has an outside chance of getting the job with most of the smart money going on youngster Pecco Bagnaia but a return by Jorge Lorenzo has not been ruled out by Bologna bosses.

"It's pretty good news that I know I can continue with Ducati next year. But they still need time to decide where to put the riders, and clearly the factory bike is always a dream bike," said Zarco.

"And with what I learned already from my experience in a factory team and the mistakes I did also, because I did a few mistakes, I think I would be ready to go on the factory bike.

But first of all I need to do more podiums and fight more for - not for victory - but be really constant, fighting for the podiums to deserve the factory bike.

"The Ducati team are losing Dovizioso, and they can have it with Jack, but if they have two riders able to fight for podiums, this would be the main thing.

"Clearly the dream is the factory bike but staying with Ducati is the main thing, because a few months before we were just thinking with the Avintia team, it would have been a very complicated year and we see that with the support of Ducati I am doing well.

"It's pretty good for the team and then me now I have the future a little bit more fixed, so I can only smile."