With it effectively confirmed that Ai Ogura is replacing Alex Rins in the Yamaha MotoGP team for 2027, one of the paddock's most underrated racers faces the very real prospect of not having a race seat next year.

That's bad for Rins. But it's a golden opportunity for MotoGP's top two manufacturers going into the new rules era, and they should jump at this chance while they still can because he could solve a very real problem for either of them.

While 30-year-old Rins might have been far from his best in recent seasons as he deals with the long-lingering effects of his horrible 2023 crash at Mugello that mauled his leg, he's still got an awful lot to give at a crucial time for the series with the arrival of new 850cc machines - if he's signed as a test rider.

Rins has, after all, extensive development experience in MotoGP, with three different factories.

He was, first and foremost, the man who turned Suzuki's fledgling GSX-RR project from occasional podium contender with Maverick Vinales and Aleix Espargaro into a title-winning bike, leading development alongside first a somewhat distracted Andrea Iannone then rookie team-mate Joan Mir.

He then moved to Honda, and, despite suffering that serious injury only a few rounds into his only season there, still managed to score what's still Honda's most recent dry weather victory with a stunning success on the satellite LCR bike at Austin.

Rins's time at Yamaha has not been easy for him, with the lingering effects of his injury coinciding a difficult period for the factory, and the arrival of a brand new V4-powered bike. But it's worth noting that while his race-winning days now seem very far away, Rins remains in touching distance of team-mate Fabio Quartararo most weekends, hinting at a more chronic Yamaha issue than its riders' abilities.

And while that ability might not be set to find a space on the grid next season, there are at least two factories who could absolutely benefit from Rins's services right now.

First of those is Aprilia, which we know has been on the hunt for a fast test rider for at least nine months, as demonstrated by its open interest in securing the services of MotoGP race winner Miguel Olivera last year before his switch to factory BMW machinery in World Superbikes.

Aprilia is keen to reinforce its current one-man test rider line-up of Lorenzo Savadori, especially with the Italian spending much of 2025 not on testing duties but rather replacing the injured Jorge Martin. The situation has become something of a weakness in Aprilia's armoury given it's now one of the few teams with just a single tester, and plugging Rins in would surely only boost the RS-GP project even further.

Another manufacturer likely in the market in the near future for a second test rider is Ducati. Long-time development master Michele Pirro is now 39 years old, and has been considerably off the pace not only in his occasional MotoGP injury replacement rides but even in the CIV Italian Superbike championship that he dominated for years.

And while a transition to test riding might not be Rins's likely first ambition for 2027, retired race winners such as Dani Pedrosa and Aleix Espargaro have shown that there's a valid second career path after retirement from full-time racing, one that arguably only helps to enhance the CV by adding another chapter to illustrious careers.