Romano Fenati · Biography

Romano Fenati was born on 15 January 1996 in Ascoli Piceno, in the Marche region of Italy, and learned his trade in minimoto racing, where he made his debut in 2003 and took part in several national trophies. A road racer, he competed in the Grand Prix World Championship from 2012 to 2023, mostly in Moto3 with two spells in Moto2. He won 13 Grands Prix, all in the lightweight class, and finished runner-up in the 2017 Moto3 world championship.

Early years and first titles

After minimoto, he moved up in 2010 to the 125GP class of the Italian championship on an Aprilia run by Ellegi Racing and finished 13th. That same year he was 14th in the single-race European Championship. In 2011 he made a clear step forward: he was runner-up in the Italian series with four wins and won the race at Albacete that decided the European 125cc title. That result opened the door to the world championship with the Italian Motorcycle Federation’s team.

World championship debut with Team Italia

In 2012, the first season of the Moto3 class, Fenati made his debut with Team Italia FMI on an FTR-Honda. He finished second in his first Grand Prix, in Qatar, and at the second round, in Jerez, he took his first world championship win. He ended the year sixth, with 136 points and four podiums. In 2013 he stayed with the same outfit, renamed San Carlo Team Italia, but failed to reach the podium and finished tenth on 73 points.

The Sky Racing Team VR46 years

In 2014 he joined Sky Racing Team VR46, Valentino Rossi’s squad, to ride a KTM. He won in Argentina, a week later in Jerez, and then at Mugello and Aragón. With four wins in 2014 and six podiums he was fifth on 176 points. In 2015 he scored the same number of points, won at Le Mans, took his first pole position and finished fourth. That year, during warm-up at the Argentine Grand Prix, he kicked Niklas Ajo and switched off his engine at the practice start, which sent him to the back of the grid for the race. In 2016 he won at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, but in August, at the Austrian Grand Prix, the team dropped him after a disagreement with team manager Uccio Salucci. On 16 August 2016 VR46 terminated his contract for that season and the next, citing behaviour in conflict with team policy. He finished tenth, with 93 points from nine races.

Runner-up with Marinelli Snipers

In 2017 he raced for Marinelli Rivacold Snipers on a Honda. He won in Austin, Misano and Motegi, stood on the podium eight times and collected 248 points to finish 2017 Moto3 world runner-up, behind Joan Mir. On the back of that season he stepped up to Moto2 in 2018 with the same team on a Kalex. On 9 September 2018, at the San Marino Grand Prix, he grabbed Stefano Manzi’s front brake lever at high speed. He was disqualified and handed a two-race ban; the team ended his contract and Forward Racing cancelled the deal it had signed with him for 2019. Fenati announced his retirement on 12 September and, after appearing before the FIM on 18 September, had his licence withdrawn for the rest of 2018. He finished the year 21st in Moto2 with 14 points.

Return to Moto3

In 2019 he went back to Moto3 with VNE Snipers on a Honda and won the 2019 Austrian Grand Prix, his only podium in a season he closed in 16th place. In 2020 he moved to Sterilgarda Max Racing Team on a Husqvarna and won the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix at Misano, finishing 14th with 77 points. In 2021, with the same team, he took three poles, four podiums and victory at the 2021 British Grand Prix at Silverstone, ending the year fifth on 160 points.

Final world championship seasons

In 2022 he returned to Moto2 with Speed Up Racing on a Boscoscuro, but in May the team let him go after six races in which he had scored 7 points. In 2023 he raced in Moto3 again with Rivacold Snipers Team on a Honda; he missed several races through injury and finished 20th with 35 points. He did not compete in the world championship in 2024 or 2025. Between 2012 and 2023 he made 179 Grand Prix starts, with 13 wins, 29 podiums and 7 pole positions.