The departure of Marc Marquez from Honda marked a turning point in the recent history of MotoGP. After years of domination, the Japanese brand saw its shooting star take off towards new horizons. The choice of Marquez, motivated by the desire to find competitive equipment and return to victory, paid off in his first season with Ducati. Meanwhile, Joan Mir's successor at the helm of the RC213V is rowing…
After a 2024 season marked by lackluster performances, Joan Mir surprised the MotoGP world by choosing to extend his contract with HRC until 2026despite results well below his expectations. While Marc Marquez relaunched his career at Gresini Ducatiscoring three victories and a factory contract at DucatiMir made a radically different choice: to stay and rebuild with
Honda.
Asked by Crash.net, Joan Mir acknowledged the harsh reality of his season. With only 21 points scored, he is far behind the leaders: “ it was certainly unexpected to have so much difficulty with this bike “, he admitted Mir. « I expected to get better results in the short term,
but for some reason we haven't made any progress in terms of performance. We are too far from other manufacturers. »
Despite everything, the Spaniard remains optimistic. “ We're getting better, we're getting closer, but it's not enough.
I still believe in the project and it's a question of timewith the amount of work we do, to get where we want to be. »
Mir also welcomed the structural changes at Hondanotably the arrival of
Albesian Roman d’Aprilia as MotoGP technical director. “ They understood that what they had been doing so far was working for another era.
We need more European engineers. When you look at the details of a Honda MotoGP, it's always incredible. But in terms of performance we are behind. »
Joan Mir: « we need the Japanese, we need the Europeans. This mix at Honda will be our strength »
The hope lies in this mixture of Japanese know-how and European expertise. “ We need the Japanese, we need the Europeans. This mixture will be our strength. »
Contrary to MarquezMir chose to stay to give meaning to his two difficult years at
Honda. « For me, if I change manufacturers now, I will start from scratch and I will have the feeling that these two years will have been for nothing. And the happiness I will feel if it works at Honda is immense. So I'm going to try to do it. »
After the departure of
Marc MarquezMir joined the former technical team of number 93, led by Santi Hernandez. Despite mixed results, the Spaniard is full of praise for his team. “ They have a lot of technical experience and are also strategically fantastic. I really enjoy working with them, even in this situation – so imagine if we got closer to our goals! »
He's also reduced the number of crashes this season, a move he attributes to a better understanding of the bike's limits and aerodynamic adjustments. “ We are improving, and this process will not be helped by constant falls. This means doing things with the right mindset and being healthy for the bike where it actually is. »
While Honda prepares for the 2025 season with significant technical concessions and a new look following the departure of its historic sponsor
RepsolJoan Mir remains convinced that his patience and loyalty will ultimately bear fruit. The road still seems long, but the Spaniard is ready to take up the challenge.
