Qatar will not be a Grand Prix like any other for Honda. The Japanese company is celebrating 30 years of partnership with main sponsor Repsol, but after a long time it will return to having a livery that marries the colors of HRC more than those of the Spanish oil giant.
But the most important news is in the garage, because it will be the first real race without Marc Marquez. Some may also point out that he was never there in 2020 due to the serious injury to his right arm suffered in Jerez, but this time it's not an absence. The eight-time world champion emigrated to those shores called Ducati and Gresini Racing to seek redemption after too many years of disappointments.
In his place, however, there is a driver for whom being part of this team is an honor and something he has dreamed of since he was a child, since he saw his older brother defend its colours. Even if the RC213V is not as competitive as the Ducati he was riding until a few months ago and, indeed, will require a lot of work to get back on top, Luca Marini seems really eager to open this new chapter in his career.
“It's time to get back to racing, and now I can do so as a member of Team Repsol Honda. It's another exciting milestone in the journey I've been on since the end of last year. Every time we work together as a team we manage to find something and to take further steps forward”, said Marini in the press release released by Honda to present the first round of the season.
“This first weekend will give us the opportunity to fine-tune some details of the test and to better understand how to work together during a race weekend. We have work to do and I am eager to start as an official Honda rider,” he added, aware of the fact that we will have to work head-on to try to bring the golden wing brand back to the top.
Joan Mir, Repsol Honda Team
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
Next to him, on the other side of the garage, there will be the confirmed Joan Mir, who in turn is eager to redeem a first year with Repsol colors which was disappointing to say the least. However, the 2020 world champion also seems confident that he can count on a bike that if nothing else seems to be more rideable than the 2023, even if we will have the definitive test this weekend.
“Another season has finally arrived! We are always excited to start the year and get back to racing, because there is nothing better than racing with a MotoGP. We had some time between the test and this one. weekend to continue training and get everything in place to start the year,” Mir said.
“I'm satisfied with how everything is progressing and I'm confident that we can continue to improve during the Qatar GP. It will be a weekend dedicated to building and capitalizing on important moments, our goal is to start stronger than last season to start the year in a positive way”, he concluded.
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