JOAN MIR MAKES TOP 10 IN SILVERSTONE Q2 ON HONDA

Joan Mir opened the British Grand Prix weekend with a surprise performance in qualifying, delivering the fastest Honda effort in the decisive Q2 phase at Silverstone. In the one-hour session that set the top 10, Mir found strong rhythm on his RC213V and secured eighth place, making him the quickest of the MotoGP Hondas. His teammate Luca Marini was less fortunate, finishing 12th and missing out by roughly half a second.

Mir’s pace stood out not only for where it placed him, but for how it compared to recent form. Speedweek reported that he was more than a second quicker than his 2025 qualifying time, even though that improvement still wasn’t enough to reach Q2’s fastest benchmark. His best lap in the session was 1:57.111, which also put him ahead of the lap record that had been changing hands throughout the time training.

Asked to explain where the sudden speed came from, Mir said he couldn’t pinpoint a single factor. “I was self surprised. I looked at the intermediate times on the monitor and then also on the instruments. I didn’t expect it at all—maybe even a 1:56 lap could have been possible. It shows me that the circuit might be covering some weaknesses of the machine. I don’t know if that’s really the case, but I’ll take what I have and play the cards we have.” He offered one possible technical reason, suggesting that the rear tyre could be contributing more stability than before. “The rear tyre seems to give us a bit more stability this year. It might also be related to temperatures—everything comes together—and I’m happy with how it is.”

Looking ahead to Sunday, Mir tempered expectations while still setting a clear target. “I’d be very surprised if we can go much further forward. I think we’re at the point where we are. In Q2, getting into the top five would be the crazy thing. But the goal now has to be a place in the first three rows. If we put everything together correctly for the races, then there’s a chance for good results.”

A points finish would also matter for the championship picture. Speedweek noted that Mir has gone scoreless in nine of the last 12 races, leaving him 18th overall among the four Honda factory riders—despite the fact that LCR rider Johann Zarco has been out of action since Barcelona.

The weekend’s build-up also included a Sprint that Mir described as disappointing despite extracting the maximum. Starting from 12th, he worked his way up to seventh, saying: “At least we got the maximum out of it. But P7 is not a result we should be proud of.” He explained that he attacked less early because he couldn’t match the pace of Pedro Acosta and Alex Marquez, adding that he had vibrations affecting how the bike behaved in corners. “I had vibrations, which influenced the bike’s behavior in corners and normally you destroy the tyres if you try to compensate for it. But I didn’t do that—I rode more controlled.”

Mir felt that approach left him enough in reserve to push later: “That meant I still had enough reserves in the second half to attack Marc Marquez and Pedro Acosta, who were deeper in problems. That’s how I earned seventh. I think I rode cleverly, because that was the best possible result for us.”

Speedweek also reported that Mir’s qualifying outcome was affected by a misunderstanding involving an aero-related warning during his last lap. He said he saw a yellow panel while behind Marc Marquez when he lifted for his fastest run, but only later realised it wasn’t a yellow flag. “I drew the wrong conclusion from the situation.” Mir added that it was “only an aero part and not from the chassis,” and that the pilots would need to raise the issue in the Safety Commission. He suggested that with a clearer situation he could have improved by “two or three places.”