JOAN MIR SAYS HONDA MUST ACT QUICKLY AFTER ARAGON STRUGGLES

Honda’s factory riders Joan Mir and Luca Marini had a difficult Aragón weekend, with Mir in particular struggling to find any meaningful pace. The Spaniard finished 16th in the Sprint and 12th in the Grand Prix, while Marini was 14th in the main race. In contrast, Honda’s LCR team stole the headlines: Johann Zarco, returning after more than three months out, posted a 9th place in one session and 15th in another, and in the Grand Prix he even scored a point despite taking a double long-lap. Rookie Diogo Moreira also stood out as the top HRC rider, taking 7th and 9th.

Mir was candid about why Aragón offered little to celebrate. “The lack of performance we had this weekend is not a surprise,” he said, but added that what truly concerned him was the size of the drop compared to the previous year. “What worries me personally is that I was more than ten seconds slower than last year.” He said the team needs to identify the root cause quickly, especially because he could not find any advantage over his rivals. “We must understand why I had such big difficulties—especially on the brakes. Compared to the others, I had no advantage anywhere; I had problems everywhere.”

When asked which parts of the lap were worse than in 2025, Mir pointed to braking and turn entry. “There are some areas. For example, when braking and when entering the corners. It wasn’t good,” he said. He also described grip as a broader issue, but with a specific twist: “Grip is not normally one of our strengths, but usually we’re not bad at corner entry—this weekend it was a nightmare.”

With the season now well underway—Mir sitting 18th in the standings after 13 rounds with 33 points—his focus shifted to damage control and learning as fast as possible. “If we want to enjoy the last part of the season, we need to understand as quickly as possible where our problems are. Then we have to work on a solution. That’s my conclusion from Aragón,” the 2020 MotoGP world champion said. He stressed that finishing races matters both for results and for confidence, noting that he has had too many DNFs this year. “If I’m not able to make the difference and I can’t ride the way I want, then it’s important at least to finish the races—in this season I’ve had many races where I didn’t see the chequered flag. Finishing races is also very important for a rider’s confidence.”

Looking ahead, Mir still has nine MotoGP events with Honda. He will ride the Ducati Desmosedici for the first time during the Valencia test on December 1, before moving to Gresini Racing in 2027.