The Austrian Grand Prix revealed, once again, the extent of the crisis hitting Honda in MotoGP. Far from the podiums and the expected results, the HRC drivers, including Joan Mir, now seem condemned to playing second fiddle. Takaaki Nakagami was the only one to save the Japanese manufacturer's honor by scoring a measly two points at the Red Bull Ring, underlining the factory's inability to progress this season. Honda appears to have thrown in the towel for 2024, now focusing on a hypothetical resurrection in 2025.
Joan mir, 19th during the Sprint and 17th in the main race, gave an uncompromising assessment of his Austrian weekend. “ It was a tough race, a real challenge to finish it,” he admitted, falling 40 seconds behind Pecco Bagnaia, the winner of the race. Mir, visibly at the end of his nerves, added: “ normally, I always try to be optimistic, but it took me a long time to get to the end. When I wanted to leave with the group, the front tire overheated and I had to slow down. In the end he fell a lot. This Sunday, we have demonstrated how late we are. »
Despite the disaster that this Grand Prix was for Honda, Mir tried to draw something positive out of it, but his enthusiasm remained limited. He spoke about the new engine configuration introduced by Honda in June : " I can only validate the engine in this configuration because it was a little better than in the last races, but it's still worse than at the beginning of the year"
Joan Mir: “ the test in Misano? it will above all be a question of having a precise idea of what works and what does not work for 2025 "
While Honda prepare a test in Misano on Wednesday, Mir doubts it will change much for this season. “ we have a busy few days, hope it pays off in the short term, but to be realistic, it is above all a question of having a precise idea of what works and what does not work for 2025"
Joan mir did not hesitate to point out what, according to him, should be the benchmark for Honda: Ducati that holds the top spot. " They have done a magnificent job with the Desmosedici, a motorcycle that has reached a spectacular level,” he declared, emphasizing that “ their real secret is the way they unload their horses on the asphalt, and they also have good grip"
And he insists: “ the Ducati is beastly, this looks like a different category. At the exit of the third turn, they gave us three tenths"
With such a bleak record, Honda finds itself faced with an emergency: either they redress the situation quickly, or they risk sinking even deeper into the crisis. For Mir, which stagnates at 19th position in the General classification with only 13 points, the situation is serious.
MotoGP, Austria J3: results
Austrian GP MotoGP race
MotoGP General Ranking
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