MotoGP

Mir tested the prototype RC213V chassis at Misano after the San Marino Grand Prix earlier this month and described the new bike as a step in the right direction, even as he felt it failed to deliver the kind of performance gains he wants for 2024.

Following the test session, Mir didn't rule out the possibility of racing the 2024 Honda in the final part of the season but stopped short of revealing where the prototype could make its debut.

Speaking at the Buddh International Circuit on Thursday, Mir revealed that he had held talks with Honda about racing the RC213V as early as this weekend's India round.

However, apparent logistical issues with shipping the bike from Misano to Asia prevented the marque from giving its 2024 prototype an early debut in India and will now hopefully do so in Japan.

"We didn't receive the bike here," he said. "Honestly, I expected it but we don't have it. We will make the weekend as the previous one, so we will struggle, that's it.

"They said they had some trouble on the transport to Japan because they wanted first to ship to Japan, then here [to India].

"It's a shame we don't have it here, but I hope to have it in Japan to be able to make more laps to understand.

"If it's the right direction it will be very, very helpful for Honda.

"I think it makes sense [to race the new bike], if you're allowed to go with that prototype because we know the potential of this bike, I know I can hope.

"So it means if I feel better, we can get some important information to say, 'In that area we improved a lot and there we are not so good'.

This weekend is supposed to mark the inaugural MotoGP round in India at the former Formula 1 venue Buddh International Circuit.

The event has already faced numerous bouts of uncertainty, as requested track works were only recently finished, and the homologation process has yet to be finalised.

Aprilia's Aleix Espargaro told Motorsport.com recently that the riders are standing united on the subject of track safety and are due to inspect it themselves on Thursday, before voting on whether to race or not.

Most of the paddock was meant to fly to India today (Tuesday 19 September), but many have been turned away from flights having not received the necessary visa.

The factory Honda squad and both its riders, including eight-time world champion Marquez, are among this list.

Marquez posted on his social media: "Flight delayed due to lack of visa for India, so we're going to pedal for a little while," referring to a picture of himself on his mountain bike.

He now hopes to be able to board a flight to India on Wednesday, assuming his visa arrives.

Takaaki Nakagami, Team LCR Honda Nakagami made his MotoGP debut with LCR in 2018 and has remained with the outfit ever since.

His side of the LCR garage, which is backed by Idemitsu, has been set up specifically for a Japanese rider, which has offered him job security.

His position had become a bit more uncertain over the past two seasons as Japanese young gun Ai Ogura, who races in Moto2 currently with Honda Team Asia, has been repeatedly linked to an LCR move.

Ogura elected to stay in Moto2 for 2023 and will continue in the class next season, after signing a deal to join the new MT Helmets squad – which will step up from Moto3 to take Pons Racing’s grid slots.

Throughout Honda’s miserable 2023, Nakagami has been its most consistent rider, scoring 35 points.

In recent weeks, Nakagami’s future with Honda and LCR looked more assure, with the squad announcing on Tuesday morning that it will continue together for 2024.

"I'm proud to count on Nakagami for another year,” team boss Lucio Cecchinello said.

“He's a fast rider who can get good results, and alongside HRC, we believe it's time to keep pushing, as he's one of the most experienced guys with this bike.

“We will give our best to fight for the positions we aim for.”

Hungary on the horizon for #MotoGP! 🇭🇺🙌 Dorna Sports and the Hungarian Mobility Development Agency are working together on the homologation of the Hungaroring and the new Balaton Park Circuit

India is scheduled to host its first-ever MotoGP round this weekend at the Buddh International Circuit which was built to host the Formula 1 race between 2011 and 2013, when it was dropped from the calendar.

Concerns about track safety have been brought up in recent months, as the venue required an upgrade to extend the run-off areas and to carry out a partial resurfacing.

The most concerning parts of the circuit are walls which are placed just three metres from the asphalt itself, with the Turn 3 barriers one of the biggest safety issues despite it being one of the slowest corners of the track.

In recent weeks, Espargaro had expressed concerns about the level of safety at the circuit, which was yet to be homologated by FIM as of last week.

Espargaro says riders are facing the weekend more united than before following a number of meetings to discuss, among other topics, setting a minimum base salary for MotoGP riders.

And the Aprilia rider suggested they are all on the same page on safety concerns ahead of the Indian GP.

"In India, all the riders together are going to walk the track before we get on the bike to understand the situation," he said.

To close up a grey area in the rule book over tyre pressures, after numerous teams were found last year to have been running under the recommended minimum set by Michelin, MotoGP introduced a stricter enforcement on the matter for 2023.

From the British GP, the rule was officially mandated, whereby riders must run at the minimum front (1.88 bar) and rear (1.7 bar) pressures for at least 50% of a grand prix and 30% of a sprint.

The rule was ostensibly brought in as a safety measure on the advice from Michelin, though riders have criticised it.

This is largely down to the fact front tyres lose grip and braking performance once they go above 2.0 bar of pressure.

While this is dangerous in itself, it has also meant overtaking has become a lot harder as well as more aggressive, as riders try to make up ground as early as possible in races to avoid any pressure issues.

This was one of the elements blamed by riders after last week’s San Marino Grand Prix for leading to boring racing.

Morbidelli, a member of Valentino Rossi’s VR46 Academy, will ride one of the satellite squad’s Desmosedici GP24s next season, replacing Honda-bound Johann Zarco.

The Italian will partner Jorge Martin, who has a pre-existing contract to remain at Pramac.

Pramac team boss Paolo Campinoti commented: "I am very happy that Franco is joining our family for 2024. I have a very good relationship with him, who has proved to be a champion on many occasions.

"I am sure that in our team he will find the right conditions to come back and fight for the positions he deserves."

Morbidelli, the 2017 Moto2 champion, had been linked with a move to the Ducati camp for some time as it became increasingly clear he would not retain his Yamaha ride, which eventually went to Alex Rins.

Initially it was thought the 28-year-old could join the VR46 team owing to his long-standing links with Rossi, but Marco Bezzecchi’s reluctance to leave the squad meant that the opportunity came up for Morbidelli to join Pramac.

Last weekend’s Misano round featured the exact same top four in both the sprint and the grand prix, with Jorge Martin leading Marco Bezzecchi, Francesco Bagnaia and wildcard Dani Pedrosa.

Across both races, there was one overtake between the top three, when VR46’s Bezzecchi passed Bagnaia for second – though his move in the sprint was a result of the factory Ducati rider running wide.

This led to criticism from several riders over the lack of spectacle currently enveloping MotoGP, which has been blamed numerous times this season on increased aerodynamic development, ride height devices and the controversial tyre pressure rules.

Marc Marquez, who was involved in a last-lap dice with Fabio Quartararo in 2019 that saw six overtakes for the lead on that one tour, has long been critical of the current ruleset.

When asked if Misano’s races were now the norm in MotoGP, Marquez – who was seventh in the grand prix - responded: “Of course, but it’s not new. If it’s a big circuit with long straights, then with slipstreams it’s possible to overtake more.

“But in this circuit, it’s two things: you overtake like [Brad] Binder [in the sprint], where all the overtakes were on the limit, but were very good and was impressive to watch because it’s so difficult.

“So, you overtake in that way or it’s impossible to overtake. For example, last three laps, I was riding in 1m33.0s and [Luca] Marini was coming in 1m32s lows.

Monday’s post-race test at Misano was seen as a critical moment for Honda in its hopes of convincing eight-time world champion Marc Marquez to honour his contract for 2024.

But after the initial test of the first 2024 RC213V prototype, which focused largely on a new chassis, Marquez admitted Honda was “still far” from where it needed to be if this bike was to be the base for next year.

Honda didn’t have a new engine to test on Monday, with the chassis Marquez and Joan Mir trying having been raced by HRC wildcard Stefan Bradl during the San Marino Grand Prix.

When asked by Motorsport.com if his impressions of the bike were the same as his team-mate’s, Mir noted: “Well, in some areas we improved. For sure, we didn’t make a big step, we are far from it.

“I could feel a little bit better with used tyres especially, I was able to be a bit more consistent.

“That’s ok, but it’s only the first test. We saw something positive.

“I still cannot say if it will be the way we take for next year because we need to put everything on point. But if we want to be where we want, we need a bit more help.”

Yamaha has struggled for power to match its rivals for the last few years in MotoGP, which has contributed to its slide down the pecking order.

For 2023, it began working with former Ferrari F1 engine chief Marmorini to improve in this area, though that collaboration was geared more towards the 2024 season.

Running the new engine on Monday at Misano's post-San Marino Grand Prix test, 2021 MotoGP champion Quartararo was sixth overall on the timesheets – though was still some 5km/h down on the fastest Ducati through the speed traps.

Asked by Motorsport.com what his impressions of the engine were, Quartararo responded: “I tested it and the feeling was… I expected much better from this test, but we have to stay positive and try to analyse what happened to improve for [the] Valencia test.”

When pressed for more information on the characteristics of the engine, Quartararo added: “I cannot say right now. I need to test it more, but like I said I expected better.

“The feeling is different, but I think I expected more power and [it] was a little bit difficult to say something positive about this engine.”

At the same test one year ago, Quartararo was much more enthusiastic about the 2023 engine he tried at the time, and admits he didn’t get the same feelings today.

Due to the difficulties facing the Japanese manufacturers in MotoGP this season and the knock-on effect this has had on the rider market, with Marquez and Fabio Quartararo’s futures uncertain, Monday’s Misano test has been seen as a crucial outing.

The main stories from Monday revolved around Honda’s 2024 prototype and the new parts tested by Yamaha with a view to next year.

Marquez ended the day down in 14th, 0.973 seconds off the pace, having been left less than impressed with the 2024 prototype he tested.

He told the media at lunchtime between the two test sessions on Monday that the problems of rear grip of the current Honda remained on the 2024 prototype chassis he tried today.

Having topped the morning session on his 2022-spec Ducati, VR46’s Luca Marini completed a clean sweep in the afternoon after going fastest of all with a 1m30.602s set in the final hour.

He was part of a depleted Ducati stable for the test, with the injured Francesco Bagnaia and Marco Bezzecchi – both of whom were on the podium on Sunday at Misano - sitting out, along with Gresini’s Fabio Di Giannantonio and Ducati test rider Michele Pirro.

Marini headed Maverick Vinales, who tested a new Aprilia chassis among other things on Monday, with Brad Binder completing the top three with a 1m31.154s on KTM’s new carbon fibre chassis.

Marquez has a contract with Honda for 2024 but speculation about him cutting ties with the Japanese manufacturer for next year have been rife amid its ongoing struggles in MotoGP this season.

During the San Marino Grand Prix weekend, Marquez became embroiled in rumours that he will join Gresini Ducati next season.

He repeatedly stated when asked that he has a contract for 2024, while both Honda and Gresini played down these rumours.

Marquez got his first taste of the 2024 Honda prototype on Monday at the post-race Misano test, and was 17th at the end of session one and a second off the pace.

Speaking to the media after Monday’s first session, Marquez said of the bike: “Yeah, of course it’s quite different riding style. But in the end the problems are more or less the same. So, we need to work more.”

I heard on the Sunday broadcast for the San Marino GP that it isn't confirmed yet if the India GP will go ahead.

The riders still need to test the circuit and give a verdict.

I think that's insane. Just wondering if anyone else knows any more about this?