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.”