Joan Mir Honda MotoGP Podium – News & Reaction
Joan Mir Finds Redemption with Honda After Years of Struggle
[Image of Joan Mir, Honda HRC – see above]
Joan Mir, Honda HRC
photo by: Gold and Goose Photography / LAT Images / via Getty Images
Joan Mir’s journey with Honda has been a turbulent one, marked by significant challenges and a period of self-doubt. In his debut season with the team in 2023, he finished last in the standings, scoring a mere 26 points compared to teammate Marc Marquez’s 96.
Last year saw a slight advancement, finishing 21st in the championship, ahead of fellow Honda rider Luca Marini but behind the LCR duo of Johann Zarco and Takaaki Nakagami. The prolonged struggles took a heavy toll on Mir, leading him to briefly consider retirement from MotoGP. Though, he ultimately signed a new two-year deal with Honda, extending his commitment through the current rule cycle.
This year, with improvements to the RC213V, Mir’s performance began to climb. After retiring from 10 of the first 16 races, he finally achieved a breakthrough moment – a podium finish at the Japanese Grand Prix, in front of Honda’s leadership.
Mir acknowledged he hadn’t foreseen the length of his difficulties with Honda, but believes the podium was a well-deserved reward for the dedication of the Sakura-based manufacturer in revitalizing its motogp programme.
“The reality is that it has been a very arduous period for me,” he stated.”From the day we decided to move to Honda in a difficult period, we already knew that we could be without good results for a long time. But I could not imagine this amount of time. The reality is that it has been a super difficult period. I just never gave up, trying – not always but sometimes – to see the positive things that were happening to us. Now, you can imagine how nice the taste of the podium is. I just enjoyed every….”