I remember celebrating like it was a World Championship

When Joan Mir crossed the finish line at the 2025 Japanese Grand Prix to secure a hard-fought podium at Motegi, the result represented much more than a single race achievement. For Honda, competing on home soil in front of its passionate fans, it was a milestone in an ongoing journey to return to the front of MotoGP, a reflection of resilience, collaboration, and a relentless desire to improve.

This journey has demanded both patience and determination for rider and manufacturer alike. Almost three years had passed for the factory Honda HRC team without a podium visit. For Mir, that wait was even longer. This third-place finish, his first podium in Honda colours, was his first rostrum visit since 2021. No wonder then that when reflecting on the moment Joan admits ‘Achieving a podium again in Japan was very special, I remember celebrating like it was a world championship!’ 

The result represented a small reward for seasons of significant challenge. Seasons that pushed Honda’s riders and engineers to rethink, rebuild and rediscover the core values that have defined the brands racing heritage for decades. In Mir’s words ‘All the team was living through a rebuilding process. I had my own internal rebuilding process, but also with the team we were rebuilding together.’ And throughout this process of reconstruction, Mir embodied the team’s challenging spirit. His determination to adapt, learn and continue pushing forward mirrored Honda’s own engineering philosophy: never stop searching for the next step. The moment Mir stepped onto the podium became the reward for that collective dedication, proof that perseverance and innovation can translate to results.

Of course, for the 2020 World Champion and a manufacturer of Honda’s pedigree, a single third place finish does not signal that the project has reached its final destination, rather it confirms that the journey back to the top is well and truly underway. It also served up an emotional reminder as to why the sacrifice is worth it: ‘I could see all the team, how super happy they are, and that is why I never gave up, for moments like this one.’

Behind the scenes, countless hours of development work have gradually reshaped the RC213V. Every pit lane exit, every debrief, and every incremental refinement form part of a determined effort to return Honda to consistent competitiveness. Progress though, rarely arrives in a single giant leap; instead, it is forged through collaboration and belief in the process. And just as Mir’s Motegi magic marked a moment in this process, preseason testing signposts the next.

Six days in the soaring heat of Sepang started the 2026 season, with three days of shakedown attended by the test team and three days with the full 2026 cohort of riders. Following which, Honda HRC Castrol Team Manager, Alberto Puig, confirmed the progress ‘We have been working on many small details that make a good final result. It has not been a revolution of the bike, but it has been an improvement in the areas that we knew exactly that we needed to improve, not massive, but small things that make the final result quite big. The bike is working well, we are happy now with the engine performance, the bike itself is also better, it is also lighter, so we are pleased. The most important thing though, is that the riders are more happy.’

As the old adage goes: a happy rider is a fast rider. In testing Joan Mir was fast. Faster in fact than any Honda rider has ever lapped the 5.54 km asphalt of the Sepang International Circuit. ‘This is the best package I’ve ridden since I joined Honda,’ Mir debriefed to the world. The fruit of hard lessons learned through adversity, combined with renewed confidence from tangible progress.

But just as a single result does not define a season, a single fast lap does not guarantee future speed. They do however, serve as both inspiration and motivation for the next chapter in Honda’s pursuit of MotoGP success. Joan keeps his feet firmly on the ground, ‘Every time I wake up in the morning, I wake up for a reason, and that reason is to try to be back on top. But we are not yet where we want to be and I am not where I want to be, so that is the first step.’