Repsol Honda Team aim to carry momentum into home Japanese GP
Mobility Resort MotegiAfter the strongest round of the season, the Repsol Honda Team arrive at home in Japan after a strong weekend for both Marc Marquez and Joan Mir.
Work continues relentlessly for the Repsol Honda Team as they arrive in Japan for round 14 of the 2023 MotoGP World Championship. Hard braking is a key characteristic of the 4.8-kilometer-long track, a point which should suit the Honda RC213V. Both Marc Marquez and Joan Mir have proven that they have the speed to challenge and run consistently at the front.
Joan Mir’s fifth place on Sunday was his best result of the year and provided both rider and team with confirmation of the work done during the Misano Test. Now the #36 is aiming to do it all again, this time in front of Honda’s home crowd at Mobility Resort Motegi. In previous visits, Mir has achieved consistent results in the top ten with a best of eighth in 2019.
The Japanese Grand Prix has seen some of Marc Marquez’s crowning moments in the premier class, including taking the 2014 and 2016 World Championships. In 2022, the eight-time World Champion returned to pole position with a stunning wet-weather lap for the first time since the Japanese GP in 2019 and he has earned three premier class wins alongside three additional podiums.
As Honda’s home race, the Japanese Grand Prix will be a special one for the entire Repsol Honda Team. Throughout history Honda have achieved 48 Grand Prix victories on home soil, 13 coming in the premier class and most recently in 2019 when Marquez stormed his way to an eighth World Championship.
Location: Mobility Resort Motegi
Located amongst the vast natural beauty of the northern Kanto district, the twin ring circuit at Motegi in Japan consists of a 1.5 mile oval and a 2.9 mile road course constructed to international standards. Built by Honda as the ultimate test facility in August 1997, the road circuit became home to MotoGP in 2000 whilst the oval is designed to introduce American motorsports culture to the country.
Mobility Resort Motegi is a major attraction for motorsports fans all year round as it is the venue for the Honda Collection Hall, a museum which houses an illustrious collection of motorcycle, car and racing machines from throughout the ages. The complex also includes a safety and riding school, dirt track, go-karts, hotel, restaurant, shops and event halls and currently employs some 300 staff.
Motegi is always a special race, especially when you are a Honda rider. We have had many memorable moments there in the past, winning championships, returning to pole last year so I hope that we can do something nice to give the fans a reason to cheer for us. Conditions in Motegi can often change a lot, so we will have to adapt as the weekend goes but our overall objective remains the same: make steady progress and achieve the best result possible.
I am looking forward to riding at Motegi as a Honda rider, always the fans there are incredible, and I can’t wait to ride there again. We come from a weekend in India where we were able to be consistent throughout with a good final result and I hope that we can do this again in Japan. But I think we will have a more challenging weekend, so let’s see finally what will happen. It’s all about setting up to end the season in the best way possible.