Honda HRC Castrol complete best weekend yet
Termas de Río HondoThe hits kept coming for Joan Mir and Luca Marini as the pair finished nose to tail in 10th and 11th to tie a bow on a very positive weekend for Honda HRC in Argentina.
A record-breaking crowd of close to 80,000 fans lined the grandstands and hills of the Termas de Rio Hondo circuit to witness the return of the Argentina GP on Sunday, March 16. Conditions were similar to what they had been throughout the weekend and after a quick Warm Up session, Honda HRC Castrol were primed and ready to go.
An action packed for Joan Mir who found himself right in the mix from as soon as the lights went out on the 25-lap affair. Dodging early drama at Turn 1, the #36 locked himself into the battle for the top ten, able to comfortably defend his position until an almost race-long battle with Acosta on the KTM began. The intense battle saw his tyres drop more than anticipated and Mir was forced to yield in the latter stages. Holding firm to cross the line in tenth place, Mir achieves his best Honda result since the 2023 Indian GP. Aiming for more, the result continued to fuel the 2020 World Champion’s ever expanding appetite to see Honda return to the front.
Sunday was a test of overnight setup changes to the Honda RC213V as Marini and his team sought to improve his feeling. Taking avoiding action off the line to dodge a slow-starting Jack Miller, Luca Marini didn’t waste any time in making up ground as he cut through the pack ahead. Quickly dispatching the Yamaha riders, the Italian locked on to his teammate at mid-race distance and matched the pace of the podium contenders to rapidly close the distance to the top ten. Finally finishing just two tenths off his Honda HRC Castrol teammate, Marini achieves his best Honda finish in 11th.
Overall, the weekend has been a positive one for Honda HRC and proof of the development progress that has been made and is continuing to happen. Consistent work by riders and engineers has seen the Honda RC213V make impressive progress in just a few months’ time. Honda currently sit third in the Constructors’ Championship. Now teams and riders will have a week to regroup before heading to Round Three in Austin, Texas.
I knew that here, tyre management would be important, and I was in a group that allowed me to do it at the start. Defending myself under braking, I was comfortable, and I had Zarco and Bagnaia just ahead – I was riding in a good way. Then the battle really started with everyone, and I was defending all the time on the brakes, but we had to use a lot of tyre to do this. It’s quite frustrating honestly because I think I could have been deeper inside the top ten – but we were in the mix and fighting with everyone. A good job, but I want more which is also good because it shows the progress we have made.
I knew that here, tyre management would be important, and I was in a group that allowed me to do it at the start. Defending myself under braking, I was comfortable, and I had Zarco and Bagnaia just ahead – I was riding in a good way. Then the battle really started with everyone, and I was defending all the time on the brakes, but we had to use a lot of tyre to do this. It’s quite frustrating honestly because I think I could have been deeper inside the top ten – but we were in the mix and fighting with everyone. A good job, but I want more which is also good because it shows the progress we have made.
My pace towards the end of the race was really good, we did a big, big step with the setting of the bike compared to yesterday. My team did a great job. It’s a bit of a pity because Miller had a slide at the start, so I had to change my trajectory which put us back a bit. I was able to close almost four seconds to Mir after fighting through many riders which meant I had no tyres left right at the end to try and pass him for tenth. During the race we were able to understand some more areas to work on in the coming races which should allow us to be better. Overall, it has been a good weekend with a couple of limits and the picture for Honda is coming more positive. We need to find something in Qualifying to avoid these sorts of situations at the start of the race but super happy with our work.
My pace towards the end of the race was really good, we did a big, big step with the setting of the bike compared to yesterday. My team did a great job. It’s a bit of a pity because Miller had a slide at the start, so I had to change my trajectory which put us back a bit. I was able to close almost four seconds to Mir after fighting through many riders which meant I had no tyres left right at the end to try and pass him for tenth. During the race we were able to understand some more areas to work on in the coming races which should allow us to be better. Overall, it has been a good weekend with a couple of limits and the picture for Honda is coming more positive. We need to find something in Qualifying to avoid these sorts of situations at the start of the race but super happy with our work.
