Marini on Honda in Transition: There Were Outdated Approaches

– Luca Marini looks back on two and a half years with Honda and draws a positive conclusion despite all difficulties. The Italian, who has been riding for Honda’s factory team since 2024, sees significant progress at the Japanese manufacturer, but also points out ongoing weaknesses in an interview with Moto.it.

“Actually very positive, I would say,” Marini describes his time at Honda. The task was enormous from the start, but it was precisely this difficult phase that helped him progress as a rider. “I improved a lot because it was a very complicated challenge. The first year was extremely difficult.”

Honda was in a deep sporting crisis when Marini arrived in 2024. The RC213V had lost significant ground to the European manufacturers. The Italian recalls a phase in which the problems were not only technical but also related to the way of working.

“Honda was still a bit stuck in the old method”

For Marini, one of the biggest challenges was the development culture of the project. While manufacturers like Ducati have made great progress in recent years with a strongly data-driven and continuous development approach, Honda sometimes worked differently.

“I think Ducati’s very technical approach over the last decade has led to rapid and continuous growth year after year,” Marini explains.

“When I arrived, Honda was still a bit stuck in the old method: they built a new bike every year and discarded almost everything from the previous model instead of working continuously and implementing the feedback from riders and engineers step by step,” the Italian recalls.

Photo gallery: The career highlights of Luca Marini

He therefore describes his first experience with the RC213V as a confrontation with an “old way of thinking,” not only regarding the bike itself but also the fundamental development processes within the brand.

At the same time, Marini emphasizes that much has changed since then. Structures have been expanded and significantly more engineers have been added. “When I arrived, there were very few of us in the team. Now the number of engineers in the MotoGP project has increased significantly. That is important because during a race weekend you have to control and analyze an incredible number of things.”

Progress not only at Honda, therefore no catching up

Marini generally rates the development of the past two years positively. In the last MotoGP season, Honda took an important step in his view. “From the middle of last season, the results were actually always in the top 8,” the Italian sees an improvement in form.

His goal for 2026 was to take the next step towards top-5 positions based on this. But exactly this leap did not happen. The reason: Honda improved, but Ducati and Aprilia also further developed their bikes.

“We started a bit further back again because Ducati and Aprilia also improved,” Marini explains. As a result, the gap did not get smaller. “Now we have stabilized a bit. Getting further forward than the top 10 is very difficult because everyone is extremely competitive.”

Also in the current season, it has become clear that Honda has moved closer to the front but still struggles to keep up. Marini emphasized, for example, after the Grand Prix of Austin that given the extremely tight MotoGP World Championship, it is difficult to consistently keep up with the best eight bikes.

Marini sees aerodynamics as the biggest issue at Honda

When asked about the biggest technical deficits of the RC213V, Marini names one area above all: aerodynamics. “When I arrived, we practically started from zero in aerodynamics. It was only hinted at on the bike,” the Honda rider recalls. The big step only came in 2025; for 2026, they improved the solutions further but not sufficiently.

“I see the greatest scope for technical improvements there because in the other areas we are already at the level of the competition,” Marini judges.

For example, in electronics. Honda has very good specialists here. “You can do many things, but none of them directly brings you more performance. You can actually only make mistakes. If the electronics work, you simply get the maximum potential out of the bike and engine.”

Photo gallery: From NSR500 to RC213V: All MotoGP bikes from Honda in the Repsol era

Von NSR500 bis RC213V: Alle MotoGP-Bikes von Honda in der Repsol-Ära

For him, it is therefore less about fundamental problems and more about details. “Our engineers are very good at not making mistakes,” says Marini. But the crucial next step still has to come in aerodynamics. From his point of view, this is “definitely” the most important development point.

Role of the rider: setting priorities and guiding development

Marini sees his own contribution to Honda’s rebuilding mainly in structuring development more clearly. It is not only important to give feedback as a rider but to convey concrete priorities to the engineers.

“You have to be very precise and continue to show them what has priority. You have to make it clear to them that there is still room for improvement,” explains the Italian. “Because if you say the engine is fine, they won’t touch it anymore.”

Marini thus also describes a cultural difference between European and Japanese manufacturers. However, his experience with Ducati was gained in the satellite team VR46, so he takes the comparison with caution. “In a European team, the engineers themselves tell you what the priorities are. They know exactly where to start and what needs to be done to get better.”

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