Insider Reveals How Honda Lost Its Competitive Form While Waiting For Marc Marquez Return

LCR MotoGP team principal Lucio Cecchinello highlighted how Honda lost its competitive edge while waiting for Marc Marquez's return after his severe 2020 injury.

During this period, the team failed to develop its bike, allowing other MotoGP manufacturers to surpass Honda in the technical race. Marquez’s absence in the 2020 season dealt a huge blow to the Japanese manufacturer, as he had been responsible for Honda’s dominance in the premier class from 2010, securing the title in 2013-2014 and 2016-2019.

The six-time MotoGP champion's 2019 season was particularly impressive, with the Spaniard winning 12 races and finishing on the podium in all Grands Prix except one.

However, during the 2020 Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez, Marquez sustained a broken humerus, leading to a prominent gap in his MotoGP career. He underwent multiple surgeries to get race-ready, including a fourth operation in 2022. While he continued to regain his dominant form after the surgery, the injury forced him to change his riding style.

Honda experienced its first winless season in 2020, and Marquez's ongoing struggles with his injury in 2021 and 2022 forced the team to rely on other riders to develop its bike. However, the RC213V failed to improve in the following years, resulting in three consecutive winless seasons for Honda, including last year.

Explaining the situation and how the team did nothing to develop the bike when Marquez was being treated, Cecchinello told GPOne:

“The bike with Marc was fine, he was able to cope with the special front of the Honda and used a harder tyre than the others.

“An example is the race at the beginning of the 2020 season; in Jerez he overtook everyone, then he lost the front and after getting back on the bike he showed a great comeback.

“Then Honda said to wait until Marc recovered, but as we know there were complications.

“During Marc's absence, we did nothing in terms of development while the others continued to develop their projects.

“The work started to move more towards aerodynamics and in 2021, when Marc did some races, he then reported on the progress the others had made.”

After the severe injury nearly ended his MotoGP career, Marquez faced three tough seasons with uncompetitive Honda equipment. However, in a bold move, he joined the Gresini team for the 2024 season, determined to reclaim his dominance.

Defying expectations, he secured three race wins, leading to him securing a seat with the factory Ducati team for 2025. His time at Gresini was the turning point in his career, which elevated him to the sport's top team.