Marini Bags Top 10 as Honda Gains Ground in Qatar

Luca Marini kept the momentum rolling at the Qatar GP with another solid top-ten finish, while Joan Mir battled through a tough weekend as Honda HRC Castrol showed signs of steady progress.

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It was another night of fighting spirit at the Lusail International Circuit for the Honda HRC Castrol crew. After a quiet Sprint race, the team pulled everything together for Sunday’s main event, pushing to squeeze the most out of the 22-lap race.

Starting from 15th on the grid, Luca Marini wasted no time getting into the thick of the action. The Italian was right in the heart of a fierce scrap for the top ten, dicing it out with Pedro Acosta, Ai Ogura, and Marco Bezzecchi. It was elbows out from start to finish, but Marini stayed calm under pressure, crossing the line in 11th — and then getting bumped up to 10th after a post-race penalty for another rider.

It’s Marini’s third straight top-ten result, and it means he leaves Qatar sitting 10th overall in the World Championship standings with 26 points. More importantly, the race gave him and the team even more data on where the new Honda RC213V is working — and where there’s still homework to do.

“I really enjoyed the battle tonight! It was great training for overtaking. We found something during Warm Up that worked well in the race, so big thanks to the team. We’ve got some clear ideas now for Jerez. Overall, it’s been a solid first few rounds — a good base to build on.”

For Joan Mir, it was a weekend to forget. After being sidelined by illness and missing Saturday’s Sprint, he managed to suit up for Sunday’s Warm Up. He showed flashes of pace early in the race but ran into trouble after contact with Fabio Di Giannantonio, which damaged his bike. Already feeling rough physically, Mir eventually had to pull into the pits and retire.

“Honestly, a really tough weekend. Missing the Sprint made Sunday even harder, and I’m still not fully fit. Now it’s all about getting healthy and coming back stronger in Jerez.”

Despite the ups and downs, Honda is hanging tough in second place in the Constructors’ standings. With Aprilia, Yamaha, and KTM breathing down their necks, the fight is only heating up.

Next stop: Jerez at the end of April — and Honda’s determined to bring even more fire to the European races.