Luca Marini (Honda/16th): The last cowboy of Honda / MotoGP

Only the youngest and most inexperienced Honda RC213V pilot saw the checkered flag at the US GP. Marini commented with wry humor: “Looks like I’m the only survivor.”

In fact, the situation in the manufacturer’s camp, which seemed invincible in the United States for a decade, was hopeless. The saying “From hero to zero” describes it best. A fall is similar to a head accident. After Honda was still in a position to win in Texas with a semi-factory machine in 2023, Marini came last.

The Italian, who at least managed to fight for a place in the final round in Portugal, was never able to match the pace of the field at any point in the US GP. Pain: Even Alex Márquez, who crashed in the middle of the race (unfortunately on the same lap as his leading brother), who managed to continue from the very back, managed to catch up with poor Marini. With five laps to go, the Italian was far behind and the final championship point was lost.

Luca Marini did not mince his words and gave a tired summary of the events: “The truth is, I fought as hard for the last stage of the World Championship as I fought for the second place last year and I did not succeed. But at this moment things do not look good. Alex Rins won the last one – this year we were away from everyone else.”

The younger brother of the legend Valentini Rossi continued: “I have an opinion on the direction we need to go in and the engineers from Japan also have all the data and the same point of view. I also try very hard to give the technicians the best and most accurate feedback possible.”

Are there any weaknesses that are being worked on? Marini: “It’s not about one thing, it’s about everything! Compared to the past, it’s as if the old power of the machine has decreased, at the same time the weak points have become more visible. A lot has also changed, now especially here in the USA the track has become faster in my opinion, the tires have also improved and as a result the overall performance has increased, but the truth is, we need new developments everywhere. But it will also take time to implement all this.”

A clear message. In the United States, the “RC213V” package could not be used and the last cow in Texas will continue to need patience. The entire Honda team is optimistic about the upcoming tests. HRC pilots will test in Barcelona this week. The next official test session for all teams will take place directly on Monday after the Spanish GP in Jerez.

US GP Results:
1. Maverick Viñales (L) Aprilia 41:09.503 minutes.
2. Pedro Acosta (E) GASGAS +1.728 sec.
3. Enea Bastianini (I) Ducati +2.703 sec.
4. Jorge Martín (L) Pramac Ducati +4.690 sec.
5. Francesco Bagnaia (I) Ducati +7.392 sec.
6. Fabio Di Giannantonio (I) VR46 Ducati +9.980 sec.
7. Aleix Espargaró (E) Aprilia +12.208 seconds.
8. Marco Bezzecchi (I) VR46 Ducati +13.343 sec.
9. Brad Binder (ZA) KTM +14.931 sec.
10. Raúl Fernández (E) Trackhouse Aprilia +16.656 sec.
11. Miguel Oliveira (P) Trackhouse Aprilia +18,542 sec.
12. Fabio Quartararo (F) Yamaha +22,899 sec.
13. Jack Miller (AUS) KTM +24,011 sec.
14. Augusto Fernandez (E) GASGAS +27.652 sec.
15. Alex Márquez (L) Gresini Ducati +32.855 sec.
16. Luca Marini (I) Repsol Honda +33,528 sec.
17. Marc Márquez (ESP) Gresini Ducati out
18. Alex Rins (E) Yamaha out
19. Joan Mir (E) Repsol Honda out
20. Franco Morbidelli (I) Pramac Ducati out
21. Takaaki Nakagami (J) LCR Honda out
22. Johann Zarco (F) LCR Honda out

World Championship of Drivers to Austin:
1. Martin 80
2. Bastianini 59
3. Vinales 56
4. Acosta 54
5. Bagnaia 50
6. Fastener 49
7. Espargaro 39
8. Marc Marquez 36
9. And Giannantonio 25
10. Miller 22
11. Bezzecchi 20
12. Every quarter
13. Alex Márquez 14
14. Oliveira 13
15. Raúl Fernández 7
16. Augusto Fernandez 7
17. Mir 7
18. Zarco 5
19. When 3
20. Nakagami 2
21. Morbidelli 0
22. Marini 0

Designers:
1. Ducati 96
2. KTM 76
3. April 72
4. Yamaha 19
5. Honda 8
Team:
1. Ducati Lenovo 109
2. April 95
3. Pramac 80
4. KTM 71
5. YEAR 61
6. Grease 50
7. VR46 45
8. Yamaha 22
9. Trackhouse 20
10. Honda 7
11. LCR 7