The Repsol Honda Team walk away pointless from a promising race at Termas de Rio Hondo, Espargaro crashing while chasing the podium and Bradl ending in the top 20.
MotoGP’s compressed weekend in Argentina came to a close in front of a full house on Sunday, the Repsol Honda Team suffering a disappointing end to the Grand Prix. The race started well for Pol Espargaro who rocketed the Honda RC213V from fourth on the line and into the mix for the lead. Frantic action saw the #44 shuffled back over the course of the opening lap, but he and the Repsol Honda rallied to fight up into fourth over the first five laps.
A mistake on lap seven saw Espargaro drop behind Rins, but the pair worked together to close down the leading duo steadily. A mistake at Turn 2 would end his potential podium challenge and take away a strong fourth place finish. This is Espargaro’s first DNF since the Catalan GP in 2021. He was unharmed in the fall.
Stefan Bradl rode a conservative race to take home a 19th place finish as he deputises for Marc Marquez. The Honda HRC Test Rider strung together a steady weekend to help the Repsol Honda Team confirm a number of items, even with the weekend’s unique schedule.
The Repsol Honda Team now pack up and prepare to head north for The Americas GP in Austin, Texas. Pol Espargaro won’t have long to wait to bounce back with Round 4 coming up in just a week’s time.
Takaaki Nakagami took top Honda honours in 12th place while Honda Team Asia enjoyed their first double podium in Moto2 as Somkiat Chantra followed up his debut win with a second-place finish ahead of teammate Ai Ogura.