Matching the pace of the top ten in the second half of the race, Luca Marini was able to post competitive lap times after Joan Mir suffered an early fall in the Italian GP.
A busy weekend at the Gran Premio d’Italia comes to a close for the Repsol Honda Team with Luca Marini fighting until the very end of the 23-lap race for the top Honda spot. Changes to the aerodynamic package of the Honda RC213V produced positive gains for both Mir and Marini as the pair and HRC target further improvements in the future.
Saving himself for the end of the race, Luca Marini was able to match the pace of those inside the top ten in the closing stages of his home GP as he hunted down Johann Zarco. Once again looking to focus at the positives, Marini rated this as his best race as a Repsol Honda Team rider to date – able to improve his pace and close the distance to the other Hondas. The Italian knows there is still work to do and speed to find, luckily Monday’s test will provide the perfect opportunity for that.
Launching from 17th, Joan Mir moved his way into the group and found himself battling with former Repsol Honda Team rider Pol Espargaro in the opening laps. Seeing the group ahead starting to break away, Mir attempted to escape but fell at Turn 1 on lap seven. Unharmed in the fall, Mir will be back out on track tomorrow.
There’s no time to rest as the entire grid remains in Mugello for a post-race test on Monday, the second in-season test of the year. Running from 10:00 Local Time to 18:00 Local Time, the Repsol Honda Team will be working on a number of items throughout the day.