An intense period of work comes to a close for the Repsol Honda Team as preparations for the season intensify, Joan Mir and Luca Marini both able to make improvements with each day.
Work started early and at a high intensity as the outright lap record around the 5.5km circuit was broken early on. After a flurry of fast laps, the MotoGP grid settled into their working rhythm to capitalise on the stable conditions as the three-day test wrapped up.
Joan Mir completed a positive set of tests in Malaysia, riding for a total of five days as he enters his second year as a Repsol Honda Team rider. Both tests allowed Mir to understand and adapt to not only the new 2024 Honda RC213V, but also the new team around him. Ending the first day with a best time of 1’58.741 and improving to a 1’57.374 on the final day is evidence of the continual progress Mir and the Repsol Honda Team have made. Mir suffered a small fall without consequence at the final corner before midday, returning to the box without incident. He ends the three days in tenth on the combined times.
Completing a total of 122 laps over the three official days of running in Malaysia, Luca Marini was able to make good use of the time available. Ending with a fastest time of 1’58.026 saw the Italian in 19th overall and pleased with what he and the team had managed to improve. Spending the day working on refining the setup to best suit his style, Marini continued to gain speed and further build his confidence. Aware there is still work to do to unlock more of the bike’s potential, the #10 is already preparing for the Qatar Test.
Ahead of the final test of the pre-season in Qatar, the Repsol Honda Team will head to Madrid to reveal their 2024 livery on February 13. The launch marks 30 years of collaboration between Honda HRC and Repsol, the partnership earning 15 World Championships and 130 MotoGP race wins so far.