Joan Mir has admitted he expected more from Honda’s 2026 MotoGP challenger, describing the bike as “not super competitive” after last weekend’s Buriram test.
Although Mir sounded optimistic about Honda’s prospects following three days of running at Sepang in early February, he struck a more cautious tone in Thailand.
While the Spaniard reiterated that the Japanese manufacturer has made tangible progress with the RC213V this year, he concluded that these gains have been largely offset by rivals improving over the winter.
Mir remains hopeful that the factory will be able to unlock more performance in the build-up to this weekend’s season opener in Thailand, but he is still dissatisfied with the chassis he evaluated at Buriram.
“At this track, we found more difficulties than in Sepang for some reason. Especially me, I could not put the bike in the same place in terms of potential,” the 2020 champion said.
“I'm not super happy, honestly, because it's important [to be strong] here. You see more or less who will be the guys to beat next weekend, and the reality is that we struggled a bit. We struggled a bit in terms of grip. Probably this different carcass is not our big friend at the moment.
“It is not super clear, for us, the direction we need to take, because I think we don't have a super competitive package at the moment. This is how I feel. Probably during this [race] week, the guys will find something.”
One of the RC213V’s biggest weaknesses has been a lack of rear grip, which often leaves riders struggling for traction exiting the corner.
This is one area where Mir feels Honda has made little to no progress, leaving the factory even further behind its rivals.
This issue wasn’t fully evident at Sepang, partly due to unusually suitable track conditions and Honda’s extensive private testing experience at the circuit. However, the problem was laid bare at the start/stop Buriram circuit last weekend, prompting Mir to say Honda needs a “revolution” in this area.
“In terms of potential, I expected more,” Mir admitted. “At Sepang, I said that we have to improve our grip. It's our weak point. And at the moment, Ducati and Aprilia are at a different level. In Sepang we could have a chance, and here not.
“We are in the process [of changing the bike] a bit. We tried different things, but not a different concept. The concept was the same. There was some evolution and not a revolution. I think in terms of grip, we need a revolution at the moment.”
Mir expects Honda to remain in a similar position in the pecking order, believing a top-eight result is the best it could hope for in terms of pure pace early in the season.
“I think that we are at a similar potential as last year because the others also made an improvement. We improved, but the others probably [improved] the same or more,” he lamented.
“Hopefully, with the other carcass, our bike behavior improves and we can be more competitive. I'm sure that we will find something. But at the moment, our real position is not more than top eight, top 10.”
