There’s an old Japanese saying: “if honourable beansprout still crunchy do not illegally hunt a whale”. And nowhere is that truer, we think, than with the iconic Repsol Honda design.
What’s going on here then?
Since 1995 the famous Repsol colours have adorned the factory Honda machines. With riders such as Mick Doohan, Casey Stoner and Marc Marquez the iconic design has represented greatness…a greatness which was brought down a peg or two after Jorge Lorenzo’s single HRC season.
All this means that for over 28 years the factory Honda team of inhouse designers have had the easiest job in motorsport…with the exception of, possibly, Takaaki Nakagami’s trophy cabinet builder.
But for the first time since 1995 the factory Honda will ditch the most recognisable design in the history of the sport.
What have the staff said?
“We were told that this season’s bike needs to be different” explained one designer who was still in shock and dribbling slightly out of the corner of his mouth. “It needed to reflect Honda’s race colours – which obviously we had to Google as no one in the office knew what they were. Turns out it’s red and dark blue which was lucky for us as every other bike on the grid is that colour. So we just copied their designs and threw a load of black on the bits we weren’t sure about”.
Why?
After about a million years of the same orange design HRC thought it was time to start displaying their own racing colours. Also branding the word ‘Honda’ on the fairing means it’s easier to determine which parts in the gravel belong to Joan Mir.
Okay, but what’s the real reason?
Marc Marquez.
A favourite comment by the bitter yellow fans is that the Spanish Antichrist’s move to Ducati saw him bring no major sponsorship to Gresini. This, through their salty eyes, all but confirms that Marc is worthless and probably has a lisp.
What’s conveniently overlooked though is that Repsol know what side of their chorizo is fried. For years the Spanish oil giants have paid Honda sacks of filthy cash to ensure they have the best bike and the best riders. Honda haven’t had the best bike since the RC213V somehow managed to get long COVID in 2019. So already Repsol’s balloon knot was getting twitchy.
However 2024 has seen MotoGP’s most successful rider jump the factory Honda ship mid-contract leaving the team with Joan Mir: a rider who fell off in every round and Luca Marini: the only Ducati rider last year not able to win a race.
Inevitably, with such a rubbish bike and crop of riders, Repsol have pulled in their nozzle and seriously reduced their cash input.
Will we ever see the iconic Repsol design again?
Who knows? Possibly on a KTM. But it’s strange to think that we’re already missing something that was boring and hung around too long – a bit like Jenson Button (except for the ‘missing’ aspect).