Marco Bezzecchi
Luca Marini has suffered a serious accident while testing for the Suzuka 8 Hour race. The factory Honda rider has sustained multiple injuries in a crash on Wednesday.
The Italian flew to Suzuka straight after the British Grand Prix to prepare for the event. Marini finished the race at Silverstone in 15th, while his Honda teammate Joan Mir came home 10th.
Marini is the only MotoGP rider to have finished in the points in every Grand Prix thus far in 2025. However, he is now set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines after a horror accident in Japan.
After a successful first day of testing, the 27-year-old started day two well, before crashing heavily and sustaining multiple injuries. A statement from Honda said that Marini was ‘stabilised’ in a local hospital.
The timeline for his recovery has not been confirmed. However, the severity of his injuries means he is likely to be out of action for an extended period.
Jorge Martin sends message to Luca Marini after suffering the same pneumothorax injury in Japan
Honda revealed that Marini had suffered a ‘dislocated left hip, damage to the ligaments in his left knee, fractures in the sternum and left collarbone and a right-sided pneumothorax’.
The last of those injuries is the most serious. It is the same injury that Jorge Martin sustained on his return to MotoGP in Qatar, having missed pre-season and the opening three rounds with several hand and foot fractures.
Fabio Di Giannantonio hit the Aprilia rider after falling from his RS-GP25 during the race on Sunday. Di Giannantonio ran straight to the Aprilia garage to check on Martin after the race, who was later transferred to hospital.
The Spaniard suffered 11 broken ribs as well as a punctured lung, which kept him in Doha for several weeks. Martin could not fly home on a regular flight due to his pneumothorax – he eventually returned to Spain on a lower-altitude plane.
Despite the seriousness of the injury and the toll it would have had on him mentally, Martin remained in high spirits while in hospital. The 2024 champion offered encouragement to Marini on social media as he posted an update on Instagram.
The Honda rider wrote: “Thanks everyone for the support! I’ll keep you posted.” In the comments, Martin told him: “Cheer up Luca, strength,” with a love heart emoji.
READ MORE: Everything to know about Luca Marini from his net worth to half brother
Who will replace Luca Marini at Honda during his recovery?
As Marini recovers from his injuries, Honda will now have to find a replacement. The Italian is set to miss several races over the next few months.
The Japanese manufacturer have run test riders Aleix Espargaro and Takaaki Nakagami as wildcard entries in the last three races. It is likely that one of them will be called up to replace Marini.
Espargaro finished 17th at his home race at Jerez, before retiring at Silverstone. Nakagami raced at Le Mans, where the chaotic weather conditions saw him finish an impressive sixth, while LCR rider Johann Zarco won the race.
The crash at Suzuka is not ideal for Honda’s factory rider, especially given his contract is up in 2025. Marini was the ‘talk of the town’ at Silverstone; Martin is linked with his seat as he seeks an exit from Aprilia.
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