Honda’s ‘oracle of wisdom’ is doing something even Marc Marquez never did to help them win in MotoGP

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Honda’s long road to MotoGP recovery started the moment Marc Marquez left the team at the end of 2023.

Watching their superstar rider join Italian rivals Ducati was a mega gut punch, but it was a dose of reality they needed after a dramatic drop-off in performance.

Now, they’re forced to watch on as Marquez wraps up a seventh MotoGP title in dominant fashion, having won the last six consecutive races.

They invested their faith in Luca Marini as his replacement. A young rider who has taken his time to become comfortable in the team. He has scored points at every race he’s competed in so far in 2025.

Marquez has revealed the shocking wage he received after leaving Honda in a bid to win again. Gresini did not pay him a penny in 2024.

Honda have reached a decision with a ‘perfect’ rider for next year, with a deal for Marini’s services in the future presumed to be in its final stages.

READ MORE: Honda are ‘technically in breach’ of the MotoGP regulations before the Austrian Grand Prix after unusual decision

Luca Marini is learning Japanese for Honda which Marc Marquez never did in a bid to win

Marquez joining Honda feels ‘inevitable’ if they are able to rediscover any sort of meaningful form in the future. He only needs an average bike to compete for victory.

However, with a new set of regulations around the corner, there’s a lot of development work to be done if they want to compete for podiums from 2027.

Aware of this, Marini, who missed three races after a severe crash in preparation for the Suzuka 8 Hour earlier this season, has taken an extra step to help lead his team on the path to victory by doing something that Marquez never did (learning fluent Japanese).

“It goes back to Luca Marini again, who is just the oracle of wisdom when it comes to pretty much half of MotoGP at the minute. The cool tidbit that I picked up at the weekend that I’m going to throw in here,” said The Race’s Simon Patterson.

“Luca Marini, HRC development star, has decided to learn Japanese just because he’s smart enough to and it might help his career and his development work with Honda.”

READ MORE: Alberto Puig picks the most ‘special’ victory of Marc Marquez’s record-breaking Honda career

Why Luca Marini deserves another shot with Honda for the 2026 MotoGP season

While Joan Mir has been taken out of nearly two-thirds of all races he has competed in for Honda, his teammate is the complete opposite.

In fact, when Marini is racing, he’s the exact sort of rider that his team have been desperate for. He’s consistent, dependable, and scores points.

As the Japanese manufacturer’s bike improves, they need a reliable rider to show what the baseline of their bike is every week.

It doesn’t mean that he has to be competing for podiums or more, but that he can battle in the midfield and attempt to maximise his returns every weekend.