It is rare for a bombshell of this scale to drop in MotoGP but the tremors from it can feel quite jarring even if this was the worst-kept secret of the 2023 MotoGP season. Well, that very bombshell has now dropped as six-time premier class champion Marc Marquez and Repsol Honda have officially announced that they will be parting ways at the end of the 2023 season with a year still left on their four-year contract.
It marks the end of an iconic era in MotoGP history as Marc Marquez and Repsol Honda have shared a timeless bond spanning 11 years. Marquez’ entry into the MotoGP grid was already eye-catching as he was put on a factory Repsol Honda as a rookie in 2013, which was an extremely rare case in MotoGP. It didn’t take him long to win in the premier class as victory at the Grand Prix of the Americas made him the youngest premier class winner in history. Marquez went even further beyond to win his maiden world championship that very same year.
Of course, Marquez didn’t stop there as he and Honda were a juggernaut, taking titles in 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019. Now we all know that momentum came to a crashing halt in 2020 with Marquez suffering the toughest crash of his career at the season opener in Jerez, resulting in a fractured right humerus, essentially ruling him out for the entire season.
What came after was a long road to recovery with multiple surgeries on that right arm and along the process of this recovery, the Honda’s competitiveness waned as well. 2023 has the most strenuous year of Marquez and Repsol Honda’s partnership with an uncompetitive RC213V that seemed to want to throw riders off the bike in most scenarios. All this meant, Marquez and Honda eventually found it ideal to go their separate ways.
Nevertheless, Marquez and Repsol Honda can be proud of what they have accomplished over the last 11 years, with six premier class titles, 59 wins, 101 podiums and 64 pole positions, making this one of the most successful partnerships in MotoGP history. Now the question is, where will Marquez head next? Reports suggest he will join Gresini Racing alongside his brother, Alex Marquez, onboard a Ducati. This does make for a tantalising scenario come the 2024 season and we can’t wait to see what Marquez can bring to the table on the MotoGP grid on a Ducati. But 2024 is still some ways away and there’s still six more rounds left for the 2023 season. So, Marquez and Repsol Honda will be hoping to end their partnership in style.
