Honda had a very difficult year in 2023 where Álex Rins was the author of the biggest moment in terms of race results, winning the Americas GP. With the move to Yamaha, which has been “Quartararo-dependent,” the question remains: will the Spaniard be the main responsible for repeating such a feat?
With Suzuki’s farewell at the end of 2022, Rins followed suit to LCR Honda, after his then teammate Joan Mir moved to the factory team, and with the Japanese manufacturer far from its best, the results were never as expected, coupled with an injury that forced him to a prolonged absence from the tracks.
The race in Austin was remarkable but the rest of the season with Honda was not, always with the rider having a clear desire to return to a factory team. The opportunity would arise later: The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team.
Similar to what happens with Honda, Yamaha is also “suffering” from a lack of competitiveness and results that can put them on the path to victory and, even further, to compete at the moment with Ducati.
Rins’ first (and only) triumph – and Honda’s – in 2023 happened very early, in the third round of the championship, but the rider will have a new opportunity in 2024 to return to the biggest stages.
The unknown at this moment is to know under what conditions the development work of Yamaha is taking place, and if Quartararo has already shown enthusiasm on one hand, the truth is that his feeling is (once again) tied to the expectation of what may happen, and not so much with what he has already felt, in the tests in Valencia at the end of the season, in relation to the performance of the M1.
Aún a varios meses del inicio oficial de la temporada, veremos lo que podría suceder, pero si Rins podrá repetir lo que hizo en Honda o no, eso… solo será dentro de varios meses.
