Honda has made noticeable progress in race pace over the past two MotoGP seasons, but qualifying remains one of the team's biggest weaknesses. Luca Marini now believes the issue may not lie solely with the RC213V, suggesting rival manufacturers could be strategically hiding their true speed until it matters most.
Marini has been Honda's highest-scoring rider in the 2026 MotoGP season, yet he has reached Q2 only twice in the opening 11 rounds. While the Italian feels he consistently improves between practice and qualifying, he says the problem is that other riders make an even bigger leap.
"On my side, I think I always improve my performance in Q1 compared to practice. The problem is that somebody else improves more," Marini explained.
According to Marini, some manufacturers may be deliberately avoiding pushing their engines to the limit during Friday practice, saving both performance and engine life for Saturday's qualifying sessions and Sunday's race.
He stopped short of accusing any team directly, but admitted it has been a common approach in the past.
"In the past, it was like this that on Friday you don't use the engine so much to save some energy for Saturday and Sunday, which is more important," he said.
Source: Inkl
If that is still the case, Marini believes Honda could be at a disadvantage by extracting everything from the RC213V from the very first practice session, while its rivals still have additional performance to unlock during qualifying.
The qualifying deficit has often forced Honda riders to fight through the field on race day, despite showing encouraging race pace.
Teammate Joan Mir has been slightly more successful in reaching Q2, but he also admits Honda is still lacking the outright speed needed to challenge for pole position.
Reflecting on his experience at Brno, Mir said trying to use another rider's slipstream actually made things more difficult because of the dirty air.
"I had more trouble following. I lost a bit where I am normally strong, on the braking and approaching the corner. When you follow that dirty air, it does not allow me to do that," said Mir.
He added that Honda is not yet capable of fighting for pole positions, although a place on the second or third row is becoming a more realistic target.
"We don't have the package to fight for the pole position at the moment. It's clear. Yes, for the second, third row."
Honda has taken meaningful steps forward with the RC213V, particularly in race performance, but its qualifying pace continues to hold the team back. Closing that gap will be crucial if Honda hopes to consistently challenge at the front and return to championship contention.
