What Honda’s 2026 rider line-up suggests about its future plans

Honda confirmed on Monday 1 September that it would be retaining Luca Marini at its factory MotoGP team for 2026 as well as Johann Zarco at LCR.

The Japanese manufacturer has been one of the key figures of the 2026 rider market, as it had two factory-supported rides up for grabs for next year.

This made it central in rumours linking Pedro Acosta, and then Jorge Martin, to its factory team at one point during this year’s silly season.

On Monday 1 September, ahead of the Catalan Grand Prix, Honda announced that it had re-signed Luca Marini for 2026, while Johann Zarco will remain at LCR next year.

Zarco’s deal is intriguing as it also extends to 2027, making him the first confirmed rider for the new rules cycle when the championship switches to 850cc machinery.

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“It’s been expected,” Peter McLaren, Crash MotoGP Editor, said on the latest Crash MotoGP Podcast.

“I suppose the interest was around the length of the deal: how long would it be for.

“So, Marini having this one-year deal is definitely keeping things open at HRC for 2027.

“There’s obviously all these Diogo Moreira rumours that he’ll do one year at LCR and then move to the factory team.

“Well, obviously if Marini got a multi-year deal then that would almost be the factory line-up potentially pencilled in for ’27.

“So, that means they are definitely keep their options open, even if Moreira does get that move up. So, it keeps that seat free.”

Zarco’s two-year deal puts the LCR team out of sync with the rest of the contract cycle of for the time being.

But, as Crash Senior Journalist Lewis Duncan suggests, this may hint at Honda’s wider plans to completely refresh its 2027 factory line-up and have Zarco be a constant with a view to bike development.

“It’s maybe unsurprising news,” he said.

“The fact that it’s a ’27 deal is interesting. Honda can take that risk at a satellite team.

“Being a factory team you don’t want to take yourself out of sync [with the rest of the contract cycle].

“But, it is interesting that it’s already one seat sorted for the new era and it would also suggest to me that Honda is looking at completely revising its line-up going into ’27, certainly at the factory team.

“We know both [Joan] Mir and Marini are on expiring deals. Jorge Martin’s name has come around quite a lot over the past four, five months.

“And it does sound like Martin is Honda’s intended target for ’27. It’s open season.

“Every factory rider is going to be up for grabs in 2027 and there will be a lot of big names out there.

“So, when you’re a developing manufacturer and developing into a new era, you’re going to need some stability and I think Honda perhaps is using Zarco as that anchor to refresh things either side of him.”