One Honda MotoGP rider also unsure of Qatar participation

Honda’s Joan Mir admits he may also not travel to the MotoGP Qatar Grand Prix next weekend after battling the same illness symptoms that forced him out of four races.

The 2020 world champion returned to action this weekend at the Malaysian Grand Prix, having been out since the end of the San Marino round with an illness.

Mir had been suffering from extreme fatigue and vision issues before that point.

And while the Sepang weekend had been going well, Mir retired from Sunday’s grand prix dude to those symptoms returning.

“I’ve started to see blurry again”

Speaking to DAZN after the Sepang race, Mir said he thought he would be in “better shape”, but was told that these symptoms could return.

“I’ve started to see blurry again and to lose control of the situation,” he said.

“I've withdrawn due to some issues that hadn't appeared in the last few races. I'm disappointed, because I thought I'd be in better shape.

"It's clear that the conditions out there today were extremely tough, but we've worked really hard to try to arrive in the best possible shape, and I really thought it wouldn't happen to me again.

"But, as the race went on, when I'd only done nine or ten laps, barely halfway, I've started to see blurry again and to lose control of the situation.

"Before it got any worse, I stopped because that's what we'd agreed. I'm disappointed and also a bit worried.”

“More questions than answers”

Mir says he’s not sure if he will race in Qatar next week, though the situation with that race remains uncertain following Yamaha’s shock withdrawal.

“Right now, I have more questions than answers,” he said.

“The reality is a bit like what I've told you: I only know what I'll discuss with the doctors, what happened to me, and how I've felt.

“From here on, they'll decide if more tests need to be done, if we need to continue with the treatment we were on... I don't know".

“They had told me before coming that it could happen, but you don't believe it until it happens again.”

Should Mir be absent from Qatar and Honda doesn’t field a replacement, the grid for the Lusail race could be extremely depleted.

Assuming all four Yamaha riders are absent, that brings the grid already down from 22 competitors to 18.

Gresini’s Alex Marquez will miss Qatar to have surgery, bringing the grid down further to 17 riders.

There is uncertainty over Aprilia duo Raul Fernandez and Jorge Martin due to injury, which could leave just 15 starters in Qatar.

And that’s not to say other teams may follow in Yamaha’s footsteps and also withdraw. At this stage, Honda is set to travel to Qatar.