Alex Rins at LCR-Honda: decision against Ducati / MotoGP

Suzuki factory rider Alex Rins finished tenth in Sunday’s MotoGP race at Assen. More important for him and his fans: Nothing stands in the way of a deal for 2023 with LCR-Honda.

With ninth place on the grid, Alex Rins wanted to do a good race before the summer break at the Dutch TT in Assen in front of 104,000 spectators. Since he completely failed at the start, the Suzuki driver first had to find his way back to the front. In the end it was enough for position 10, just over eight seconds behind winner Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati).

“The feeling for the start has been lost in the last two races. Something strange happened. We weren’t prepared for it. After the first lap, I crossed the line in 15th place, and I started ninth,” explained Rins after the 26-lap race. “It was a bit more difficult to warm up the rear tyre. When Aleix passed me I wanted to follow him but I didn’t feel very comfortable with the bike.»

His injury, sustained in the Barcelona start accident, also made him more troubled. “I got to Oliveira and Mir with seven laps to go. I stayed there because I had no strength in my left hand. At least we finished the race, for the first time points since Portimão», the Suzuki driver couldn’t help but smile.

Rins had announced that he would fix the future in MotoGP this weekend. “We almost signed the contract. Everyone knows where I will be riding next year. Because Alex Márquez will switch to Gresini », he made no secret of the move to Honda. “It’s not official yet because I haven’t signed everything yet. Maybe it will work in the next few days.”

«I had the Ducati Gresini option and the LCR option. We spoke to Ducati, but they wouldn’t have given me a current bike,” the Spaniard listed the details. “Honda gives me this opportunity. It’s a nice project. Currently the bike is not working so well. You have many problems. I’m curious if we can improve it.”

It’s going to be quite a challenge with Honda. Why is Rins looking forward to this new path? «I like the challenge. We did a good job at Suzuki. We can certainly do something similar at Honda,” he said confidently.

MotoGP result, Assen (26 June):

1. Bagnaia, Ducati, 26 Rdn. in 40: 25.205 min
2. Bezzecchi, Ducati, + 0.444 sec
3. Viñales, Aprilia, + 1.209
4. Aleix Espargaró, Aprilia, + 2,585
5. Brad Binder, KTM, + 2,721
6. Miller, Ducati, +3,045
7. Martin, Ducati, + 4,340
8. Mir, Suzuki, +8,185
9. Oliveira, KTM, + 8.325
10. Rins, Suzuki, +8,596
11. Bastianini, Ducati, + 9.783
12. Nakagami, Honda, +10,617
13. Zarco, Ducati, + 14.405
14. Di Giannantonio, Ducati, + 17.681
15. Alex Marquez, Honda, +25,866
16. Dovizioso, Yamaha, +29,711
17. Marini, Ducati, + 30,296
18. Bradl, Honda, +32,225
19. Gardner, KTM, + 34,947
20. Savadori, Aprilia, + 35,798
– Fernández, KTM, 8 laps down
– Quartararo, Yamaha, 15 laps back
– Darryn Binder, Yamaha, 18 laps back
– Morbidelli, Yamaha, 18 laps back

MotoGP Riders’ World Championship after 11 of 20 Grands Prix:

1. Quartararo 172 Punkte. 2. Aleix Espargaró 151. 3. Zarco 114. 4. Bagnaia 106. 5. Bastianini 105. 6. Brad Binder 93. 7. Miller 91. 8. Mir 77. 9. Rins 75. 10. Oliveira 71. 11. Martin 70. 12. Viñales 62. 13. Marc Márquez 60. 14. Bezzecchi 55. 15. Marini 52. 16. Nakagami 42. 17. Pol Espargaró 40. 18. Alex Márquez 27. 19. Morbidelli 25. 20. Di Giannantonio 18 21. Darryn Binder 10. 22. Dovizioso 10. 23. Gardner 9. 24. Raúl Fernández 5.

Constructors’ Championship:
1. Ducati 246 Punkte. 2. Yamaha 172. 3. Aprilia 155. 4. KTM 121. 5. Suzuki 101. 6. Honda 85.

Team World Cup:
1. Aprilia Racing 213 Punkte. 2. Monster Energy Yamaha 197. 3. Ducati Lenovo Team 197. 4. Prima Pramac Racing 184. 5. Red Bull KTM Factory 164. 6. Suzuki Ecstar 152. 7. Gresini Racing 123. 8. Mooney VR46 Racing 107. 9 Repsol Honda 100. 10. LCR Honda 69. 11. WithU Yamaha RNF 20. 12. Tech3 KTM Factory 14.

Welcome to the Assen race