Aprilia can ruin Honda’s move to sign the best Marc Marquez replacement

Aprilia won’t make it easy for Honda to sign Maverick Vinales next year.

Aprilia can ruin Honda’s move to sign the best Marc Marquez replacement

Marc Marquez and Maverick Vinales (via imago)

Marc Marquez made waves last week as he announced that he would leave his beloved Repsol Honda garage. The 8-time World Champion is now ‘Ducati bound’ as he will look to challenge for his 9th Title next year. Marquez’s premature termination of his contract with Honda has left an empty seat at the garage. Many reports claim that Honda intends to fill this seat with Maverick Vinales in 2024.

Sky Italia recently named the current Aprilia rider as Honda’s “greatest interest” to step into their rider line-up. Vinales has proven to be a rider who adapts well to a new team. The Spaniard has performed well with Suzuki (2015-16), Yamaha (2017-21), and Aprilia (2021- ).

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Vinales, however, is still under contract at Aprilia, and the Italian team will not make it easy for the rider to leave prematurely. Reports suggest [as reported by crash.net] that Aprilia is extremely keen on keeping Maverick for 2024. Honda will either have to pay extra for the contract termination or resort to choosing another rider for their line-up.

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Vinales’s ability to perform well with multiple bikes and teams might appeal to Honda, who are struggling with their bike’s development. Aprilia is currently P3 in the Constructor’s standings behind Ducati and KTM. Honda is in P4. The Italian manufacturer will want to deprive the falling Japanese titan of a possible helping hand.

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How does Honda’s future look following Marc Marquez’s exit

Marquez’s exit will trigger a wave of new contracts and rider shuffling amongst the teams. Honda, the team required to act with immediacy, will hope to secure a rider who promises a decent 2024 season. They currently have the 2020 World Champion Joan Mir in their lineup. Johann Zarco is slated to join the satellite LCR Honda squad for 2024 and has spoken openly about possibly stepping in Marquez’s shoes.

Joan mir riding the Honda (via Crash.net)
Joan Mir riding the Honda (via Crash.net)

The Japanese factory team can sign Zarco in 2025 after monitoring this performance at LCR in 2024. Regarding Zarco’s presumed absence at LCR, Honda can look towards the Yamaha-bound Alex Rins or Di Giannantonio (displaced from a Ducati at Gresini).

Marc Marquez is only offered a 1-year-deal at Gresini. Ducati will want to retain the 8-time World Champion with a possible factory seat for 2025 if Marquez performs his usual best in 2024. If Marquez decides to switch to KTM for 2025 (as reports suggest he plans to), then the freed-up KTM rider (either Miller or BInder) can be in contention for a seat at Honda.

The following couple of years seem to be quite erratic. It will be interesting to see how Honda compensates for the lack of their long-held Ace. Honda might gamble and look towards promoting a promising Moto2 rider up the ranks. But that seems highly unlikely since the last time they did so was in 2013, over a decade ago.

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