- Puig will transition to an advisory role at Honda HRC starting in 2027
- The Spaniard has led the factory team since 2018 and guided Honda to two consecutive Triple Crowns
- Davide Brivio is considered a possible successor for the team manager position
Honda announced a far-reaching personnel decision on Thursday ahead of the Catalan Grand Prix in Barcelona. Alberto Puig, team manager of the Honda factory team in MotoGP since 2018, will step down from his role at the end of the current season. The Barcelona native will remain with the Japanese manufacturer, however, and will take on a newly created advisory role within the Honda Racing Corporation starting in 2027. The decision comes at a time when Honda is fundamentally restructuring for the upcoming 850cc era of MotoGP.
What Role Will Alberto Puig Take on Starting in 2027?
Puig will serve as an HRC advisor in a cross-functional capacity that extends far beyond his previous team manager role. According to the official Honda statement, he will continue to help shape HRC’s young rider development programs while simultaneously strengthening Honda’s involvement in MotoGP and the Superbike World Championship. Specifically, Puig will support management and riders by assessing the overall picture of Honda HRC’s two-wheeled activities.
The reassignment is internally regarded as a promotion. Puig moves up in the HRC hierarchy and gains insight into both racing series. Honda put it this way: the company will continue to benefit from “Alberto’s four decades of experience in the Motorcycle World Championship” as he grows into his new role.
What Does Puig Himself Say About His Departure as Team Manager?
Puig commented extensively on his decision in the official statement, placing it in the context of his nearly 40-year career in the Grand Prix paddock: “I first stepped into the World Championship paddock in 1987 and since then I have been a racer, worked with young riders, a rider manager and a team manager – always with Honda.”
Regarding his motivation for the role change, he explained: “It’s been a life of leading from the front and now I feel my skills are best suited to look at the overall picture.”
How Did Puig’s Career at Honda Unfold?
The connection between Alberto Puig and Honda stretches back decades and encompasses nearly every conceivable role in motorcycle racing. As an active rider, the Spaniard competed in Grand Prix races in the premier class, which at the time was still known as the 500cc category. In 1995, he celebrated his first and only victory in the premier class at Jerez.
In the same year, Puig suffered a serious accident at the French Grand Prix at Le Mans, in which he massively injured his left leg. The consequences of the crash accompanied him for years and ultimately led to his retirement as a racer in 1997.
After his retirement, Puig remained involved in the sport in various capacities. He worked closely with series promoter Dorna and directed the Movistar-sponsored development cup, from which Dani Pedrosa emerged, among others. Puig later served as Pedrosa’s manager and played a crucial role in building Honda’s talent development programs, which he will continue to oversee in his new function.
In 2018, Puig took over the team manager position from Livio Suppo and led the Honda factory team to two consecutive Triple Crowns in the Marc Marquez era — the simultaneous winning of the Rider, Team and Constructor World Championships. After Marquez’s departure to Ducati at the end of 2024, Puig was instrumental in the restructuring that gradually brought Honda back toward competitiveness. In the 2025 season, the team achieved three podium finishes and a wet-race victory, enabling the climb from the lowest Concessions tier D to Category C.
Will Davide Brivio Become the New Honda Team Manager?
The timing of the announcement is no coincidence with another personnel move. Just days earlier, it had become known that Davide Brivio, currently team principal at Trackhouse Racing, the American Aprilia satellite team, will leave at the end of 2026 and move to Honda.
Brivio brings an impressive track record: at Yamaha, he was instrumental in building the team around Valentino Rossi and later Jorge Lorenzo. At Suzuki, he led the factory team to the surprise 2020 World Championship title with Joan Mir. After a stint in Formula 1 with Alpine, he returned to MotoGP in 2024 with Trackhouse.
According to information from Motorsport.com, the role Honda has in mind for Brivio is reportedly not that of team manager. Instead, his responsibilities are said to be in the marketing and business areas. Speedweek, on the other hand, reports that the team manager job profile at Honda HRC Castrol would be a good fit for Brivio. The succession question has not been officially confirmed by any party. Honda merely announced that it plans to name a successor for Puig in the coming weeks.
How Does the Change Fit into Honda’s Overall Restructuring?
Puig’s departure as team manager is not an isolated event but part of a comprehensive transformation Honda has been driving for several years. As early as 2024, then-HRC Managing Director Tetsuhiro Kuwata was replaced by Taichi Honda, who came from the company’s off-road division. For the 2025 season, Honda hired former Aprilia Technical Director Romano Albesiano as Technical Director for the MotoGP project. In early 2026, Hikaru Tsukamoto was also reassigned; as president of the research and development division, he had had direct influence on the MotoGP program.
The Japanese leadership has taken a significantly more active role than in previous years. The signing of Fabio Quartararo, who is set to race as Honda’s number one rider starting in 2027, was negotiated directly by Taichi Honda. David Alonso is considered the likely second factory rider, having reportedly already signed a preliminary contract. Honda thus faces what may be its most profound fresh start since the dominant Marquez era.
What Does the Leadership Change Mean for the 2027 MotoGP Season?
With the new regulations taking effect in 2027 and the switch to 850cc engines, a new technical era begins for all manufacturers. For Honda, the leadership restructuring comes at a strategically important time. The manufacturer had fallen from the top to the back of the field in recent years and has since been working on a methodical rebuilding process.
The current rider pairing of Luca Marini and Joan Mir is expected to be replaced by Quartararo and Alonso for 2027. Together with a new leadership structure — in which Puig acts as a strategic advisor and potentially Brivio in an operational or commercial role — Honda aims to close the gap to the European competition led by Ducati and Aprilia. Honda also announced that it is considering expanding to six motorcycles in MotoGP for 2027, although the negotiations are reportedly complicated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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When will Alberto Puig step down as Honda team manager?
Alberto Puig will step down as team manager of the Repsol Honda Team at the end of the 2026 MotoGP season. Starting in 2027, he will transition to an advisory role at HRC.
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Who will succeed Alberto Puig as Honda team manager?
An official successor has not yet been named. Potential candidates include internal HRC executives as well as experienced figures from the MotoGP paddock.
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Which riders will Honda field in MotoGP in 2027?
Honda will enter the 2027 MotoGP season with Luca Marini and Joan Mir as its regular riders. Both are already under contract for the new 850cc era.
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How successful was Alberto Puig as Honda team manager?
Under Alberto Puig’s leadership, Marc Marquez won the MotoGP World Championship with Honda in 2018 and 2019. After Marquez’s serious injury year in 2020, the team was unable to replicate those successes.
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