MotoGP 2026: Honda Restructures, Rossi Analyzes and Razgatlioglu Battles the Tires

• Honda is completely restructuring its MotoGP project for 2027: Alberto Puig steps down as team manager, Davide Brivio is set to take over
• Valentino Rossi sees no clear advantage for Aprilia over Ducati despite four victories
• Toprak Razgatlioglu struggles with the Michelin tires and eagerly awaits the Pirelli switch in 2027

The 2026 MotoGP season is only six race weekends old, yet the stories unfolding in the paddock reach far beyond the current World Championship. Honda is completely overhauling its MotoGP program, the balance between Aprilia and Ducati is closer than statistics might suggest, and for one of the most spectacular newcomers in recent years, the battle with the tires is becoming a mental endurance test. A look at the topics that are occupying the paddock in Barcelona and beyond.

Why is Alberto Puig leaving his position as HRC team manager?

Alberto Puig is stepping down from his position as team manager of Honda Racing Corporation and will transition into an advisory role in 2027. Honda officially confirmed the personnel change on the eve of the Catalan GP. Puig had taken over the position from Livio Suppo in 2018 and was the longest-serving team manager in the MotoGP paddock.

During his tenure, the Spaniard oversaw the last two World Championship titles of Marc Marquez and was the only high-ranking team official to survive the restructuring that followed Marquez’s departure at the end of 2023. Aleix Espargaro, who has been working as an HRC test rider since his retirement at the end of 2025, assessed Puig’s significance in a conversation with MotoGP reporter Jack Appleyard.

“He’s a guy who has always been at the rider’s side. He’s part of HRC, but always super close to the riders, defending them,” Espargaro said in Barcelona. He added that Puig would remain present despite the role change in 2027: “He will remain an important guy inside of the team. Maybe from a different perspective, but Alberto will remain here.”

Who will succeed Puig as team manager has not been officially announced. The most likely candidate is Davide Brivio, currently still under contract with Trackhouse Racing. Brivio is expected to take on a senior HRC position similar to Puig’s. On the rider side, Honda is planning a complete fresh start for 2027: Fabio Quartararo and rookie David Alonso are set to form the factory team.

What are Diogo Moreira’s chances of a Honda factory team seat?

This fresh start raises the question of where the other Honda riders will end up. Joan Mir has reportedly already agreed a deal with Gresini, while Luca Marini’s MotoGP future remains uncertain. For young Brazilian Diogo Moreira, who already showed some promising performances in his first MotoGP season, it is certain that he will continue riding for Honda in 2027. Only in which team remains open.

Moreira himself is deliberately holding back on the question of a possible promotion to the factory team. “It’s still too early. We need to wait,” he told SPEEDWEEK.com. He repeatedly emphasized how comfortable he feels at LCR: “Right now I ride for a good team, it is like a family for me. I am super happy in this team.”

The fact that David Alonso is expected to take the second factory team seat alongside Quartararo could dampen Moreira’s ambitions. Johann Zarco is confirmed at LCR for 2027. The most exciting personnel question at Honda is therefore whether former Moto3 World Champion Alonso will indeed jump directly into the factory team or whether Moreira can still build his case through strong performances.

Why does Moreira see 2027 as the ideal time for Moto2 graduates?

Moreira believes that the regulation overhaul for the 2027 season will make stepping up from Moto2 easier than ever before. Pirelli tires instead of Michelin, smaller 850cc engines and the removal of ride-height devices mean that even established MotoGP veterans will have to completely readjust. The experience advantage of existing full-time riders shrinks considerably as a result.

“It’s a good moment for Moto2 riders. There are Pirelli tyres and all riders need to adapt to new bikes. That’s why, in my opinion, it is easier for the guys from Moto2,” Moreira said. He pointed to a new generation of riders such as Dani Holgado, Barry Baltus and Manuel Gonzalez, who could move up in the coming years. Holgado is already confirmed at Gresini for MotoGP, and Senna Agius is also being mentioned in connection with a promotion.

This upheaval at Honda is part of a larger movement across the entire MotoGP. But while negotiations about the future take place behind closed doors, two Italian manufacturers are engaged in a battle on track that is closer than the bare numbers suggest.

Is Aprilia really better than Ducati in 2026?

Four of the first six Grands Prix went to Aprilia, only two to Ducati. Marco Bezzecchi dominated the first three races with flag-to-flag victories before Alex Marquez won on the Gresini Ducati in Jerez and Fabio Di Giannantonio claimed the turbulent Barcelona GP with the VR46 Ducati, which had to be red-flagged twice. In the riders’ championship, Bezzecchi leads with 142 points ahead of Jorge Martin (127) and Di Giannantonio (116). Aprilia also leads the team and constructor standings.

Valentino Rossi, now present in the paddock as VR46 team principal, sees the situation more nuanced. Speaking to Sky Italy, he explained that the Aprilia is not fundamentally superior. Rather, it is a somewhat different motorcycle that can offer a small advantage under certain conditions. Rossi sees the decisive factor in the riders: Bezzecchi developed the motorcycle intensively last year and feels it is his bike. Together with Martin, he forms a strong duo.

On the Ducati side, according to Rossi, the top riders have had bad luck. Marc Marquez struggled with arm problems, and Francesco Bagnaia showed good potential but could barely convert it into results. Bagnaia’s third place in Barcelona was the first podium for the Ducati factory team in the entire 2026 season. Across seasons, Ducati’s official team had to wait ten Grands Prix for a podium finish.

According to Rossi, the problem lies not in the motorcycle but in understanding it. Bagnaia himself pointed out that the GP26 rides differently and needs to be understood first. Di Giannantonio and Alex Marquez have already taken that step and unlocked the potential. Rossi is convinced that the Ducati is a competitive motorcycle capable of winning.

Rossi also sees a longer-term development: already in the second half of the 2025 season, rivals had moved significantly closer to Ducati. The dominance of previous years is over, which Rossi views as positive for the championship, as the close competition between different motorcycles makes the series more exciting.

This assessment by Rossi also puts the situation of another rider in a different light. Because while the front-runners battle between Aprilia and Ducati, at the other end of the field a three-time Superbike World Champion is struggling with very fundamental problems.

Why do the Michelin tires cause Toprak Razgatlioglu so many difficulties?

Toprak Razgatlioglu collected just four championship points in six race weekends: one for 15th place in Austin and three for 13th place in Le Mans. For the three-time Superbike World Champion, who was among the most dominant riders in recent history in his previous series, these are sobering numbers. The main problem is not the Yamaha M1 itself but the Michelin tires.

Razgatlioglu described the problem in detail: the Michelin tires have a specific operating window within which they work. If you leave this window even slightly, the tire spins and braking no longer works either. Unlike Pirelli, where according to Razgatlioglu the rider always has grip but must expect significant degradation toward the end of the race, Michelin offers less grip from the start that decreases with every lap.

Engine braking in particular works fundamentally differently with Michelin tires compared to Pirelli. During the Jerez test after the first races, he tried many different engine braking settings and learned from the data which approach works better. The realization was sobering: he needs to change his riding style even more, which by his own admission is anything but easy.

In Barcelona, an additional problem emerged. On tracks he knows from the Superbike World Championship, comparisons with Pirelli come to mind automatically. “The biggest problem: when I feel a strange moment with Michelin, I immediately think about Pirelli. This is my big problem,” Razgatlioglu admitted. On new tracks like Le Mans, this does not happen because he has no reference points in his head.

Razgatlioglu has spoken repeatedly in recent weeks about motivation problems and about not having fun. His hope is directed toward the Pirelli switch in 2027 and the first test with the new 850cc Yamaha on Pirelli tires.

What does Nicolo Bulega say about the difference between Michelin and Pirelli?

Confirmation of Razgatlioglu’s assessment comes from Nicolo Bulega. The Ducati rider from the Superbike World Championship completed two MotoGP races at the end of 2025 as a replacement for the injured Marc Marquez in the factory team and knows both tire worlds from personal experience.

Bulega confirmed that adapting to the Michelin tires was the most difficult part of his MotoGP outing. When he returned to the Superbike World Championship afterward, he needed two to three days to readjust to the Pirellis.

In early May, the Italian was allowed to test the 850cc Ducati prototype with Pirelli tires for the first time at Mugello. His impressions were significantly more positive. While differences remain between the MotoGP and Superbike versions of the Pirelli tires, the tire family is very similar. Switching between both categories has become considerably easier as a result.

Bulega is convinced that entering MotoGP from the Superbike World Championship or Moto2 will become significantly easier from 2027. In addition to the familiar Pirelli tires, the removal of ride-height devices also contributes to this. The riding feel on the MotoGP prototype with Pirelli felt in some ways very similar to a Superbike.

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