Why Honda's Assen MotoGP practice struggles were "expected

Honda’s Assen MotoGP practice struggles at the Dutch Grand Prix were framed as expected by Joan Mir, after none of the HRC riders reached the top 10 at the end of Friday practice. Mir, the leading Honda rider, finished 12th, just under one-tenth of a second away from advancing to Q2, but 0.702s slower than Aprilia’s Marco Bezzecchi in the fastest lap. Mir attributed the deficit to the circuit layout, saying Honda struggled particularly in sector four and also in sector two. He noted his pace in sectors one and three was stronger, but he lost around six tenths in sector four. LCR Honda’s Diogo Moreira, just behind Mir, pointed to the RC213V’s lack of stability through Assen’s long fast corners, making it difficult to hit race pace. He added that both Mir and the team face an uphill battle for the rest of the weekend.