Honda rider Mir after his best result of the season: “Just like in a stage race”

After the race, Joan Mir left no doubt as to his satisfaction: “Today we had the package to fight for something interesting. I gave it one hundred per cent – that usually translates into a good result.” Even more would have been possible, had qualifying gone better. He described fifth place as a “realistic result” – with the caveat that Pedro Acosta was forced to retire in the final metres due to a technical problem. He compared the result to his podium finish in Barcelona, where, however, more riders had crashed – and he ultimately received a time penalty for having tyre pressure that was too high.

Tyre choice based on riding style rather than gut feeling

When asked about his tyre choice, Mir explained why he’d opted for the soft rear tyre, even though his team-mate Luca Marini hadn’t considered it at all based on his experience in the sprint race. “Depending on your riding style, one or the other suits you better. I know that my riding is more aggressive when turning in and through the middle of the corner, and I find it harder with the medium tyre in that area. With the medium tyre, on the other hand, you have more stability coming out of the corner.”

With the soft tyre, he had to manage tyre wear more carefully. But that is one of his strengths: “I’ve always been good at controlling that behaviour.” Mir was deliberately cautious when asked about the prospects for Assen, where it’s expected to be slightly cooler than in Brno: “I’ve learnt in MotoGP that you can’t make predictions. At Balaton, my prediction was that I’d be much faster in the end than I actually was.”

Honda is not yet consistently capable of finishing in the top five.

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When asked whether Honda could now consistently compete in the top five, Mir disagreed: “No, we’re dependent on other people’s mistakes. It’s true that I managed to finish P5 today. In the past, I’ve also managed to secure a podium finish – in Barcelona, for example – but that was because other riders made mistakes.”

He therefore didn’t want to take credit for consistency. He said they were dependent on mistakes by the Aprilia and Ducati riders. “I know I can do it when everything clicks, but not every weekend. I feel like I’m in the world of cycling: I’m out there to win the stage, not the overall classification.” In the World Championship standings, he remains last among the Honda riders, in 18th place with 26 points.