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Marc Marquez announcing his departure from Honda has left the Japanese squad in a quandary. The bike has been notoriously termed as a 'rider-killer' with both the Repsol Honda riders topping the crash charts.
Additionally, other than Marquez and the one-off performance from Alex Rins at Austin this season, you'd have to go back to Dani Pedrosa as the last rider who had any success on that bike.
Honda has notoriously been a tough bike to ride all these years. At the same point in time, the lure of riding for the Japanese marque is still undeniable. That is precisely why the team still houses Joan Mir, the 2020 MotoGP World Champion in one of the seats.
Keeping that in mind, a seat at Honda to replace Marquez would still be the one that would entice a few. There is a caveat here, however, that most of the riders already have a contract for next season, and enticing them out of it means the juice has to be worth the squeeze here.
Having said that, who could be the possible riders on the shortlist to replace Marc Marquez? Let's take a look.
Possible Marc Marquez replacements at Honda
#1 Johan Zarco
The Frenchman is already in the Honda fold as he has signed a contract to move from Pramac Ducati to LCR Honda. The rider was moving to the satellite team with the caveat that he would have a factory-spec bike.
With Marc Marquez leaving the factory team, Johan Zarco almost appears to be the perfect rider who should get the promotion.
Will he be able to do it? That's a question mark, especially considering the fact that LCR Honda does not fancy losing its star signing for the 2024 MotoGP season.
#2 Maverick Vinales
There are several reasons why Maverick Vinales will be a brilliant addition to Honda and there is one key reason why he won't be.
When we talk about why he would be a brilliant rider to replace Marc Marquez, we talk about the pristine talent that the rider possesses which has helped him become a multiple-race winner in MotoGP.
He has won races with Suzuki, he has achieved success with Yamaha and he is been very close to doing the same with Aprilia as well. Adding Vinales to the squad means adding a pristine talent that would do justice to the bike he has under him.
Now coming to the part where Vinales won't be at Honda is his relationship with Aprilia. The Spaniard loves the Italian team and has regained that smile he lost.
Even this season when he lost out to teammate Aleix Espargaro in Barcelona in a battle for the win, the two riders celebrated together.
Maverick Vinales is an emotional character and Honda is certainly not a place for that kind of a rider.
#3 Fabio di Giannantonio
The rider that Marc Marquez will be replacing at Gresini Ducati is a free agent and he might be someone that Honda could look at as a stopgap option.
The problem and the harsh reality for Honda right now is that the Japanese team has lost its start rider at a time when the rider market is more or less settled. When that happens, unless you are the irresistible force of nature or an appealing option, it's tough to lure the riders away from their contracts.
The rider market would be more open next season and Honda can plan better at the time. In the meantime, the stopgap option of having Fabio di Giannantonio on the team could be a pragmatic choice.
#4 Jake Dixon
The British rider has been impressive in Moto2 this season and was originally linked with a seat at Gresini. With the seat going to Marc Marquez, Dixon is currently contracted to race in Moto2 again next season.
There is, however, a breakout clause that could be exercised if he gets an opportunity to be in a MotoGP squad. Dixon's name was a bit of a surprise when it first popped up as a possible replacement for Marquez but it could surely be a case of Honda looking at someone it can build the team around for the future.
#5 Iker Lecuona
Iker Lecuona has been the Honda stopgap option for a while, with the Spaniard straddling up whenever one of the riders has been injured.
With not many attractive names on the market at this moment, could it be the perfect time for Honda to give Lecuona a year to show what he can do as the team waits for star riders to become available next season?
It surely could, and as a positive Honda will have a known entity joining the team as well.
