Takaaki Nakagami will step in for the injured Luca Marini at next week’s Italian Grand Prix in Mugello, marking his first race with the factory Honda MotoGP team. Marini is still recovering from a severe injury sustained during testing for the Suzuka 8 Hours event in Japan at the end of May.
Marini’s absence had initially allowed Honda to run only one rider at the previous Aragon round under a special regulation. However, the team is now obligated to present a substitute at Mugello to maintain a two-rider lineup for the factory squad.
Nakagami’s Unexpected Return to the Race Grid
Though Nakagami’s name was not listed on the official entry sheets for the Italian GP, Motorsport.com confirmed he will join Honda’s official garage alongside teammate Joan Mir. Nakagami retired from full-time racing last season and transitioned into a test rider role with Honda Racing Corporation (HRC). Until now, he had never competed with the factory Honda team, having only raced with the satellite LCR Honda outfit.
The 33-year-old from Chiba appeared earlier this season as a wildcard at the French GP, where he impressed by finishing sixth. Nakagami’s performance there was notable for his tactical mastery in managing tire wear and timing his bike swap during a challenging flag-to-flag race with two starts.
Honda’s Test Rider Strategy Under New Technical Leadership
Since April, Honda’s technical direction has been led by Romano Albesiano, formerly with Aprilia, who manages a trio of test riders: Nakagami, Aleix Espargaro, and Stefan Bradl. While Bradl focuses exclusively on testing, Espargaro has also competed as a wildcard this year, finishing 17th at the Spanish GP and retiring at the British GP. After the British round, Espargaro expressed a diminished appetite for racing competition.
Should Marini’s recovery extend beyond Mugello, Honda may consider summoning the three-time MotoGP winner Nakagami again to fill the gap in their factory team lineup.
