Honda’s Joan Mir Unearths Mystery Behind Assen Tumbles: “Unrepeatable” Incidents
Honda’s Joan Mir voices lingering confusion over his abrupt retirements during the Dutch Grand Prix weekend, revealing he remains unable to pinpoint causes behind front-end crashes at Turn 4 during the sprint race and again at Turn 10 in the main event.
A two-time 2020 MotoGP champion, he failed to finish either race despite setting qualifying times that secured a top-10 starting position. His sprint race exit came after clipping his front at Turn 4, while his main event elimination followed another high-side crash at Turn 10 during the opening lap.
Mir explicitly criticized track surface conditions for his Saturday tumble but admitted no clear explanation exists for Sunday’s incident. “On Saturday, I knew why I crashed,” he explained, “but Sunday’s frontal loss remains unexplained. I wasn’t attempting any brave maneuvers – I was aligned with traffic, maintaining pace, when the bike suddenly betrayed me.”
In emotionally candid remarks, Mir emphasized prioritizing mental resilience: “Repeated unexplained crashes erode confidence. This pattern has recurred throughout my career, and the only solution is compartmentalizing. Overanalysis creates cycles of doubt – acceptance becomes essential.”
His frustration with persistent inconsistencies at Honda materialized in candid criticism of the 2023 campaign: “We showed potential for consistent top-five finishes at challenging circuits weeks prior in Brno… but sustaining that performance remains impossible. Yamaha surpassing us in Assen only deepens the pain.”
Joan Mir, Honda HRC
Photo by: Gold and Goose Photography / Getty Images
Mir delivered a season-best fifth-place finish at Brno just prior to Assen, outperforming lesser Honda entries – the strongest result for the team all season.
This week’s technical analyses focus on evaluating mirrors-adjustments following Sunday’s solo collision at Turn 10.
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