Aleix Espargaro will replace the recovering Joan Mir for Honda HRC Castrol at this weekend’s Indonesian Grand Prix in Mandalika, Honda Racing Corporation has confirmed.
Mir will sit out the event on medical advice as he continues his recovery. Honda said further updates on the rider’s condition will be shared in due course.
The Indonesian Grand Prix gives Espargaro a return to a MotoGP race weekend for the first time since the 2025 Valencia Grand Prix. He will ride the Honda RC213V in Mandalika as the Honda HRC development rider steps into the team for the weekend.
The change places Espargaro back on the No. 41 machine in a competitive Grand Prix setting, while Honda manages Mir’s absence and the Spaniard’s ongoing recovery.
Espargaro returns to the Honda RC213V
Espargaro arrives in Indonesia with extensive premier-class experience. The three-time MotoGP winner spent 14 seasons as a full-time rider in the category and recorded 12 podium finishes during his MotoGP career.
His appearance at Mandalika will be his first race weekend since Valencia in 2025. Since moving into his role as a Honda HRC development rider, his focus has been on work behind the scenes with the RC213V.
Honda noted that Espargaro’s time on the bike this season has been limited by an injury earlier in the year. That makes the Indonesian weekend an opportunity for him to build up his running and reconnect with the machine in a race-event environment.
Espargaro is already familiar with Lombok, but Honda said he will need to get up to speed quickly. The immediate objective for the No. 41 is to reacquaint himself with the RC213V before returning his attention to development duties.
For Honda HRC Castrol, the substitution provides an experienced rider for the Indonesian round while Mir follows the medical guidance attached to his recovery. Espargaro’s knowledge of MotoGP and his current development role make the weekend relevant both as a stand-in appearance and as further time with Honda’s premier-class motorcycle.
What the Indonesian GP means for Honda
The Mandalika weekend is principally a return to competition for Espargaro rather than a change to his longer-term assignment. Honda has made clear that his objective is to regain familiarity with the RC213V and then refocus on development work.
That context is important after Espargaro’s reduced track time earlier this season. A full Grand Prix weekend offers a defined setting in which to resume his on-track work with the bike, beginning with the task of quickly finding his rhythm at a circuit he knows.
Meanwhile, Mir’s absence remains a recovery matter. Honda did not provide a timetable for his return in the announcement, stating only that updates will follow in due course.
The Indonesian Grand Prix will therefore see Espargaro make his first MotoGP race-weekend appearance in nearly a year, with the experienced Spaniard covering for Mir and returning to the Honda RC213V at Mandalika.
