The hidden paradox in Marini's move to Honda's MotoGP team

In the absence of the signature that will make Luca Marini a factory Honda MotoGP rider for the next two seasons, one of the main keys to the deal is the Italian's ambition and desire to go his own way, without the supposed shelter provided by his brother Valentino Rossi.

It is striking that Marini would choose to give up a Ducati, the most competitive bike on the grid, to embark on a project with Honda - which has the worst bike judging by its results. However, the move is even more paradoxical when considering the driving force behind it.

That is Marini's desire to leave VR46, the team bearing his brother's initials, to enter a more than uncertain future with HRC. Its bike has become a machine that leaves its riders crushed and seems to be going nowhere from a technical point of view.

Marini will follow the same path as Marc Marquez but in the opposite direction. At first glance, that does not seem to offer too many guarantees of success unless Honda undergoes a revolution in its working methodologies. Despite this, the 26-year-old has decided to leave VR46, the team that many might consider to be his comfort zone. But was it really?

Rossi hardly appears at any grand prix, but indirectly his spirit is represented by Uccio Salucci, his right-hand man and the team manager. The key is that Salucci is Rossi's close friend, not of his brother, who has a very different sensitivity.

Rossi's team is built on the pillars that have always accompanied the seven-time MotoGP champion; an organisation that well defines the concept of a tribe. This sense of family is as important for some, like Marco Bezzecchi, as it is relative for others, like his garage neighbour Marini. For Bezzecchi, staying with his people is so important that he would have put it before the promotion that would have meant racing for Pramac next season, where he would have competed with the most evolved Desmosedici specification.

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Marini doesn't attach as much significance to the family feeling at VR46 as team-mate Bezzecchi

While Bezzecchi preferred to give up that GP24 to remain surrounded by those elements that give him the stability he needs to be competitive, it is clear that Marini has different priorities. In fact, it didn't sit well with the Italian that nobody thought of him when Bezzecchi said no to that Ducati from Pramac, which will go to Franco Morbidelli.

A source from VR46's garage tells Motorsport.com: "Luca is going his own way. He's ambitious, and he's always maintained that his goal is to have a factory bike in a factory team. And he knows that, right now, that's not within his reach at Ducati. He is also very keen to prove that he deserves everything he gets, without anyone thinking that he gets it because he is the brother of who he is." 

Last Sunday, Bezzecchi did not want to go into the question of who he would prefer to replace his team-mate. But speaking to Sky he did make a veiled hint at the current rift between Marini and the Academy.

If nothing goes wrong at the last minute, Marini's contract with HRC could be signed as early as this week at Losail, the venue for the penultimate round of the calendar

"I don't want to imagine what it would be like not to have 'Maro' as a team-mate," he said. "We've known each other forever, even though he's not training with us now, because he's changed all his preparation and he's distanced himself a bit." 

If Marini's likely departure from VR46 has caught more than one person off guard, there are also those who do not quite see sense in the move made by Honda. Especially if we take into account that the Japanese manufacturer appeared reluctant to the possibility of offering an agreement of more than one year, precisely the condition set by the Italian to accept the challenge.

In principle, Marini's stats - he is still chasing his first win in MotoGP and is eighth in the points table, fifth among the eight Ducati riders - do not justify such a change of strategy. The circumstance leads one to think that there is something that is still hidden.

If nothing goes wrong at the last minute, Marini's contract with HRC could be signed as early as this week at Losail, the venue for the penultimate round of the calendar. There is not much time to get everything ready if Honda's intention is for the Italian to make his debut on the RC213V at the Valencia test on 28 November.

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Could Marini shortly be announced as a Honda rider?