#rc213v

One of the biggest news stories in MotoGP for 2019 is Jorge Lorenzo leaving Ducati after two years and joining the factory Repsol Honda team, replacing the now-retired Dani Pedrosa. The move comes as a bit of a shock for a few reasons, but it also pairs the three-time MotoGP World Champion with five-time – and reigning – champ, Marc Marquez.

What do you get when you combine the budget and might of Red Bull, MotoGP champion Marc Marquez, his Honda RC213V, and a ski slope? The title says it all. You get one of the most talented motorcycle pilots on the planet piloting a 260 hp beast through the snow and up one of the toughest slopes in the World Cup of skiing.

Former World Champion Nicky Hayden is returning to MotoGP for at least one more race, riding for the injured Jack Miller for the Team Estrella Galicia Marc VDS team at this weekend’s race at Aragon. Hayden last raced in MotoGP last season before moving over to the Ten Kate  Honda World Superbike team this year. His return, at least for the upcoming round, returns a much-missed American presence to the MotoGP grid.

What can I add to what’s already been said about the new “MotoGP bike for the street” Honda unveiled yesterday? When I asked Large Project Leader Yosuke Hasegawa if he thought $184,000 was too expensive or too cheap, he didn’t think long before answering that the bike is way too inexpensive at that price. The joke is his hair was dark when he started on the project three years ago; now it’s white.

Two-time reigning MotoGP World Champion Marc Marquez was on hand to help Honda reveal the new RC213V-S prototype, a street-legal version of his race bike.