LCR MotoGP team boss Lucio Cecchinello says Johann Zarco’s “negotiations with Honda have just started” for 2026 and hopes the Frenchman♈ “can consider” to stay where he is.

The 34-year-old Frenchman signed a two-year deal with Honda to join LCR last year, putting him outꦺ of sync almost all factory team’s except HRC’s - whose rider Luca Marini✃ also has a deal expiring this season.

168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Johann Zarco’s arrival at Honda has been something of a revelation for the brand, with the one-time MotoGP race winner its leading rider last season and currently do♔ing the same after four round👍s in 2025.

He sits sixth💜 in the points ahead of this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix and scored Honda’s first top five since 2023 last time out at the Qatar GP.

Zarco hꦍas already expressed a desire to remain with Honda for at least another two years and has acknowledged publicly the potential to move to its factory team in 2026.

In a🍬 new interview with MotoGP’s world feed on Friday at Jerez, Cecchinello has made his position on retaining Zarco clear, while also suggesting it is in H♌onda’s best interest to leave him where he is.

“Well, I feel that Honda is more and more seeing our team as a part of their family and this is clear for me because we’ve never gotten such great support from them ♑[as we do now],” he said.

“And I think t𒀰hat the main goal for them is to put as many Hondas as possible in 🦂front.

“We will be very pleased if Zarco can consider to stay here, also for the𒁃 future.

“But we don’t know, his negotiations with Honda ༒have just started. So, we’ll see.”

Zarco’s ride to fifth at the Qatar GP (which became fourth after a post-race penalty for M𒊎averick Vin🐼ales) has only strengthened belief that Honda is closꩵe to returning to the podium in 🔥MotoGP.

This weekend’s Spanish GP at Jerez represents a good opportunity for Honda as the tight track layout and lack of big acceleration points w▨orks in the underpowe✃red RC213V’s favour.

However, Cecchinello says he wa൲nts to “keep our feet on the ground” and see where the bike’s performance is at the coming European rounds - especially at Mugello.

“Well, definitely we’ve been very happy, very satisfied with how Johann rode the bike and I am personally satisfied⭕ with how the team worked around the bike to allow him to perform as good as it was,” he noted about the Qatar GP.

“However, let’s say that we want to keep our feet on the ground and see also how our performance will be in t𝔉he next few European rounds becaus😼e it’s very important for us to be racing in the same race tracks that we know very well, like here in Jerez, Le Mans, Mugello.

ཧ“And I think we will be very pleased if we can confirm to be able to stay in the top five and top six in Mugello.

“🧸However, it will be very hard bec🍌ause the other competitors are working very hard as well.”