Joan Mir and Luca Marini “have to fight” for 2027 MotoGP contracts, Honda HRC Castrol boss Alberto Puig says.

Both riders are out of contract at the factory Honda MotoGP team at the end of this year, Mir having been there since the 2023 season and Marini since 2024.

Asked if the two are riding for their HRC futures in the first part of the 2026 MotoGP season, Alberto Puig did not deny the assertion but noted that they are not alone in that.

“I think many [riders], not only them [Marini and Mir],” Puig told MotoGP.com at the end of the third day of testing Sepang.

“This is a year when many guys’ contracts are finished, but I think frankly speaking all the paddock is in the same situation – not only riders. 

“When you don’t have a contract for the next season, you have to fight.”

Quartararo “a fantastic rider”

While things are far from certain for Marini and Mir at present, Honda has been strongly linked with Fabio Quartararo recently.

The Frenchman was reported by Motorsport.com to have already signed with Honda before the Shakedown test got underway in late January.

However, speaking on the final day of the official test in Sepang Puig implied that nothing is signed yet, which is also what Quartararo said a few days beforehand.

“At this moment I can tell you that everybody is talking to everybody,” said Puig.

“All manufacturers are talking to all riders and all riders. So, this is something at this time of year. 

“It’s true that every time it’s coming earlier, this process, but on [Quartararo] nothing is clear. The only thing that is clear for Honda at this moment is that we have to support our current riders and this is what we are going to do. 

“We will start the season and we will see how everything goes, but for sure Honda still at this moment has not defined the programme for 2027. 

“Of course, Fabio [Quartararo] is a fantastic rider, like many others, but at some point at Honda we have to see what is the best for our own team.”

Puig added that the qualities he and Honda are looking for in their 2027 riders are quite straightforward.

“I think the number one quality of a rider is– it’s a difficult combination but you need to find speed and [be] smart,” he said.

“You find a super-fast rider [who is] smart, there you have it. You don’t look for anything else.”