'HRC Honda make final 2027 rider decision after Marc Marquez prediction'
Marquez thinks Moreira has earned the call (Credit: Red Bull Content Pool)
Connor Andrews is Formula 1 and MotoGP writer for GPblog and various outlets. Having worked in motorsport for 15 years for leading companies, he has interviewed the sports biggest names and attended multiple Grands Prix.
The final two places on the 2027 MotoGP grid have reportedly been decided at Honda.
HRC have Diogo Moreira and David Alonso contracted for next season, but they are yet to announce which of the pair will be racing for the factory team alongside Fabio Quartararo, with the other racing for the satellite LCR squad.
However, Sky Italia claim that Moreira has won the battle.
The Brazilian will partner Quartararo after an impressive run of races for LCR, and a particularly telling test performance in Austria.
That leaves Alonso, who has dropped to fifth in the Moto2 standings, 99.5 points off the lead, as Johann Zarco’s teammate at LCR in 2027.
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The performance that changed Honda's thinking for 2027
Moreira wowed in late September during testing at the Red Bull Ring when he broke the lap record with a 01:28.4 on next year’s 850cc Honda.
Such a performance was already encouraging for his factory chances, but he then followed it up with second place in the sprint race the next time out in Japan.
He battled Marc Marquez for the lead in that race, and then the nine-time champion hinted at Moreira’s future prospects.
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The test showing and a second place boosted Moreira's chances (Credit: Red Bull Content Pool)
What Marc Marquez said about Honda's rising star
Speaking in a car on the way to the podium, Marquez said: “You ride better injured! You ride more carefully and brake sooner. It’s Honda’s house, huh?”
Moreira responded: “Of course, I’ve got more leverage now!”
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Marquez added: “You’ve got to go and get your money now, it’s a done deal. This is what you’re worth until tomorrow when there’s another race.”
Moreira then finished: “My last meeting’s at 5pm, so I need to get it done.”
At the same time, Alonso finished fifth in Japan and then didn’t record any points in Indonesia after a scary first-corner crash with teammate Dani Holgado.
Alonso's Moto2 title hopes are all but over (Credit: Red Bull Content Pool)
That means Alonso is very unlikely to add a Moto2 title to his Moto3 crown, an honour Moreira can boast as the series’ reigning champion.
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The decision to pick the Brazilian won’t come as a surprise to one of Moreira’s teammates this season, Cal Crutchlow, who substituted in for the injured Zarco for six races.
Crutchlow explains why Moreira deserves the opportunity
He commented: “He deserves to be there before David Alonso, in my opinion.
“He's had a year at it. He's regularly beating the other Honda riders, or there or thereabouts, in his first year as a rookie. So in my opinion it’s an absolute no-brainer.
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“The other side to that is if David Alonso goes to LCR, that's also a perfect scenario. Same as Diogo did to grow up in MotoGP.
“The bikes are no different; I think you just have less pressure. Yes, of course, maybe sometimes some different parts, but these guys have all got factory contracts.
“So in that sense, there's really no difference. It's just to say you're riding for a factory team, or you're riding for a satellite team.
“But now, as you see in MotoGP, basically every team is a factory team.”
Everybody knows good talent when you see it. But there's a difference between talent and a good head, and he's got both.- Cal Crutchlow on Moreira
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Moreira has the backing of Marquez and Crutchlow (Credit: Red Bull Content Pool)
He then spoke about his experience of working with Moreira, adding: “Everybody knows good talent when you see it. But there's a difference between talent and a good head, and he's got both.
“I like him. He's a great kid. Give him three years and he'll be, in my opinion, able to be MotoGP World Champion.
“I can see from the data, I can see the way he rides. For a first-year rookie to be doing what he's doing, on a bike that’s still progressing as well - it's not as if he's jumped on a Ducati or Aprilia that's winning races every week. And he's doing superb.
“The way he manages races, the way he fights, he's not scared. I like that about him. He never complains – I mean he knows if it's him, if it's the bike. He's very intelligent. It was good fun to have him as a teammate for those six races.”
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