The primary half of the 2025 season has come to an in depth, with the large headline being the dominance of Ducati’s Marc Marquez after the opening 12 rounds.
The eight-time world champion has maintained Ducati’s stranglehold on the standings in 2025, successful eight grands prix, 11 sprints and taking a lead within the title race of 120 factors heading into the summer time break.
As Marc Marquez continues to increase his benefit within the championship, the highlight is thrust onto Ducati’s rapid rivals now to see whether or not or not they’ll provide any form of substantial problem within the last 10 rounds of the marketing campaign.
However away from all of that, there’s one other unofficial battle raging for MotoGP’s ‘Japanese Cup’ between Yamaha and Honda.
A time period initially coined by pissed off riders from each camps to spotlight the truth that the grid had successfully cut up into two classes given the struggles of Honda and Yamaha, it’s develop into clear within the first 12 rounds of 2025 that this hole has evaporated.
Concessions introduced in for final yr have been aimed particularly at serving to Honda and Yamaha discover higher type, having slid down the pack in recent times following a long time of dominance within the premier class.
Each producers made some substantial behind-the-scenes adjustments to assist their causes. Yamaha introduced in Gigi Dall’Igna’s former right-hand man Max Bartolini as technical director in 2023, in a transfer to deliver extra of a European mentality to growth. Arguably his largest affect has been the event of a brand new V4, breaking Yamaha’s a long time of sticking solely to an inline-four engine design.
Yamaha additionally snared a satellite tv for pc crew for the primary time since 2022 within the from of Pramac to subject two extra manufacturing unit M1s on the grid this season.
At Honda, it beefed up its check crew with the addition of Aleix Espargaro and Takaaki Nakagami. It additionally signed Romano Albesiano from Aprilia as technical director, and in current weeks appears to be like to have acquired former KTM engine chief Kurt Trieb – architect of MotoGP’s quickest ever motor.
How Yamaha and Honda evaluate in 2025 to 2024
Whereas each producers are nonetheless a way from with the ability to problem for titles, and even podiums frequently, the primary half of 2025 has seen a stark enchancment for Yamaha and Honda.
The desk under in contrast the primary 12 rounds of 2025 to the primary 12 rounds of 2025.
| Yamaha and Honda – Mid-season comparability 2025 vs 2024 | ||||
| Producer | Complete factors | Finest outcome | Factors per spherical | Common place |
| Honda | ||||
| 2024 | 33 | eleventh | 2.75 | 14th |
| 2025 | 147 | 1st | 12.25 | seventh |
| Yamaha | ||||
| 2024 | 62 | seventh | 5.2 | twelfth |
| 2025 | 133 | 2nd | 11.08 | eighth |
After 12 rounds of 2024, Honda hadn’t occasion cracked the highest 10, whereas inside 5 in 2025 it received its first grand prix since 2023. Although Johann Zarco’s French Grand Prix triumph was within the moist, on the British Grand Prix within the dry a number of weeks later he was second.
Over 100 factors higher off than on the identical stage final yr, Honda is scoring nearly 10 factors higher on common per spherical than it was. Its present haul of 147 is 72 greater than it scored for the whole thing of the 2024 marketing campaign, the place its greatest outcome was an eighth within the moist.
Yamaha, against this, was on a barely higher footing in 2024. Fabio Quartararo had scored a better of seventh in Portugal and was a serious cause for its tally of 62 factors after 12 rounds and a median ending place two spots higher off than Honda.
In 2025, Fabio Quartararo’s second on the Spanish Grand Prix stays its spotlight – although a victory was on the playing cards on the British Grand Prix, earlier than a trip peak machine failure pressured him to retire from a dominant lead.
Yamaha’s one-lap pace has additionally been wonderful this yr, with Quartararo on pole 4 occasions. However changing that into outcomes hasn’t been as easy, with the M1’s lack of grip at first of races hindering its progress.
That stated, Yamaha is up from 5.2 factors per spherical after 12 races in 2024 to 11.08 this season and is averaging eighth in grands prix. It has additionally scored 71 factors greater than it managed on the identical stage final season and had already surpassed its 2024 whole of 124.
On the finish of final yr, no rider from both marque was inside the highest 10 within the standings. Quartararo was thirteenth, whereas Zarco was Honda’s greatest in seventeenth. At current, each sit eighth and ninth, cut up by seven factors.
What subsequent for Yamaha and Honda?
What stays evident from the primary half of 2025 in comparison with a lot of 2024, is that each Yamaha and Honda are being massively propped up by one rider.
Within the second half of final yr, Zarco emerged as Honda’s main mild and greatest growth head, whereas Quartararo’s title-winning pace has arguably made Yamaha look higher than it really is.
In direction of the ultimate few races earlier than the summer time break, Honda has usually dropped off when it comes to tempo in comparison with the place it was at first of the season. Yamaha has remained pretty constant, although, once more, Quartararo is a big cause for that.
Within the early a part of the season, Yamaha and Honda have been capable of benefit from pretty common begins for the likes of Aprilia and KTM. However each of these producers have now picked up in type, lowering podium alternatives for the Japanese manufacturers.
Prime pace for each stays a key weak spot, whereas each are seemingly nonetheless trying to find higher rear grip.
Honda shall be hoping its signing of Kurt Trieb from KTM will deliver it beneficial properties on this space, whereas Yamaha nonetheless appears to be like to be hedging its bets on the V4 challenge. Each will proceed to have concessions for the remainder of the season, and can very seemingly accomplish that once more in 2026 until it comes right into a run of very massive leads to the ultimate 10 rounds.
With the 850cc laws simply across the nook for 2027, that is being seen as a real reset level for Honda and Yamaha to get to the entrance once more. That may’t occur with out strong foundations from the remainder of this season and subsequent yr.
However present type suggests each producers are on the fitting path, to the purpose the place they’re even being touted amid main rider market rumblings. Pecco Bagnaia’s identify has been linked to a Yamaha transfer on a number of events, whereas Jorge Martin was reportedly seeking to break contract with Aprilia to affix Honda subsequent season.
Yamaha has additionally been capable of snare an enormous identify signing for 2027 within the type of double World Superbike champion Toprak Razgatlioglu. That’s a dangerous transfer for the Turkish celebrity, however one which wouldn’t have been made with out some perception within the Yamaha challenge being aggressive over the following few years.
Whereas clearly needing to do far more to get to the place they need to be, Yamaha and Honda are no less than on course.
