After breaking his leg at Mugello, LCR Honda’s Alex Rins is still out for the Catalunya weekend – replacement rider confirmed
The MotoGP comeback of Alex Rins is still delayed. As a result of his leg fracture suffered at the Italian weekend in Mugello in mid-June, the Spaniard has not yet been given the green light by doctors to return to the LCR Honda line-up. Rins will also have to sit out the imminent Catalunya Grand Prix race weekend in Barcelona.
According to a statement from LCR-Honda, Rins’ recovery is making “good progress”. However, next weekend is still too early for a return to MotoGP riding. Rins broke his right tibia and fibula in his crash in Saturday’s race (sprint) at Mugello. He has been out of action since then, but has signed with Yamaha for the 2024 MotoGP season.
Rins had already feared that his comeback could be delayed, because although the fractures have healed so far, the nervous system in his right foot does not yet allow full mobility again.
As a replacement for Rins at LCR-Honda, Iker Lecuona will now be used again on the Barcelona weekend. The 23-year-old Spaniard, who is one of the two regular riders in the Honda factory team in the Superbike World Championship, has a tight programme ahead of him. On Tuesday and Wednesday of this week, he will take part in the second day test of the Superbike World Championship at MotorLand Aragon with the Honda CBR1000RR.
On Thursday, Lecuona is then expected three hours east at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya to take over the LCR team’s Honda RC213V again from Friday. For Lecuona, it will be his third stint deputising for Rins and his fifth MotoGP outing overall this year. Twice he stepped in for the Honda factory team to replace Marc Marquez and Joan Mir respectively.
Lecuona has not yet scored points in the current MotoGP season. In 2020 and 2021 he had been a regular rider with Tech3-KTM for two full seasons, during which time his best result was a sixth place finish.
