Alberto Puig to leave Honda MotoGP team manager role in 2027

Alberto Puig will leave his role as Honda HRC MotoGP team manager at the end of the 2026 season. From 2027, he will start a new job as a cross-functional advisor for Honda Racing Corporation.

Puig has worked with Honda for many years. He first joined the MotoGP paddock as a rider in the late 1980s and later became one of the most respected figures in motorcycle racing. He won the 1995 Spanish Grand Prix and also helped many young riders during his career.

He became Honda’s MotoGP team manager in 2018. During his first years in charge, Honda enjoyed strong success and won important championships with riders such as Marc Márquez. However, the team later faced difficult seasons as Honda struggled to keep up with Ducati, Aprilia and KTM. Puig stayed loyal to Honda during this challenging period and worked closely with engineers and riders to improve the bike.

In his new position, Puig will not manage the MotoGP garage every weekend. Instead, he will advise Honda across different racing projects. His work is expected to include helping young riders develop, supporting Honda’s MotoGP and WorldSBK programmes, and sharing his experience with team leaders and engineers.

Puig said he feels this new role suits him better at this stage of his career. After spending decades working directly in racing, he now wants to use his knowledge to help Honda from a wider point of view. He explained that he has learned valuable lessons from both success and failure in racing.

There is also growing talk in the MotoGP paddock about who could replace Puig as Honda team manager. Reports suggest that Davide Brivio could join Honda in the future, although no official announcement has been made yet. Brivio is well known for his success with Yamaha and Suzuki in MotoGP.

Puig’s story in motorcycle racing has not only been about success. He has also faced many health problems after a serious crash at the 1995 French Grand Prix in Le Mans. The injury to his left leg caused years of pain and many surgeries, and it eventually ended his racing career. Even so, he continued working in motorsport and became an important leader inside Honda.