Alberto Puig will step down as team manager of Honda’s factory MotoGP team after the 2026 season—but the Spaniard will remain with HRC
After eight years at the helm of Honda’s official MotoGP team, Alberto Puig will step down from his role as team manager at the end of the 2026 season. Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) confirmed this in an official statement.
Starting next year, the Spaniard will take on a new, cross-functional role as an advisor within the Japanese manufacturer’s motorsports division.
The announcement comes just days after reports of an impending move by Davide Brivio to HRC. The current Trackhouse team principal, who previously held leadership positions at Yamaha and Suzuki, is expected to leave the American team at the end of the year and join Honda starting in 2027.
Brivio Not Puig’s Direct Successor
According to information from Motorsport.com, however, Brivio will not succeed Puig as team manager. Instead, his responsibilities are expected to lie in the marketing and business sectors.
Honda’s official statement, released on Thursday, reads: “After nearly a decade as head of the official Honda factory team in MotoGP, Puig will assume an important advisory role for Honda HRC starting in 2027.”
The manufacturer explains that it will continue to benefit from “Alberto’s four decades of experience in the Motorcycle World Championship” while he adapts to his new role.
This is the role Puig is set to fulfill in the future
Puig is also expected to remain closely involved in the brand’s sporting activities in the future. Honda emphasizes: “As an advisor to HRC, Puig will continue to contribute to the development of youth development programs while strengthening Honda’s commitment to the MotoGP and WorldSBK championships.”
Puig himself also commented on his new role, reflecting on his decades-long career in Grand Prix racing: “I first entered the World Championship paddock in 1987, and since then I have been a racer, worked with young riders, served as a rider manager, and acted as a team manager—always with Honda.”
“During this time, I’ve experienced many positive and negative moments that have taught me how to work with riders, people, and different situations.”
He intends to apply this experience more strategically in the future, “to support Honda HRC, its riders, and staff in their continued development and in mastering all the challenges and successes that racing brings.”
Honda and Puig share a long history
Puig took over the role of team manager from Livio Suppo in 2018. However, his connection to Honda goes back much further. Even as an active rider, the now 59-year-old had close ties to the Tokyo-based manufacturer.
His career, however, was profoundly shaped by a serious accident at the 1995 Le Mans Grand Prix, in which he suffered severe injuries to his left leg. That same year, the Barcelona-born Spaniard nevertheless celebrated his first victory in what was then the 500cc class, at Jerez.
After retiring in 1997, Puig remained involved in the sport in various roles. Among other things, he worked closely with series promoter Dorna (now MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group) and led the Movistar-sponsored youth championship, which produced riders such as Dani Pedrosa.
Later, Puig also served as his manager. In addition, he played a decisive role in establishing Honda’s youth development programs, which he will continue to oversee in the future.