Kuwata becomes latest HRC boss to leave MotoGP project

Tetsuhiro Kuwata is the latest senior figure to leave HRC's MotoGP project.

According to Motorsport.com, Kuwata, currently ‘General Manager Race Operations Division’ will be moved to the four-wheel side and be replaced by Taichi Honda, from the Off-road/Dakar department.

Repsol Honda told Crash.net that Kuwata’s change of role was ‘part of the normal rotation of HRC management’.

Joining Honda Motor in 2000, Kuwata arrived at HRC in 2011. He was promoted to his current role in the aftermath of Shuhei Nakamoto’s retirement five years later.

Kuwata’s duties include overseeing all of HRC’s racing activities ‘from MotoGP to the Dakar’.

His exit from the MotoGP project follows that of HRC technical director Shinichi Kokubu and technical manager Takeo Yokoyama.

After just race one win in the last three years, and the loss of Marc Marquez, 2024 is being billed as the start of a new MotoGP era for Honda, which has also revamped its Repsol race livery.