As Marc Marquez continues his focus to a full recovery, Stefan Bradl will again jump on the Repsol Honda Team RC213V for this weekend season opener in Qatar.

Having last raced in Qatar back in 2016, the 31-year-old German will once again return to Losail International Circuit in a bid to prove his worth after a fruitful testing with the RC213V.

“First of all I want to say thank you to HRC and wish Marc all the best on his continued recovery. We had a good test and I have been riding well after a busy 2020 and a good start to 2021.

“Hopefully we can have another strong weekend and gather some good information for Honda.

“It will be great to race in Qatar again, it has been a while since I have raced there but certainly the two tests have me up to speed with the track so I don’t think this will be a disadvantage to us. Let’s start the season,” he said.

Meanwhile, Pol Espargaro is raring to make his debut with the RC213V.

The 2021 MotoGP season opener is expected to be a thrilling race with Espargaro vying to make his mark with the new machine after leaving KTM at the end of last season.

“The first race is finally here, I am really excited to get back on the Honda. We had a good test and I am looking forward to the first race weekend. There are some things we still need to learn and understand about the bike and it will be an intense opening weekend, but I am excited.

“Racing the Repsol Honda is something most people dream of and I can’t wait to do it. I am not setting a target for the race other than do the best that we can. Let’s put on a good show for all the fans that are at home, it’s time to go racing,” he explained.