Takaaki Nakagami will miss this weekend’s Argentinean Grand prix after testing positive for Covid-19 on Monday, with Alex Marquez set to be LCR’s only entrant for the event.
The LCR Honda outfit announced the news that the Japanese rider would skip the Termas de Rio Hondo round of the season on Thursday afternoon, Nakagami remaining at home in order to try and recover sufficiently to return to the saddle for the Americas GP next weekend.
With Honda test rider Stefan Bradl already called up to action as a replacement for the injured Marc Marquez in the factory Honda team, LCR haven’t been able to source a replacement for Nakagami at such short notice and thus will enter a sole RC213-V machine for Alex instead.
“Unfortunately, I will not race this weekend in Argentina,” said Nakagami.
“I got a positive PCR test just before flying to Termas (de Rio Hondo), I am really sorry for my team, sponsors and fans.
“I don’t have any symptoms and I am feeling good, I am just very sad and disappointed.
“I am hoping to be back on track in Austin for the Americas GP, fingers crossed.”
Nakagami currently sits 14th in the MotoGP riders standings after two rounds of the 2022 campaign, the two-time Moto2 race winner having scored a best result of tenth so far in the opening round of the year in Qatar.
He failed to score in the first Indonesian GP in 25 years two weeks ago after struggling for speed in the mixed condition sprint, bringing his Honda home in 19th .
