Joan Mir labelled Honda’s latest engine "a small step in all areas" after sampling the specification used by test rider and Spanish MotoGP wild-card Aleix Espargaro during🐠 Monday’s Jerez test.

Mir, who🎀 suffered his sixth non-score of the season when he crashed out while battling for the top six in the grand prix, finished 16th on the timesheets.

“It was a good day, something 🅰we needed after five races without a chance to test," Mir said.

"The wind was a little bit tricky [but]ꦿ I was able to try the engine that Aleix was u𓂃sing.

“It’s a small step in the right direction for us. I think it offers improvements in all areas, a little morಞe power, a little more acceleration."

Espargaro ran the new-spec engine throughout the weekend, where he w☂as stripped of 14th place and two points by a post-race tyre pressure penalty.

With the 2025-spec💞 RCV battling for best of the rest behind Ducati, Mir’s priority is to ensure the engine gain felt at Jerez will carry over to other circuits.

“We have 💧to be sure that this improvement and this engine doesn't give us any unexpected problems,” Mir explained.

“Because we are in a different situation to before – noꦗw we have an acceptable base and an acceptable performance with the curren♛t one.

“So we have to be ❀sure that if we put this engine on [other] track[s], it will be faster."

Asked if the engine provided more outright power or broader gains, Mir confirꦑmedꦦ:

“The character is very similar. T༒hey improved a little bit all the areas. It’s a little bit more linear, with a little bit more power.

“Here at this trཧack is not the🌟 best one to try top speed. But I would say that this is a small step in all areas.”

Honda, like Yamaha, is able to introduce n🌞ew engine designs during the season due to it𒁏s D concession ranking.

As such, if the data agrees with Mir’s feedback, the new design could be homologated for use during the next round at Le Mans.