After the finale in Barcelona, Takaaki Nakagami will start a new chapter in his career as a Honda test rider.

This marks a major change, as he will return to Japan after spending nearly 10 years living in Europe.

Of those 10 years, seven were spent in MotoGP with Honda. Nakagami will leave the premier class without having a single podium, despite coming very close several times.

In comparison to MotoGP, Nakagami earned 14 podiums in six seasons of Moto2, including two wins, which led to his promotion to MotoGP. However, he will continue as a Honda test rider in Japan. This move is part of Honda’s efforts to accelerate the development of the RC213V, a bike that has been gradually declining in performance.

Next week’s season finale will see Nakagami saying goodbye to a track that has become more of his home than Motegi. After all, he spent nearly a decade living on the outskirts of Barcelona.

Following the final race and the official test next Tuesday, where he will assist Chantra, Nakagami will pack up and return to his home. There, his life will slow down in terms of travel, although it’s still uncertain what his daily routine will look like.

“We haven’t discussed the details with Honda yet,” Nakagami told Motorsport.com. “We’ll meet in December when I go to the HRC headquarters, and they will explain the plan they have for me over the next six months. I don’t know yet how many testing days I’ll have, where they’ll be, or how many wild cards I’ll be involved in.”

“Honda wants to speed up the development of the bike in Japan. Nagashima is there, but he’s not fast enough to assess the parts beyond their basic function. The idea is to reduce the time spent evaluating the new components, and I’m faster than him. My times won’t be five seconds off the pace of the MotoGP riders.”

“My rhythm and lifestyle will change completely,” he said. “For the last 10 years, I’ve been living in Spain, but now I’ll be moving back to Japan. The first thing I’ll need to do is adjust to the new environment and weather, and then figure out the best way to stay fit and keep in touch with speed. The good news is that Honda will always be there, so I’ll have access to their bikes and circuits.”