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We take a break from today’s chicanery to bring you a quick distraction: Marc Marquez riding the Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP around the Catalunya track, in a 360° video format.

The video comes from Honda’s initial photo and video shoot for the unveiling of the new CBR1000RR-R, but that doesn’t make it any less cool.

For the maximum experience, watch the video on your phone. The IMU on your smartphone should pick up your movements, and change your field of view as you “look” around the bike as its on track. 

The sad fact is, you likely won’t ever ride a MotoGP bike in your lifetime. Even the best of us, those who become professional motorcycle racers, have such a slim chance of riding these ultralight fire-breathing race bikes, which make north of 250hp.

When you start doing the math on the number of people who have ridden a MotoGP machine, the number is certainly less than the number of people who have been into space (533 have reached Earth’s orbit, by our last count), and this is fairly remarkable.

So with that woeful fact in mind, today we bring you an experience that is likely the closest you will get to riding a MotoGP bike, courtesy of some basic VR technology.

We have talked a great deal about autonomous vehicles here at Asphalt & Rubber, but usually the focus of that discussion has been about how autonomous four-wheel vehicles will interact with non-autonomous two-wheeled vehicles.

The time was sure to come though when a motorcycle OEM played with the idea of autonomous motorcycles, and that time is now.

Releasing early details about its autonomous motorcycle program, Honda Motor Corp. is staggeringly close to making the act of riding a motorcycle as simple as selecting a destination, and holding on tight.