2023-07-08 13:20:21
Takaaki Nakagami is one of Honda’s oldest riders. With this season, the Japanese has already been linked to the Japanese MotoGP project for six years, and he is also a direct witness to the debacle that the brand with the golden wing is going through in the world of competition. Aware of this, he has told Speedweek what “It will probably be the biggest crisis for HRC and of my career.”
The situation that Marc Márquez is going through is not only a sensation for #93, but also for the rest of the riders, starting with Nakagami. After the numerous crashes he had at the Sachsenring, the Japanese revealed that he felt the same fear of crashing due to the state of the bike: “He was behind when he fell. I ride the same motorcycle and I feel that the same thing can happen to me. He was very close, not only in turn 7, but also in turn 5, 6, 8, 10, 11 ”reveals the Japanese wearily.
Defining what the problem of the RC213-V is is being a real ordeal, although the shots can come, according to Nakagami because “the front wheel keeps collapsing, the rear is very unstable, the bike shakes and shakes, and it becomes very difficult”. His specific feelings, he mentions, are that “You lack grip in the front end, and as soon as you accelerate the wheel slips. I don’t know if it’s a mechanical or electronic problem.”.
The changes began to arrive at Honda, specifically in 2022: “Before the concept was the same, only the engine changed. In 2022 it was different at all levels. The chassis, the geometry, the feel of the front end… The bike has lost its Honda DNA, so I had to change my riding style, which I had learned four years before”.
“Honestly”, says that he had to “relearning how to race the bike because of how different it was“, arguing that “the bike always had a character, but suddenly everything changed: grip, feeling… Everything”, which led to “be very surprised” despite “the first impression was not negative”, but that, he adds, “the biggest problem was that we did not have all the experience that we had accumulated over the years.”
Also read: HRC will not hinder Márquez’s departure: “If he decides to leave, we will not retain him”
Nakagami reveals that at Honda they have given each rider the freedom to develop their bike independently: “Yes, the four drivers had different chassis and followed different development strategies. Each team leader applied different ideas. We couldn’t copy anything, we couldn’t exchange data, we couldn’t even share our ideas because the four of them had their own.”.
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