MotoGP, Nakagami: “Right now there is no solution to the Honda’s problems”

In a certain sense, Takaaki Nakagami is one of the men of the moment. On the one hand, the Barcelona incident has not yet been fully put to bed, for various reasons, and on the other hand, the Japanese rider is perhaps the focus of Honda's attention in terms of development, as the manufacturer tackles a puzzle that appears to have no solution.

“There’s not much I can say”, comments Taka, “We have a problem and we don’t what to do right now. After the summer, I think we’ll see big changes. The engine is OK, but in terms of the frame and aerodynamics we’re not at the level of our rivals, especially with the aerodynamics, as we haven’t improved since the winter tests. We’re lacking rear grip and rideability, and you have to be excessively on the brakes in corner entry, which doesn’t help. It’s difficult.”

Last weekend was a disaster for Honda. Have you talked about it?

“Not specifically, but it was definitely a difficult weekend. It’s not good to see Honda last and outside the points – there’s clearly a problem, so we need to work out what to change.”

Nakagami: “I’m not yet 100%”

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How are you physically?

“The three crashes in Germany didn’t make my physical condition any worse, but overall it was a tough weekend, largely due to the heat. I lost a lot of energy day by day, so it was complicated. I’ve rested as much as possible over the last few days and, although I’m not yet 100%, I’m there. Assen is not a negative track for us, but the weather is always hard to predict. We need to be ready in any case and try to complete a good weekend to round out the first part of the season as best we can.”

This track is known to be physically demanding. Are you worried?

“It’s definitely a track that requires energy, particularly in the last two sectors but we’ll see. After this weekend, we’ll have five weeks off, so we need to give it our all now.”

Translated by Heather Watson

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