Last year, Dani Pedrosa was at this same time thinking about possible retirement, suffering from a forearm for too long. Operated and back in the saddle, the 30-year-old Spaniard seemed to have regained all his speed. Then the new regulations changed its RC213V and, ever since, it's been hell. In Austin, at the end of the first day, he was 1,1 seconds behind his imperial teammate.
Certainly, but comparison is not right. First because Marc Márquez crushes everyone in Texas. And then the Honda isn't doing so well in Austin. All you have to do is watch the performance of a Cal Crutchlow which is slower than the elder HRC. But it still hurts and Dani is not the last to regret his lack of rhythm since the start of this season: “ we are always looking for the best settings for this track » admits the man whose contract will expire at the end of this year.
« After the last race in Argentina, we decided to try something new, but these changes didn't give me the sensations I was hoping for. In fact, we went back in the afternoon, but we are still far from the mark. On this track, it is essential to have good acceleration, good braking stability and great maneuverability. We therefore still need to work on these parameters to improve our times. ».
The road is still long and strewn with pitfalls for a Dani Pedrosa who is not yet at the stage of gauging the value of Michelin rubber, like the rest of his opponents. Generally reserved, we saw him get annoyed several times on his bike during the second free practice session. And there is something to be said for it. There is nothing worse than procrastinating without a solution while the same bike ridden by your teammate spins from corner to corner chasing the record.
