Alberto Puig is the field leader of the Repsol Honda squad who have been absent from the front lines since their hero Marc Marquez was injured in combat. Furthermore, the RC213V is considered the least easy to ride motorcycle on the MotoGP grid. Meanwhile, Ducati fields a machine whose consistency is praised and demonstrated by results, while KTM's rider pipeline policy begins to bear fruit. At Honda, we seem to stay on the platform and watch the train go by. A false idea according to the Spaniard. To listen to him, everything would practically be for the best in the best of all possible worlds, under his responsibility.
Pilots who fall more often than in their turn and who hope for a revolution in 2022 to get out of the crisis, Ducati who regularly invite themselves on the podium, a new generation which rises under the colors KTM and not under the banner Honda yet also present in Moto3… The Tokyo brand seems to suffer without reacting in a MotoGP which does not wait. Mick doohan himself is alarmed by signaling on Todocircuito than " the Honda is clearly no longer the bike it once was ". Which, added to a Marc Marquez who is not yet the one he was a short time ago, creates a whirlwind that sucks Honda at the bottom of the rankings.
A questioning would probably not be too much to revive the dynamic. But this is not the perspective of the one who should be on the front line to initiate it, in this case Alberto puig. On the contrary, he sees the improvement in competition as a temporary fact which does not give cause for concern. His assessment of Ducati is edifying in this respect: “ Ducati has a bike that everyone says is fantastic, but their last world championship was won by Stoner a long time ago ". We were then in 2007.
As for a generation of pilots that seems to be passing under his nose, he is just as calm: “ I think Honda, if you look at the history of the brand, has always had the best drivers. But for a driver to go to a brand, he must also want to go there " precise Alberto puig on Motorsport.es, perhaps remembering the loss of a certain Joan mir.
Alberto Puig: “ Honda never signed children for years to come«
Puig adds: “ Honda has had the best riders for many years. At the moment, I insist, I think we have the best driver and as for the so-called rising generation of drivers, in my opinion, it's still too early to really see how far they can go. Nowadays it is very fashionable to see a pilot and train him. Honda never did that, we never signed kids for years to come ».
He finishes : " if a pilot is good and grows, he decides where he wants to go. Today it is true that the policies pursued by KTM, for example, are very valid. They have a promotion cup and a lot of good drivers come out of it. They take them and put them on their teams. We have to see how far it goes. Signing the best drivers does not guarantee you winning ". However, it seems that with Marc Marquez, that is indeed the case. His two successes at Sachsenring et Austin will have saved the honor of Honda This year. And the post of Puig ?
