Japanese rider Nakagami will experience his fourth season in MotoGP in 2021. But it will be the first without having as a teammate a Cal Crutchlow of whom he will keep fond memories. The LCR pilot in fact remembers his beginnings with a kind Englishman whom he got to know over the course of the campaigns. With this discovery: beneath his gruff exterior, Crutchlow is in fact very sensitive...
Takaaki Nakagami had a good first part of the season this year, before weakening in the second when he was expected to confirm his consistency hitherto displayed in the top 5. Unfortunately, he did not reach the milestone, but he intends not to not miss the boat in 2021. He has acquired good experience and he will have as a teammate a Alex Marquez who brought his only two podiums this season to a factory Honda orphaned by her champion Marc Marquez.
To arrive at his ends, Nakagami will use all the experience acquired from Cal Crutchlow which, when you listen to it, is not necessarily what you think. On Motorsport-total, he says thus: “ Cal helped me a lot, especially in my first season », remembers the pilot of Lucio Cecchinello whose debut dates back to 2018. Back then, he only appeared in the top 10 once, in the season finale in Valencia.
« He always paid attention to how I moved from Moto2 to MotoGP. He always looked to see how I was doing. After a few months, I realized that he was not only talking about serious things but also joking » says “Taka” who specifies: “ he looks very aggressive on TV, but in reality he is very sensitive. I can see from the data that he is a very balanced driver. Marc is a little more aggressive, which is why he is difficult to copy. Cal doesn't have Marc's style and is easier to copy ».
Nakagami: “I like his character”
Nakagami adds: " it is very strong on the brakes and when exiting corners. I always watched him straighten the bike. He struggled a bit this year, but I always looked at his data ". In its first season, Nakagami scored 33 championship points, his second 74 and his third 116. At the same time, the performance of Crutchlow deteriorated due to various injuries.
« Although he was slower than me this year, he was especially faster than me coming out of the corner "Says Nakagami. “ I tried to copy this » recalls the LCR pilot, definitely still lacking personal inspiration.
Takaaki Nakagami ends about Crutchlow : " I like his character. He always jokes. Sometimes it is difficult to understand whether he is serious or not. It was great to have spent this time with him. We have a good relationship. It's a shame he's leaving Honda and moving to Yamaha. I hope he has a bright future. I wish him good luck ».
Next year, Nakagami will be equipped with the same technical weapons as the other pilots Honda whereas, until then, he still had to make do with the RC213V from the previous season. The four HRC pilots present on the ground will have the latest equipment available.
