The Honda riders were knocked out standing and most of them left, exhausted and bruised. The HRC engineers no longer know where to turn or where to start and the policy of team manager Alberto Puig has only brought disappointment and frustration which are today not only verified but expressed. Once the beautiful flagship of the fleet representing the elite of motorcycle speed, the Honda building is now nothing more than a ghost ship sailing at the back of the grid and leaving nothing good behind.
If one day light emerges from this tunnel into which the world's leading manufacturer entered in 2020, it will really have to analyze how it got there. He will be able to identify the file under the label “grandeur et decadence”. Because what the HRC trigram is experiencing today in Grand Prix is unheard of for more than 40 years.
This British Grand Prix at Silverstone has already stripped the winged coat of arms a little further even though the race has not even started. Alex Marquez is thus the best pilot Honda after qualifying in 17th position. This is the first time that any pilot Honda has not been in the top 16 in qualifying for the premier category at Silverstone since 1980. The brother of the one who is expected a little too much like the messiah – because he hid the already existing weaknesses by performing miracles – is disappointed while his teammate at LCR Taka Nakagami can't believe this assessment of qualifying for the British Grand Prix: “ all Hondas are outside the top 15. Pol Espargaró took pole position here in 2021 with a time of 1'58.8. But this year, the pole is more than a second faster. Honda couldn't improve. To be honest, we're a little lost ».
Nakagami, who is rumored to lose his handlebars at the end of this year, describes the situation on the bike as follows: “ we lack sensations, we can hardly put pressure on. But if we push, then the possibility of falling is very high. To be honest, I didn't expect this big gap. We have a lot of problems and we lose confidence, it's really difficult ". Suffice it to say that the boat is sinking normally and Stefan Bradl gave a major indication that Honda has stopped the therapeutic relentlessness on its present RC213V.
The energy is in fact now channeled into the new project with Marc Marquez as a guide. “ When Marc returns, he will be fully involved in the project because he has the speed and experience to do it » says the German who assures to be in permanent contact with the Catalan to define the improvements that the new opus will integrate. We will still remember that the present RC213V should make us forget the disappointments of the previous version. And it ultimately turns out to be worse.
Alex Marquez: “ Marc has a visit at the end of August but the litmus test will be getting on a Honda MotoGP«
But to speak in this way of a future based entirely on the sole Marc Marquez still convalescing is cause for concern. In fact, the question of how he is doing is a multi-million euro question. Never in a Grand Prix has the destiny of so many people depended so much on the health of just one. Alex Marquez who is closely witnessing the reconstruction of the eight-time World Champion gave this last indication at Silverstone: “ he has a visit at the end of August which will mark the timing. Then there is muscular work to be done so that the shoulder is well, and there we will have to work more ».
He adds : " the pain in Marc's arm disappeared little by little and the litmus test will be getting on a MotoGP. That's when he'll really know how his arm is doing.. He's put a lot of strain on his arm over the last year and a half ". The younger brother concludes: “ he will come back when he feels ready ". In the meantime, he is expected at the Red Bull Ring in the pit Repsol Honda as an observer of choice. Then it is hoped by Alberto puig as pilot during the Misano test in September, considered crucial for 2023.
Since we are talking aboutAlberto Puig, it should be mentioned that the team manager's policy is currently under the fire of expertise. Its management of Marc Marquez since Jerez 2020 has been a topic, while its overall policy is increasingly openly criticized. The same Alex Marquez revealed that being a big member of the Repsol team had cost him a lot: “ at first I didn't accept it in the best way, honestly this is the first time I'm saying it ", said the pilot Honda LCR. “ It was a little difficult for me to get through it, because I finished the year very well with very good feelings, and I asked myself 'why do I have to change now?' That was my feeling. In 2021, I put too much pressure on myself to do well, I had a lot of falls, I lost confidence, and the pressure I put on myself wasn't good ».
alex rins will take his place at LCR since the youngest of Marquez heading towards Gresini Ducati. Pol Espargaro will play a return to the future by finding not only KTM which has Tech3. And in the middle of it all, Joan mir waiting for news and maybe even Davide Brivio who would be in the pipeline to replace Alberto puig. That's a lot of work in progress at Honda, but it's also inevitable when you find yourself in the middle of a field of ruins. And again, we did not talk about the intentions of Repsol en MotoGP with the rumor Petronas...
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