If there is a rider who deserves his salary as a tester for a manufacturer, it is Stefan Bradl who we see more on his Honda than Cal Crutchlow on a Yamaha. And for good reason: not only is he testing to find even a development path for an elusive RC213V, but, moreover, he is currently replacing the convalescing Marc Marquez. In five Grands Prix, he crashed six times, scored no points and also suffered burns to his foot in the furnace of the Sachsenring. Precisely, the last Jerez test was carried out in the heatwave…
Conditions that Stefan bradl was waiting firmly but, this time, not burned, as during a German Grand Prix which revealed a fairing of the Honda unable to evacuate the calories released by the war machine MotoGP RC213V. The device has been revised. For what result? On speedweek, the German pilot responds: “ we had asphalt temperatures over 60 degrees on Thursday. So it made sense for us to tackle the heat issue. We were able to improve something in this regard. Honda engineers had some ideas on how to improve airflow internally ».
And he concludes on this aspect: “ we will certainly be able to face extreme heat again in Spielberg, Misano, Aragon, then Buriram and Malaysia. At the moment it is very hot even in Donington during the World Superbike Championship. Of course, the conditions at the Sachsenring were exceptional. Nevertheless, we must arm ourselves for such conditions. Honda engineers saw it too. This message has clearly been received ».
Stefan Bradl: “ our problem will not be resolved before the next Grand Prix, nor in the next two months«
Certainly, but the hardest part remains to be done. Because the depressing performances currently observed with the Honda cannot be explained with this fairing story. The evil is deeper. So much so that it took a lot of digging to find it, but, apparently, this time it is well and truly identified… Stefan bradl makes this observation: “ we have now begun to understand why we have been so weak until now. We started with this test in Jerez. At least we now understand where to start. It will take some time before a solution is found. This won't happen in a jiffy. Our problem will not be resolved before the next Grand Prix, nor in the next two months. But we are slowly starting to understand what is wrong ».
But then what is it about? The answer comes: “ There are some serious parts in the chassis area that need to be changed. But it's doable. I think we'll see more updates on this this season. This will result in a significant change. I can't say when it will happen because it's not my responsibility » says the former Moto2 World Champion. But if the German does not know when this will happen on the track, he knows approximately in what period it will materialize, and it will be in relation to the return of a certain Marc Marquez...
And we are obviously sitting at Honda around mid-September: “ I can imagine that it is also the plan of the Honda engineers to test the new components at the Grand Prix during races in autumn "Concludes Stefan Bradl which states: “ this would be desirable for the development of next year's motorcycle ».
