The Suzuki team experienced the worst difficulties last year, only managing to obtain a seventh place in the first fourteen Grands Prix. It was a cruel disappointment after Maverick Vinales' brilliant season in 2016 (victory at the British GP) and the manager Satoru Terada was replaced by Shinichi Sahara.
The situation improved for the last four Grands Prix of 2017, with two fourth places obtained in Motegi and Valencia. Despite this, Andrea Iannone only finished thirteenth in the Championship and Alex Rins sixteenth. In the Manufacturers' World Championship standings, Suzuki ranked fourth with 100 points, behind Honda (357 points), Yamaha (321) and Ducati (310), and ahead of KTM (69) and Aprilia (64).
If we look at the positive side, after this 2017 season without a podium, Suzuki recovers the advantages of a “team with concessions”: nine engines instead of seven, no testing restrictions and the development of the free engine after the start of the season. These concessions will also be appreciated by Aprilia and KTM in 2018.
As for the riders, Shinichi Sahara, MotoGP project leader, is rather confident: “As far as our expectations of our riders are concerned, we can be sure that Andrea has adapted his riding style well to our bike. Alex learned a lot during his first season in MotoGP. The two helped each other. With more experience on the bike and in our team, they will both be stronger. “Unfortunately, both drivers were ill on the first day of the Valencia test. Fortunately, we were able to catch up on a lot in Jerez. There, three drivers including Sylvain Guintoli were able to turn on the track for us.”
During the Jerez tests at the end of November, behind the best time achieved by Andrea Dovizioso on his Ducati in 1'37.663, Andrea Iannone stood at 0.367 and alex rins at 0.644. The two Suzuki riders occupied fourth and sixth places.
A new engine and chassis have already been tested. “ We have successfully completed a large testing program, explained Shinichi Sahara. We tested many new parts, and finally found a clear development direction. Some of the parts tested were already clear improvements for 2018 ».
The poor results in 2017 were mainly caused by the choice of an unsuitable engine during the previous winter tests, and it was impossible to quickly change it afterwards. Suzuki doesn't want to make this same mistake twice: “The factory is preparing for the 2018 season, which means long days for us, but we are driving the development very carefully, because every change has a big impact in the MotoGP category. »
What are the hopes for the GSX-RR? “Overall, we are very confident for 2018. I am optimistic because our two drivers are very motivated, our path is now the right one », concludes Sahara.
Photo: Andrea Iannone, Davide Brivio, Shinichi Sahara, Ken Kawauchi and Alex Rins (© Suzuki)
