Many changes are taking place at Honda to bring the WSBK project to fruition. Meanwhile, the final test in Portimao has been canceled.
About Matteo Bellan de Motoracing
The HRC WorldSBK Team's 2023 season is over. A little early, considering that on Monday he decided not to shoot in Portimao due to the rain. Everything was ready to test the 1000 Honda CBR2024RR-R again with Iker Lecuona et Xavi Verge, however the track conditions were not ideal. The team BMW did a lap in the afternoon, but the track was not completely dry.
Obviously, the riders would have preferred to ride the new bike again after having already tested it at Jerez in November. We will have to wait until 2024. Virgin expressed thus from Portimao: “ the conditions were far from ideal, we decided to organize a test day for next year. However, we had a few positive days at Jerez, giving us the opportunity to get a first feel with the new bike, which marks a positive step in the right direction. We obviously need more time to understand how to get the most out of the new features. The next few months will give us the opportunity to continue refining the bike to prepare for next year ».
Even lecuona would have liked to add more kilometers on the new Honda CBR1000RR-R, but he took note of the situation: “ unfortunately conditions were neither completely wet nor completely dry. It was impossible to do a real test. However, we had some useful meetings with Japanese technicians to discuss areas for improvement. I am confident that we will continue to work hard this winter as well ».
At Honda, “ the goal is to improve all sectors, not just motorcycles »
Even if the departure of Leon Camier of the position of team manager was announced before the end of the Superbike championship, the former rider continued to work for the team also during testing. His place will be taken by Jose Escamez, already at Honda since 2019 as technical and logistics coordinator.
camier is convinced that with the new CBR1000RR-R, the project is very promising: “ the new bike is a step in the right direction. I hope it's enough to be competitive. As this is a new package, development time is required. There is no final version yet, there will be some small improvements and the bike from the first round will be slightly different. The team knows what it needs, but we must work with Japan to confirm the package with which we will start the season ».
There have been other changes within the UNHCR team, including Tom Jojic as new team leader lecuona, and Leon sees the right climate for working well: “ we tried to improve the technical part of the team, by calling on people with more experience and a different vision. We added staff to also help behind the scenes, supporting the team leaders. The goal is to improve all sectors, not just motorcycles. I have been working on it for the last few months and I think the team will be stronger next year. I hope the bike takes a good step forward and we can get some results ».
