At Honda, we are starting almost from scratch in a CBR triple R project which is now entrusted to the enthusiasm and ambition of two young novice drivers. They come from Grands Prix but have never known anything about WSBK, unlike their veteran predecessors Bautista and Haslam. By betting on Lecuona and Virgo to compensate with enthusiasm for a motorcycle that still has many limits, the risk is to regret many falls. Especially with a 21-year-old Lecuona who was the MotoGP rider who fell the most in 2021 and who climbs on a bike from which Bausista fell the most during the same season in WSBK. A fear which soon came true, from the second of the three days of testing in Jerez which allowed the new duo to discover their new environment...
Indeed, Iker Lecuona crashed at turn 12 after 23 laps, falling heavily on his left hand which fractured his little finger. The Spaniard thus inaugurated a series that he knows well, that of accidents. An alert taken seriously by Honda who swears to work to calm things down on this dangerous subject. The HRC team manager Leon Camier declared: “ we must not forget that he is very young, only 21 years old. He has enormous talent, what we saw from him during the Jerez test on the bike was impressive ».
« Every pilot has strengths and weaknesses. You have to design everything around him so that he can develop his level and become competitive. I think it just needs the right structure for that. Then he will gain confidence and progress »continues the former pilot. “ If you go to the limit straight away, mistakes are very easy to make. I prefer that improvements come step by step. Sure, you can push immediately, but you don't understand what's really happening at that point. Sometimes you're so fast, other times you make a lot of mistakes ».
Honda still satisfied: “ it was a very, very good startt "
« The best way to progress is to rely on knowledge », underlines the team leader. “ You can see it in Johnny Rea. He tries things in tests and then implements them. We want to teach our pilots to work ". However, the same camier does not regret the risk taken with two young pilots: “ it was a very, very good start, both riders adapted very quickly to the bike », assures the Briton despite the injury of lecuona. " They immediately set good times and improved with each lap. We weren't focused on lap times. For them it was about learning to understand the bike, we also had new parts with us ».
« I am very impressed with the feedback they both gave us » ends on speedweek camier about his new driver duo which brought the average age of the previous pair down by 15 years. “ I expected them to have a harder time adjusting to the class. Or that they start more slowly and have difficulty learning. But so far, they're really, really impressive ».
WSBK Tests Jerez: cumulative times
1. Jonathan Rea (GB), Kawasaki, 1: 38,831 min
2. Michael van der Mark (NL), BMW, 1: 39,788
3. Alex Lowes (GB), Kawasaki, 1: 39,865
4. Scott Redding (GB), BMW, 1: 39.909
5. Loris Baz (F), BMW, 1: 40.125
6. Xavier Virginie (E), Honda, 1: 40.228
7. Eugene Laverty (IRL), BMW, 1: 40,397
8. Iker Lecuona (E), Honda, 1:40
