English
Italiano
Marc Márquez substitute Stefan Bradl tested this week on Wednesday and Thursday at Jerez – in high summer temperatures. You don't have to be a prophet to guess that the Honda Test Team took the opportunity to experiment with measures to make riding the Honda RC213 in extreme heat more bearable.
At the German GP, the 32-year-old Bavarian even suffered burns on his right foot in the race at 36 degrees outside temperature because the Honda is not able to withstand the heat. Pol Espargarò's team reported that a surface temperature of 100 degrees was measured on his swing arm one hour after training. It is worth remembering that Honda did not score a championship point in Saxony for the first time in more than 40 years.
"We had asphalt temperatures of more than 60 degrees on Thursday," said Stefan Bradl in an interview with Speedweek.com. “Logically, therefore, it made sense for us to tackle the heat problem. We were able to improve something in this respect. Honda engineers had a few ideas on how to improve airflow internally. Because something has to happen. We can certainly face extreme heat again in Spielberg, in Misano, in Aragón, then in Buriram and Malaysia. At the moment it's very hot even in Donington at the Superbike World Championship. Of course, the conditions at the Sachsenring were exceptional. Nevertheless, we have to arm ourselves for such conditions. The Honda engineers saw that too. This message was clearly received."
But the heat build-up at high temperatures is not the only weakness of the 2022 factory Honda. The speed over a single fast lap is missing (like in 2021), the advantages of the new soft tyres cannot be used optimally - and the race pace also leaves a lot to be desired.
So far, Pol Espargarò has been constantly and energetically pleading for more grip on the rear wheel, while Marc Márquez longed for more feeling for the front wheel. The ideal balance between these two extremes was never found in the first eleven Grands Prix.
“We have now begun to understand why we have been so weak up until now. We made a start with this test in Jerez. At least we now understand where to start. It will take some time before a solution is found. Our problem will not be solved until the next Grand Prix, nor in the next two months. But we're slowly starting to understand what's wrong," Bradl assured. “There are serious parts in the chassis area that need to be changed. But it is doable. I think we'll see more updates on that this season. Something is bound to come onto the track that will result in a significant change. I can't say when that will happen because it's out of my hands.”
