There are a few technical changes to the bikes in the Honda camp for the first race weekend after the 2022 MotoGP summer break. Takaaki Nakagami joins the LCR team on Friday, practice day for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, with a revised chassis on the RC213V.
This new chassis has already been tested by HRC test driver Stefan Bradl in Jerez. Bradl, who is back in the Honda factory team this weekend for the injured Marc Márquez, is eager to hear Nakagami’s feedback.
“The difference isn’t huge. We’re not talking about a new bike here. It’s just a small change that affects a few parts,” Bradl says of the new chassis. When asked in which area there should be an improvement, he replies: “Basically it’s about the feedback from the tires. It’s about making better use of the rear tire, but also about the feeling for the front tire.”
“Feel”, not grip, is what the new chassis is primarily about, according to Bradl. He only wants to reveal further details after Nakagami has formed his own picture on Friday. “I don’t really want to say too much, I’m curious what he says after driving it tomorrow,” said Bradl.
While Nakagami in the LCR team will try out the new chassis on Friday, Pol Espargaro will be rolling out on the factory team’s second RC213V with a new fairing. This is primarily intended to reduce the heat problem that occurred at the Sachsenring in June.
“I ride the same bike,” Espargaro compares to before the summer break, but reveals: “Only the fairing is a bit different. It’s a safety modification after we had temperature problems with boots and gloves. We have now just cut off part of the disguise. That’s allowed.”