2023-08-23 14:59:59
After his hard descent in the sprint, Takaaki Nakagami complained of pain in his right foot, at least fractures were ruled out in the medical center along the route. The Japanese then fought his way through Sunday’s 28-lap race but was not rewarded with any points in 18th place.
“I couldn’t do many laps in the sprint, it was only two,” sighed the Honda rider from the LCR Idemitsu Team. «I feel sorry for the team because the main goal was to collect data. In Sunday’s race we tried a different set-up and tried a lot of things on the bike to help Honda because we’re in a difficult situation. The result and the speed were disappointing – again outside the points.”
“We have to improve,” Nakagami demanded. “On the other hand, it was very important to collect data over the 28 laps. HRC tries to understand the data from Marc and me. Unfortunately Joan Mir had a crash in the middle of the race. Our main weaknesses are still corner entry and the lack of grip on the rear wheel. Hopefully Honda will have some new ideas for Catalunya.”
After the Catalunya GP (September 1st to 3rd), the next race weekend is coming up in Misano – and an important Monday test on September 11th. Does “Taka” then expect innovations? “If I should get the chance to test the 2024 bike, I would be more than happy,” emphasized the LCR man. “But I’m not in the works team and I’m not a works driver, so I don’t know how big my chances are. But I will definitely ask HRC if there is a possibility to test the bike. The decision is then up to HRC, I will definitely ask.”
Speaking of 2024: «I can’t say anything clear about my future at the moment because I’m still negotiating with HRC. We will decide in Montmeló or after Montmeló, »announced Nakagami.
It has already been officially confirmed that Johann Zarco will switch from Pramac Ducati to LCR Honda after this season.
“It’s a great opportunity for the team and for Honda. He is very strong and competitive and has been with Ducati for four years now. So he has a lot of experience and can give some advice on the differences between Ducati and Honda.” «That’s exactly what Jack Miller does [bei KTM] has done. It makes sense that Honda is starting to think about not just listening to Honda drivers and Honda engineers. That is good news.”
MotoGP results, Spielberg (20 August):
1. Pecco Bagnaia, Ducati, 28 Runden in 42:23,315 min
2. Brad Binder, KTM, + 5,191 sec
3. Marco Bezzecchi, Ducati, +7.708
4. Luca Marini, Ducati, +10.343
5. Alex Márquez, Ducati, + 11,039
6. Maverick Vinales, Aprilia, +11,724
7. Jorge Martin, Ducati, +12,917
8. Fabio Quartararo, Yamaha, + 19,509
9. Aleix Espargaró, Aprilia, + 20.231
10. Aeneas Bastianini, Ducati, +20.729
11. Franco Morbidelli, Yamaha, +21.527
12. Marc Marquez, Honda, +23,027
13. Johann Zarco, Ducati, +24.259
14. Augusto Fernández, KTM, + 25,365
15. Jack Miller, KTM, + 25,475
16. Pol Espargaro*, KTM, +28,073
17. Fabio Di Giannantonio, Ducati, + 29.998
18. Takaaki Nakagami, Honda, +32,316
19. Lorenzo Savadori, Aprilia, +42.392
20. Iker Lecuona*, Honda, +46,239
– Raul Fernandez, Aprilia, 1 lap back
– Joan Mir, Honda, 16 laps down
– Miguel Oliveira, Aprilia, 22 laps down
*= 3-second penalty (“track limits” offence)
MotoGP-Sprint, Spielberg (19. August):
1. Pecco Bagnaia, Ducati, 14 Runden in 21:01,844 min
2. Brad Binder, KTM, + 2,056 sec
3. Jorge Martin, Ducati, +5,045
4. Alex Márquez, Ducati, + 8,252
5. Jack Miller, KTM, + 11,365
6. Pol Espargaro, KTM, +11,816
7. Aleix Espargaró, Aprilia, + 11.960
8. Maverick Vinales, Aprilia, +11,984
9. Franco Morbidelli, Yamaha, +13.634
10. Marc Marquez, Honda, +14,435
11. Fabio Di Giannantonio, Ducati, +15.251
12. Joan Mir, Honda, +16,740
13. Aeneas Bastianini, Ducati, +18.825
14. Raul Fernandez, Aprilia, +19,536
15. Fabio Quartararo, Yamaha, +22,321
16. Iker Lecuona, Honda, +25,593
17. Augusto Fernández, KTM, + 25,789
– Johann Zarco, Ducati, 3 laps down
– Luca Marini, Ducati, 8 laps down
– Lorenzo Savadori, Aprilia, 9 laps behind
– Takaaki Nakagami, Honda, 12 laps down
– Marco Bezzecchi, Ducati, 13 rounds back
– Miguel Oliveira, Aprilia, 1st lap not finished
Championship status after 20 of 40 races:
1. Bagnaia, 251 Punkte. 2. Martin 189. 3. Bezzecchi 183. 4. Binder 160. 5. Zarco 125. 6. Marini 120. 7. Aleix Espargaró 117. 8. Miller 96. 9. Alex Márquez 92. 10. Viñales 86. 11. Quartararo 73. 12. Morbidelli 65. 13. Augusto Fernández 51. 14. Rins 47. 15. Oliveira 40. 16. Di Giannantonio 37. 17. Nakagami 34. 18. Bastianini 24. 19. Marc Márquez 19. 20. Raúl Fernández 14 21. Pedrosa 13. 22. Savadori 9. 23. Folger 9. 24. Pol Espargaró 8. 25. Pirro 5. 26. Mir 5. 27. Petrucci 5. 28. Bradl 5.
Constructors’ Championship:
1. Ducati, 354 Punkte. 2. KTM 201. 3. Aprilia 166. 4. Honda 93. 5. Yamaha 93.
Team World Cup:
1. Prima Pramac Racing, 314 Punkte. 2. Mooney VR46 Racing 303. 3. Ducati Lenovo Team 285. 4. Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 256. 5. Aprilia Racing 203. 6. Monster Energy Yamaha 138. 7. Gresini Racing 129. 8. LCR Honda 84. 9. GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3, 68. 10. CryptoDATA RNF 58. 11. Repsol Honda 24.
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