Honda in trouble
Even before starting the engines for the opening race of the 2024 season at Phillip Island, so did the Spaniard Xavi Vierge took to the track for collective testing in Jerez de la Frontera. A session in which the pilot of the Honda he encountered some difficulties, also highlighted by his teammate and compatriot Iker Lecuona, as demonstrated by the placings of both drivers at the bottom of the timesheets.
What's worrying
Problems that the #97 of the HRC team hopes to resolve in Portugal, here too with a two-day test in Portimao (29 and 30 January) before the official opening of the championship. What worries the men of the Japanese company most, and the 26-year-old himself, is traction in particular: “Of course we can't be happy because we struggled more than expected in the traction phase – he explained in an interview with the official Superbike channel – but we have made huge changes to the bike's set-up, and in Portimao it will be essential to analyze all the data to understand the path forward. We can't exploit the power we have, we have a lot of spin and this is the point to work on. The goal for everyone is to win, but at the moment it's too early for us to have one completely new bike. We have only done four days of testing and we are continuing more effort than expected“.
The scale problem
In addition, for Vierge there is another difficulty, this time relating to his lower weight compared to that of his teammate. An aspect that benefits Lecuona: “We have two different drivers in our garage – has explained – Iker is heavier than me and I'm a little lighter. Iker has some strengths thanks to his weight: he manages to generate more power on the tire and exploit its potential more. For me, the bike is a little faster on the straight. With this kind of power it is difficult to find a rule that will satisfy everyone. We will need to add some weight to our bike“.
#Superbike #Vierge #struggling #expected #FormulaPassion
