Nakagami: HRC “committed to fixing current situation, but no massive difference”

Monday’s post-race test was the first chance for Honda to offer their riders hope with its 2024 prototype machine.

However, comments from Marc Marquez, Joan Mir and Nakagami have been less than ideal for the Japanese brand, with all three saying very little improvements have been made.

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That said, Nakagami did offer some hope by saying they have time to develop their 2024 bike and that it is far from the finished product.

"HRC is committed to providing us with distinct ideas to fix the current situation," said Nakagami. 

"Regarding the 2024 prototype, I haven’t felt a massive difference compared to the bike we are using now, but being a prototype means that it’s not finished yet and there's potential. 

"After the test, they have all the information and data to keep developing it."

These comments came after the test and fall into line with what was said post-race on Sunday by Nakagami.

Rear grip has killed Honda so far this season, with acceleration being one of the areas where they lose the most.

This was again the issue for Nakagami who felt as though the physicality of his RC213V left him with arm pump sensations during the grand prix.

Nakagami said: "We couldn’t find any improvement on the bike and I was also struggling from the beginning. 

"I knew that for the longer race distance it was going to be much more difficult. Only for a few laps I could push. 

"But I knew for the long distance that it would be difficult to keep the pace and the same riding because the bike is so heavy and has a lack of rear grip. 

"It’s a lot of fighting against my bike. Seems from FP1 we weren’t able to find a good balance on the braking and the rear pushes the front. It’s really difficult to stop the bike. 

"I’m forcing a lot on the bike to try and stop the bike. It’s not a natural way to ride. This is why after the mid-race I really felt like I was having an arm pump."