In winter the work of the engineers becomes even more intense, because they have to summarize all the findings from the past season and quickly develop the best developments for the next one in order to be prepared for the Sepang test – early February 2020 – before the package is presented at the first race, the Qatar GP.
All of this is in the hands of Ken Kawauchi, the technical director of the Suzuki Ecstar team. Here he shares some of his thoughts and priorities for this winter’s work.
“The 2019 season was positive for us because we achieved our goal. Before the start of the season Our goal is to win at least one race, and victory in Austin came even earlier than expected! We then took the podium at Jerez and finally another win at Silverstone. We were consistently close to the podium all season, but after Great Britain we had more and more struggles as the competitors improved and we finally couldn’t get any more podiums, which is kind of disappointing. However, I would rate our season with 8 out of 10 points. It was really quite good. But we have to be more consistent next year and fight for the podium in every race. “
After the end of the season in Valencia, the Suzuki team successfully completed tests in both Valencia and Jerez.
“The main aim of the tests was to make sure of the new engine”
“Our main goal was to thoroughly test the new specification. Motor and be sure of its efficiency and the right course of action. The engine is
the heart of the bike, so we will develop and finalize the chassis, fairing and other elements later. Naturally, our test driver Sylvain Guintoli had already tested the engine and given good feedback, but we also needed feedback from the factory driversas they are the ones who will end up riding the GSX-RR. The result was positive; both Alex and Joan liked it so we can be satisfied with this starting point. We will finalize some aspects and develop new electronics around it, and for Sepang in February we will hopefully bring some improvements to the chassis (maybe still at the prototype level) and some new fairings. “
After a season in the spotlight, with two wins and Rins fourth in the championship, Kawauchi’s idea is on
where SUZUKI stands is pretty clear.
“We are still too strongly influenced by the route and also by the weather”
“At the moment we have a very good base that has given us some good results, but I have the feeling that we are still too badly affected by the different routes and weather conditions. In terms of sheer performance, we can say we are very close to the competition now, but they are likely to suffer less than we do in changing conditions. We will work on consistency to find strategies and solutions that allow us to be less sensitive to fluctuations and to be more consistent. “
Finally, a few words to sum up the drivers and the team.
“We can say that we are satisfied with our line-up. Alex took podiums and can now be considered a top rider, while Joan has grown a lot in his first year and has already shown good potential. The team also works very well together – we are all very cooperative and efficient, I have to thank them for their hard work. We expect our competitors to become even stronger in 2020, So we have to work hard this winter to be absolutely ready for the season opener in Qatar! “