MotoGP has been idle for a couple of weekends, waiting to get back into action at Misano. The testing didn’t stop though, and Honda, KTM and Yamaha were all in Jerez for a private test. With Stefan Bradl on the RC213V, Dani Pedrosa on the RC16 and Cal Crutchlow on the M1, it was the turn of the test drivers.
Very little news has leaked from the tests, but the three have been working on the bikes for the next season. The manufacturers had already brought the 2022 prototypes with them to the Misano tests and development work is being continued in anticipation of the last tests of the year, which are scheduled for November 18 and 19 in Jerez.
Honda is working hard to resolve its motorcycle’s problems, highlighted several times by Marquez himself. At Misano we saw a heavily redesigned RC213V, both in terms of aerodynamics and chassis, and of course the engine is also being revised. KTM also has to take a step forward, because after the excellent performance last year, the RC16 looks a bit battered this season. The victory that Binder had achieved with slicks in the wet in Austria in a flag-to-flag race was more a matter of luck and courage than substance, even if Oliveira won in Barcelona.
The Yamaha seems like the most competitive bike considering it leads the championship thanks to Quartararo, but Fabio has consistently encouraged the Japanese to work on the weak spots. In the case of the M1, it is the engine that, with its sheer horsepower, cannot keep up with the competition of the motorcycle.
The test riders have finished their work at the moment, but to find out if they did it successfully we have to wait for the opinion of the regular riders.