British GP begins as Repsol Honda Team get back on track
Silverstone CircuitA chilly but dry day in Silverstone started the second half of the season in earnest, the Repsol Honda Team getting straight back to work with Marc Marquez and Joan Mir.
The sound of Grand Prix paddock roared back to life in Silverstone with a revised format for the remainder of the year, Free Practice 1 (the first session on Friday) no longer counting towards the combined standings for Qualifying. With the new format, the Repsol Honda Team spent FP1 getting back into MotoGP mode after the break and making the initial adjustments for the Silverstone Circuit.
On the Marc Marquez side of the garage, the #93 made improvements over the course of the day and managed a best lap of 1’59.455 in the closing stages of the afternoon session. The time moved him inside the top ten briefly, before eventually concluding the day in 13th. 1.272s from Aleix Espargaro’s best time, Marquez was not focused on a single flying lap and instead spent him the day continuing to assess his Repsol Honda Team RC213V.
Joan Mir made a welcome return to the track after his extended break. His early focus was on getting back up to speed before continuing to work on refining the electronics and getting comfortable once again. Just on the edge of the 1’59s, a best time of 2’00.357 saw the #36 end the opening day in 18th and as the second fastest Honda.
Many forecasts are calling for heavy rain on Saturday at the British GP, another challenge for the riders to overcome.
We spent today going in a steady way to get the confidence back, I started a little stiff but I improved towards the end. Of course we would like to be closer to the top of the time sheets, but at the moment we need to focus on improving what we have. Physically, I have some pain in my right leg, around the abductor muscles, but it is what it is and we keep working. The focus this weekend is inside my team and myself, building a base and getting stronger.
I have had to be patient to get to this point but it was great to be back on the bike again and with the team. We started with the base that we were using in Le Mans because I felt the most competitive with it in the first part of the season. After the time away, I needed a couple of laps to understand everything but overall it was quite natural. Today was about working with what we have, the electronics are an area we are working on. Of course, we need to keep improving, but it is important to keep being patient and take it step by step.
