Lorenzo on Japan trip: We thought about everything

Jorge Lorenzo has said he and HRC engineers considered “almost everything” when discussing possible changes to his current Honda RC213V during his three-day trip to Japan that was aimed at reversing his ailing fortunes.

The Majorcan flew to Honda’s factory in Japan on the Monday that followed Mugello in a bid to detail his current issues to factory staff and find a means of getting more comfortable aboard the RC213V.

Any progress made by the five-time world champion in the last five months has been fleeting, and Lorenzo revealed he has some new “pieces” for this weekend’s Grand Prix of Barcelona as a result of his Japanese meeting.

“We tried to think about almost everything that all these hours in the three days allowed us,” he said. “There were priorities and things that were more important than others.

“We tried to take profit of it all the time thinking about the things we can change in the near future and the things we can change in the long-term future.

“We will have some pieces for tomorrow and some more pieces for Assen on the ergonomics side. On the other side we will take more time but we are also working on that.

“I think we will not solve the situation and be able to fight for the podium and the victory constantly tomorrow. That’s for sure. In the last races we saw this is going to be a long process.

“We are quite far from understanding perfectly how to ride the bike, especially in the entry of the corners. That is one problem of the experience. The other problem is the comfort on the bike. I think we can work on this, we have done it.

“We decided to go Japan at the Mugello Grand Prix. I think on the Saturday but I don’t remember so much. We are working on this process to make the shoes for me more comfortable.

“It’s like for example if you are an athlete running a marathon, if you are a good athlete you can be quite fast and finish the marathon. But if the shape of the shoe is not right it’s difficult. I’m a little bit in this situation with the shape of the shoes.

“Maybe in the future we need to make the shape of the shoes a little bit bigger for me because the shoes running by other sportsmen are very competitive. But for the moment not for me. It’s not only the size of the bike or the ergonomics of the bike. I can also improve my riding and my understanding.

“Also I can be more comfortable on the bike, I will be more competitive. That’s why I decide to make a big trip to Japan to accelerate this process with the possibility that we have.”

On what he can do to hasten this process, Lorenzo added, “When you have three, five or seven years of experience with a bike and you understand how to get the maximum of the bike.

“In the last years at Yamaha I think I was riding my best. The same happens to Marc now in his _ year on the bike. Cal is in his fifth year. They know all the secrets of the bike that I still don’t know.

“As I said, in terms of braking, it’s kind of the opposite to riding the Yamaha to Ducati and the Ducati to Honda. From the middle of the corner to the acceleration it doesn’t change so much from one bike to another.

“But in braking it’s completely different. At the moment I am improving in that area. At Mugello I made some improvements. But I am still half way through that process, with the injuries during preseason and the lack of testing, it’s getting a little bit harder, more than I would like, let’s say.”