S
hould the word "complacency" be spelled
with an "H"? Does its antonym begin with a
"Y"? Or a "D."
Or is it too facile to accuse HRC of resting on
their laurels, relying on the exceptional talents
of their star rider while the engineers at home
keep busy by congratulating each other when the
results come in?
Enough rhetorical questions. Look at the re-
sults instead. And there are the clearest possible
signs that the mighty Honda RC213V—the bike
that has dominated the last two seasons with im-
perious authority—has become the dunce of the
class. It is the new Ducati, and it has happened in
the space of just a couple of months.
If nothing else, it demonstrates just how small
the margins are between winner and sinner. All
the same, five races in, it doesn't seem unfair to
accuse HRC of resting on their laurels.
There was an interesting interlude at Le Mans,
where two Yamahas and a Ducati controlled
the rostrum. Marc Marquez was of course top
Honda, but he had to ride much harder to get
fourth than he ever did while sailing to win after
win last year. The other three factory Hondas all
succumbed to front-end wash-outs. So did Mar-
quez, but being a genius he didn't fall off.
Asked what was wrong with the Honda, Valenti-
no Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo spoke politely about
how much better their own bike had become.
BY MICHAEL SCOTT
CN
III IN THE PADDOCK
LAURELS, AND WHY NOT TO REST ON THEM
P140
