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Honda’s front end still ‘critical’ as Crutchlow switches to 2019 chassis

Cal Crutchlow has revealed after Friday’s free practices that Honda’s front end is still proving troublesome and that he has switched to 2019 chassis in bid to get better handling with his RC213V.

The British rider has confirmed that he tried 2020 chassis again in the test on Wednesday, but has decided to follow the footsteps of Marc Marquez and has switched back to 2019 chassis for free practices in a bid to find a solution for the highly erratic handling characteristics Honda RC213V has. The switch means that the LCR rider is now riding a motorcycle very similar to the one he used last year, something he sees as a positive point, although also expressing the desire to take a step forward.

Despite 2020 chassis being axed for the time being due to handling issues, the switch to older chassis brought another problem in terms of lack of front feeling, something Crutchlow described as a critical issue, which is thought that has contributed to the falls of both Marc and Alex Marquez during Friday practice sessions.

“I used something different in the test on Wednesday and I decided to not continue with it, the question was asked the other day if Honda would still support and I used this answer on Wednesday to test something different but I decided to not continue with it because I think we need more time away from a race weekend to evaluate this a little bit more.

“The bike essentially now I am riding is very similar to the 2019 bike save for some small upgrades in the electronics and the engine, but the chassis and everything else is very much the same. It’s good in one sense because you have a similar feeling but I would have preferred to have some more innovations on the bike and such.”

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