P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Honda’s MotoGP problems began several years before Marc Marquez’s 2020 arm injuries, according to former team manager Livio Suppo.
Despite winning consecutive MotoGP titles from 2016-2019, Honda experienced a decline in race victories for their other riders by 2018. Marquez’s arm injury in 2020 resulted in a winless season, but he later achieved three victories in 2021 before further surgery. However, the competitiveness of the Honda RCV continued to decline, and Marquez did not win any races in 2022 or 2023. Marquez subsequently left Honda to join Gresini Ducati. Alex Rins provided a surprise victory for Honda at COTA in 2023, but he signed with Yamaha during the summer break. Honda finished fifth and last in the constructors’ standings that year. Former Honda employee, Davide Suppo, mentioned that Honda ignored warnings from riders like Cal Crutchlow and Dani Pedrosa about the bike becoming more difficult to ride. The focus was primarily on Marquez’s success, which Suppo believes was a mistake. Pedrosa and Crutchlow were not retained by Honda as test riders and were instead picked up by rival teams.
