Jerez MotoGP: Andrea Dovizioso urges Honda action

Andrea Dovizioso has urged Honda to find a quick solution to some of its early season problems.

The 2009 factory RC212V has struggled to match the pace of Yamaha and Ducati, though Dani Pedrosa did score a morale-boosting podium at last weekend’s Japanese GP at the Twin Ring Motegi.

The main issue has centred on Honda’s struggle to get the RC212V to work with Bridgestone’s new generation hard construction tyres.

Dovizioso told MCN: “It is very difficult and the problem is the tyre and the bike don’t work together.

“The bike doesn’t suit the tyres. We don’t have enough grip, but our bike doesn’t have the right balance.

“It doesn’t have the best weight distribution for the tyres to work properly and there doesn’t seem to be a quick solution to fix this problem.

“Maybe the bike is not generating enough force to heat the tyres, but it is difficult to know exactly.”

Dovizioso, who has also struggled with an aggressive power delivery on the new V4 RC212V motor, added: “To be honest, it is difficult to say what is the biggest problem.

“We have some problems and if we find a solution for one problem, it is not enough to fight for the victory. We have some problems and we need to fix them too fight, because now we are too far away. We closed the gap in Japan.

“I was only nine seconds behind the winner, when it was 27 seconds in Qatar. But we still have to work.”