No new parts but "full factory support" for Crutchlow

Cal Crutchlow’s podium in Argentina looks set to be a springboard for the Englishman. His speed has been impressive all season, he had potential front row pace at each round, but the podium was another sign of how strong Crutchlow could be in 2015.

Given how competitive it is in MotoGP this year it’s unrealistic to expect that Crutchlow will be finishing on the podium in most races this year but his team boss, Lucio Cecchinello, stressed that with factory support HRC and the same machinery as the Repsol Honda riders that is preciously what he is targeting this year, under a caveat of improvement.

“We have a full factory bike with HRC support so our team is like a factory team. We need to continue working hard to improve our weakest points and constantly fight for the podium,” said the Italian.

For Crutchlow the result in Argentina was a great reward for his crew for the work that they have done throughout the winter and early season to get him comfortable and confident on the RC213v.

“I’m pleased with the way this weekend has gone because we’ve worked well in every session,” said Crutchlow. “We worked well with the extra-hard tyre and the softer option tyre. We chose well. I think we did the best job we could. We were able to fight with guys that are ahead of us in the championship and that’s the important thing to take away from here.”

In Argentina Crutchlow was once again asked about whether he was receiving additional support, and new parts from HRC, following Dani Pedrosa’s enforced absence:

“We received nothing special, I received in Texas some extra parts, but I already knew in Malaysia we would receive those in Texas. We are very close to the factory team with the bike now, and the style suits me very well, it allows you to be able to push, and push at the end of the race, and this is what I like.”