Here is the new Honda of Lecuona and Vierge

The start of the new season is getting closer and everything is ready to fly to Phillip Island. But before landing in Australia for the inaugural round of 2023, the Honda team has unveiled the new Fireblade CBR1000RR-R, which will try to return to the top positions with the confirmed pair of riders.

In fact, Iker Lecuona and Xavi Vierge will still wear the HRC colors for 2023, ready for the new challenge that awaits them. They have already had a first taste of the new bike in the two test sessions at Jerez de la Frontera and Portimao. The feedback has been quite positive, but there is still work to do to get to the top and fight for the podium consistently.

The livery does not present great novelties, with the classic red, white and blue colors typical of HRC. The main innovations are inside the bike, from a technical point of view, Honda has worked hard to satisfy the riders’ requests. While the feedback at Jerez hadn’t been very positive, the progress made at Portimao met the expectations of both riders, who are aiming for the maximum in 2023 astride the new Fireblades.

Iker Lecuona, Team HRC

Photo by: Honda Racing

Iker Lecuona has high expectations for 2023: “Last year we learned a lot and achieved some important results, such as the pole position in Barcelona and the podium in Assen, which we didn’t expect, as it was only the second race. In overall it was a very positive year, which helped me understand many things, how to manage the situation in every race and in every circuit, even with the Pirelli tyres, which were very difficult to understand at the beginning. what I learned in 2022 in the year to come”.

“During the winter, the team and all Honda insiders worked hard to offer us a better bike. We still have two days of testing in Australia before the first race, so we have time to understand the new material and find the best configuration to make the most of it. Let’s start with the two rounds in which I was unable to compete last season, but I like both circuits, I feel good and I’m ready to give my all”, concludes Lecuona.

Xavi Vierge, also in his second year in World Superbike, echoes him: “This is my second year in WorldSBK and therefore we will be able to benefit from not having to start from scratch. Now we know many tracks and we understand how the tires and the electronics, while last year was a big challenge for me. The 2022 season was not easy, but we achieved good results and showed our potential. In Japan they worked hard and so we had a lot of work to do and many elements to be tested during the winter”.

Xavi Vierge, Team HRC

Photo by: Honda Racing

“I’m very satisfied with how everything went and now we just have to find our basic configuration for the season. Testing is fantastic, but it doesn’t compare to racing. Luckily we start early this year and there’s no better place from Australia and Indonesia. I love these circuits, especially Phillip Island. It’s my first time there in February, which is summer, so I can’t wait to get there and start what should be an amazing season.” explains Spanish.

Leon Camier, HRC SBK team manager, wants to restart from the good things done in 2022 for a sprint in 2023: “The 2022 World Superbike season was a good basis for our two young rookies. Over the course of the season, we We could see what they are both capable of and we were impressed with how quickly they managed to adapt to new circuits and different situations. Now that we have learned a lot, we can focus on race performance right from FP1. We have worked hard in many areas and we have improved in many aspects. 2023 starts now and we are ready to go. The goal is to improve globally, both with the bike from the team and by working to take another step forward more generally. Our speed maxima has always been very good with the Fireblade, but we have to keep working to improve in every area.”

“When we introduce a new specification of a certain component to improve in one area, we sometimes find that it pushes us back into another area. This is something Honda has worked very hard on in Japan and we are confident that We will take another step in the right direction this year.Expecting to go from where we were last season to aiming for a title win will be very difficult, but that is essentially our aim, and one that we will continue to work towards until we achieve it. “, concludes the Briton.

Iker Lecuona, Team HRC