Unlike the fully European-based manufacturers in MotoGP, Honda has a disconnect between its European and Japanese bases, with the race team and development work carried out in different locations.
But its latest contract decision might just give it the perfect bridge between the two in a bid for Honda to get back to competitive performance.
The contract in question has been taken up by Taka Nakagami - who has clarified his new-for-2025 role as he prepares to end his seven-year career as a MotoGP rider at the end of the current season.
Instead, the 32-year-old is set to follow current factory Aprilia rider Aleix Espargaro in joining former MotoGP racer Stefan Bradl within Honda’s test and development structure, with Thailand’s Somkiat Chantra taking over Nakagami’s LCR bike.
That signifies a substantial reinforcement in Honda’s Europe-based test team.
Only Nakagami won’t remain based in Barcelona like he currently does, instead acting as a sort of translator and intermediary between Honda's engineers in Japan and its race team in Spain.
Currently, Honda begins working on new parts with test riders based in Japan and then passes on what it deems successful to Bradl’s European team to further refine, before they arrive with the factory Honda race duo of Joan Mir and Luca Marini.
Nakagami has been quite critical of that process in the past, admitting that it often leads to something of a disconnect between the engineers and the racers. It's a gap that he believes he’s uniquely qualified to bridge thanks to both his Japanese nationality and his experience.
“We’re in Europe and we don’t have any info about what HRC in Japan is doing,” he explained after announcing his new role at the Aragon Grand Prix.
“I know they’ve had a lot of tests, but we get zero information. This is something missing. No one in the paddock is understanding what they’re testing.
“They need to understand what I will do, and we need to share many things. It makes sense that everyone understands each area. This is what’s missing from HRC [Honda Racing Corporation] now.
“I want to speed up what they’re developing in Japan. They’ve explained the situation to me, what they’re developing in Japan at the moment, and this is something that I can help a lot with. I can do a lot of things to improve.
“I can explain in Japanese to the engineers, so it’s a little faster. And I have speed and a lot of experience, so it’s something very exciting. My new chapter, and I feel really great.”
Honda is hoping to speed up development as it seeks to improve the troubled RC213V.
The testing team is not its sole focus, as it's also believed to be on the verge of announcing the signing of former Ducati and KTM senior engineer Fabiano Sterlacchini.
His first task will be trying to return the feeling of the bike to what Nakagami says had been lost some years ago.
“In 2022 they changed completely the concept of the bike," said Nakagami.
"After this, it was clear when I jumped on the bike that this was different, not a Honda bike any more.
“In the past, it was a small bike and its strong point was the braking. But somehow they changed to a different concept to try and improve the rear grip, and after this we lost the way.
“We couldn’t find the right balance. This plus aero and the devices, we had a lot of confusion, and we couldn’t find any good balance with the bike.”
With a substantial task ahead of him, it seems that Nakagami’s set to remain almost as busy in the coming off-season as the rest of the MotoGP grid that he’s leaving behind, with a jam-packed testing schedule once he stands down as a full-time racer.
“It looks like I won’t have any winter break,” he joked.
“I will already test after the GPs. And I will join many race weekends, because it makes sense that I can understand what is going on, to listen to the comments from the four riders, and then understand what the next plan is for my job.
“I will be in Japan, but it’s on the European side as well. It’s going to be busy.”
