At the beginning of June of last year, Motorsport.com uncovered the signing of Pol Espargaró by Honda even without having started the 2020 season, in the midst of a pandemic. The maneuver caused a stir and the arrival of the Spanish rider to the official team of the Japanese brand was charged with anticipation and many expectations.
After his first year defending the colors of HRC , however, Espargaró collided with the difficulties that it represents for any rider other than Marc Márquez to drive the Japanese prototype.
Only in the final part of the season was he able to approach the level that he is supposed to and his best result, and only podium of the year, was a second place in the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix .
“Undoubtedly, that result was like taking a weight off my shoulders, but I’m not at Honda to get a podium, but to maintain regularity. Surely I would have preferred to do a couple more fourth places at the beginning of the season than that podium so late,” Pol explained in an exclusive interview with Motorsport.com .
“It was not an obsession to achieve a podium, what I am obsessed with is being fast in all the races. In any case, achieving second place means that when things work well, when I know I can go fast, I can do it”, continues the Spanish rider.
Seeing the great difficulties that Espargaró has had to go through in his first year at Honda , one might think that perhaps he was not the best choice, and that he has had to go through difficult times.
“There have been very hard moments, a lot. Without going any further in Barcelona , it was a terrible race, I also crashed, the weekend was not good and I had to see how a KTM won with incredible solvency”, recalled the #44 .
“In other circuits we saw, more or less, the same story, not getting results was hard. I am not stupid, I know what I have come here for (Honda) and I know the results that must be achieved with this bike and with these colors, and when they are not achieved, I am the first to criticize myself and not be happy”, Polyccio assessed. .
“But when you make decisions it’s because at that moment you think it’s the best. Looking back and thinking that it was a mistake or what you could be doing somewhere else is wrong. You don’t have to think about that, it doesn’t get you anywhere and it’s counterproductive. With the decisions that are made, you have to push forward, achieve the best possible results and not regret it. It’s no use”.
A first year at Honda that might seem, from the outside, that it has not changed the life of the Catalan excessively.
“Unfortunately, at the media level there has not been a great change because the results have not followed. At the level of criticism I have noticed it, but I think they have respected me a bit the year of margin, especially because the riders who have preceded me lately cost them the first season. In that aspect I think I made a little more difference”, he argues.
“I would have really liked to do it more often, but podium or pole are results that other great drivers who have been in my situation in the past have not achieved, so I have that kind of margin. But that’s over and from next year I have no margin, we have to perform much more and much better”, settles the boy from Granollers .
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