Honda’s downturn in performance has continued into the new campaign, with the RC213V still lagging behind rivals despite the work that went into upgrading the bike over the winter.
The Japanese manufacturer returned empty-handed from last weekend’s Americas GP, with Luca Marini finishing 16th and last in the sole-surviving Honda, as Zarco, LCR team-mate Takaaki Nakagami and factory rider Joan Mir all retired with unrelated issues.
The non-score came 12 months after Alex Rins guided the LCR team to a stunning victory at the Circuit of the Americas, a venue where Marc Marquez had previously been unbeatable on the factory bike.
But Zarco doesn’t see Honda’s lack of results in the early part of the year as a cause for concern, as he feels the brand has what it takes to turn around its fortunes.
“I'm still positive,” he said. “We don't need to be pessimistic, because we knew that it was going to be difficult with this really new project. Honda changes so many things.
“It's easy to say we need time, but this is it because on races where Honda was performing well [like Austin], at the moment we did the worst.
“When we compare to other bikes, we clearly see that something is missing.
Source: Autosport