‘Our target is to fight’
■ He showed potential in 2020, now it’s time to deliver
Takaaki Nakagami took a huge step last year after taking full advantage of the absence of Marc Marquez.
In a year filled with inconsistency, the Japanese ace was the only rider to finish inside the top 10 in each of the opening 10 races. In fact, at the end of the year Nakagami had recorded four top five finishes. The only negative was a rather big one: Fresh from taking his maiden pole at Aragon 1, Nakagami let the excitement and pressure get to him, crashing out of the lead after a couple of corners. Still, 2020 was the year that Nakagami showcased his potential. He studied Marquez’s data in detail and adapted his style in the process, he worked closer than ever with HRC’s engineers and was given more authority with the development of the RC213V.
This year provides Nakagami with a fantastic opportunity to build upon his breakout campaign and to right the personal wrongs of Aragon. HRC have repaid him for his improvements and for the first time he’ll have the very latest, fullfactory bike at his disposal. “Last season it was ok to make a mistake, but this season we cannot make any mistakes because our target is to fight for the championship,” Nakagami said. “I’m able to use the latest bike for the first time, which is a really big positive for me and it’s very exciting. The experience from last season will help and I hope I won’t make mistakes this year. If we have more confidence, we should be okay!” A tough pre-season has put a dampener on the switch to the upto-date bike for Nakagami, this will sap his confidence and make every session at the Qatar opener critical.