Brno MotoGP test: Honda test Ohlins suspension

Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso have started to assess Ohlins suspension during today’s at the Brno circuit in the Czech Republic.

The factory Honda duo will run back-to-back tests against current suspension supplier Showa following successful Ohlins tests in Japan by Tadayuki Okada and Kousuke Akiyoshi recently.

The surprise move is the result of a request by Honda’s Research and Development department in Japan, which is currently working on the 2010 factory RC212V.

One of the big complaints voiced by Pedrosa and British GP winner Dovizioso in 2009 has been Honda’s struggle to extract maximum performance out of Bridgestone tyres.

Tests in Japan on Ohlins have been deemed a sufficient step in performance to get Pedrosa and Dovizioso’s comments on Monday.

But Pedrosa said it would be impossible for him to switch to Ohlins for the final six races, even if he felt the switch from Showa was a big improvement.

Pedrosa told MCN: “This was a HRC proposal and I think it is a good idea. Everybody else is on Ohlins, so why not try and see if we can improve?”

Italian Dovizioso also told MCN: “This will be really interesting because I’ve never tried Ohlins.

“It will be interesting to see how it performs and whether there is a difference. It is good to see Honda deciding to try because it means they want to find a solution to some of our problems.

“When you speak with all the other riders about suspension I’ve never heard any bad complaints about Ohlins so I’m looking forward to trying it.”

Pedrosa is currently second quickest behind Jorge Lorenzo with a best lap of 1.56.726. That is 0.5s slower than his fastest lap on his way to second place in yesterday’s Brno GP.

Dovizioso is sixth quickest with a best time of 1.58.326.