JAS Motorsport Managing director Alessandro Mariani, who oversees Honda’s involvement in the World Touring Car Championship (WTCC), believes that the weak points of 2014 have been addressed, ahead of the start of the season in Argentina this weekend.
Honda have embarked on a comprehensive pre-season testing programme, clocking up more mileage than any other manufacturer, including Citroën. Mariani thus believes that the marque have made ‘a big step forward’.
“We have addressed and solved the weak points we experienced last season,” said Mariani. “It’s a big step forward and we must thank Honda and our technical partners for their great support. It is very clear that our competition will continue to be strong but in testing we have seen improved pace especially on race length runs.”
The Italian added that the team are not stopping, with further developments expected for the third meeting of the season in Hungary in May.
“That’s not all,” continued Mariani. “We are continuing our development programme during the season, the next evolution step is forecast for the Hungarian race.”
Following all of the hard work during the off-season, Tiago Monteiro is looking forward to gaining a better understanding of his and the team’s position relative to the opposition this weekend.
“A new FIA WTCC season starts this weekend and we are all looking forward to it,” said Monteiro. “We need to know where we stand compared to the competition. The winter has been productive and we have worked hard, but we must accurately assess the full extent of our progress.
“We are aware of our strengths and weaknesses and the fact that we still have our work cut out for us. But we are sure we have made a lot of progress.”
Despite the expected improvements, Monteiro remains pessimistic regarding the team’s chances for outright success early on in the season.
“Despite all the work done by the team, I know that we cannot still be with our fastest rivals,” continued the Portuguese racer. “I hope we will win races soon. The first three events of the season will give us a better idea of our competitiveness on the various circuits in the championship.
“As for Argentina, we will do our best to get a good result because it is important to get off to a good start. This is our main goal right now.”
Honda’s Large Project Leader for WTCC development, Daisuke Horiuchi, explained some of the improvements they have made during the winter: “Evolutions to the engine specification including higher compression ratio, advanced fuel and ignition mapping and improved exhaust flow have increased power and drivability.
“Changes to the chassis include a new power steering system and altered shock absorber ratings. Testing sessions in Spain and France have confirmed these performance improvements.”
Meanwhile veteran Italian Gabriele Tarquini, who turned 53 this week, says that he feels the team are ready to challenge Citroën at the front of the field.
“I am ready for the new season and having completed more testing than last winter I am more confident than ever that we can deliver results with the Honda Civic,” said Tarquini. “This is a world championship with the best drivers, best teams and the most competitive cars so results do not come easy. But I feel we are ready to challenge hard and Argentina will see the reality of our work.”