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Honda officially launches its 2017 MotoGP programme

Honda officially unveiled its works 2017 MotoGP programme in a presentation in Jakarta in Indonesia on Friday.

Factory riders Marc Marquez and Dani Pedrosa were on-site to present the 2017 specification of Honda's RC213V, which features broadly the same livery as its predecessor.

"Now we are in a new season and the situation is the same one," said reigning MotoGP champion Marquez.

"We try to work hard in the pre-season and then of course to fight again for the title."

Honda had a tough start to its 2017 preparations during this week's opening test at Sepang.

While Ducati, Suzuki and Yamaha each topped a day of running, Honda was hampered by electronics problems it struggled to fix at the track.

Marquez did eventually finish the test third overall in combined times, behind Yamaha's pacesetter Maverick Vinales and his Suzuki replacement Andrea Iannone.

Pedrosa had a similarly low-key start to the Sepang test on the seconds works Honda, but moved up to fifth overall by the end, behind Ducati's Andrea Dovizioso.

"The target obviously is to fight for the championship and for every race if we can," Pedrosa said.

"Hopefully I can stay injury-free, which is important, and be fast every time."

Alongside Marquez's riders' crown, Honda won the manufacturers' championship in 2016 but lost out to Yamaha in the teams' standings - thanks in part to a late-season collarbone injury for Pedrosa.

Zdroj: autosport.com