The second round of the FIM Supersport 300 World Championship kicked into life on a damp TT Circuit Assen, with Aldi Mahendra (Team BrCorse) ending the session quickest after a brilliant final lap. It was a hot pace at the end of the session, with joint-Championship leader Mahendra placing his R3 at the top of the time sheets after setting a remarkable 1:55.555 in a perfect start to the weekend.
The top spot changed hands multiple times throughout the session as the track conditions improved. Fenton Seabright (Kawasaki GP Project) led in the early stages of the session before it was snatched by David Salvador (MS Racing), who was demoted to second by Mahendra as the chequered flag flew. Phillip Tonn (Freudenberg KTM-PALIGO Racing) impressed in the damp session, ending Friday morning as the top KTM in third.
Home hero Jeffrey Buis (Freudenberg KTM-PALIGO Racing) had his shot at the top of the time sheets in the final 10 minutes of Free Practice but crossed the line to end Free Practice in fourth position. The Dutchman was ahead of Loris Veneman (MTM Kawasaki), who rounded out the top five on the #7 machine. Matteo Vannucci (Pata Yamaha AG Motorsport Italia) set a 1:57.013 to place sixth in a competitive session.
There were plenty of surprises, most notable with joint-Championship leader Inigo Iglesias (Fusport-RT Motorsport by SKM-Kawasaki), who spent most of the session outside of the top 10 and ended Free Practice in 19th position. Petr Svoboda (Fusport-RT Motorsport by SKM-Kawasaki) suffered from technical issues in the early stages of Free Practice and was unable to set a competitive time.
The top six from WorldSSP 300 Free Practice, full results here:
1. Aldi Satya Mahendra (Team BrCorse) 1’55.555s
2. David Salvador (MS Racing) +0.585s
3. Phillip Tonn (Freudenberg KTM-PALIGO Racing) +0.856s
4. Jeffrey Buis (Freudenberg KTM-PALIGO Racing) +0.991
5. Loris Veneman (MTM Kawasaki) +1.052s
6. Matteo Vannucci (Pata Yamaha AG Motorsport Italia) +1.458s
Watch an unpredictable WorldSSP300 Tissot Superpole of 2024 at 14:10 Local Time (UTC+1) using the WorldSBK VideoPass!
Source: WorldSBK.com