With the start of the European leg of the season in Aragon and Assen, Yamaha Racing wanted to discuss the ‘state of play’ for the Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team as it embarks upon a busy next stage of the season and reflects on progress to date. Team Principal Paul Denning answers the questions.
Yamaha returned to WorldSBK in 2016, thus this season marks the fourth in the project. How do you assess the project’s progress and what are the next steps, Paul?
Pata Yamaha YZF-R1
“Competitive motorsport is always very challenging because whatever rates of improvement and targets we set as the reference Yamaha WorldSBK team, they are of course greatly affected by the efforts of our competitors. Evolution is never in a consistently straight line – this year, Alex’s third place overall race time in Thailand was 10 seconds better than the winner’s race time a year ago… but the 2019 winner had improved by 18 seconds! So, we have taken a good step forward but we, of course, need more.”
Alex Lowes leads Davies and Rea at Aragon 2019
“That said, the R1 is a more complete package than it’s ever been. The work of the riders, engineers and team throughout 2018 and particularly in the 2018/19 winter tests has really taken the bike to a consistently good level. The experience of the team has grown both from a preparation and from an engineering point of view, and we have improved both the quality and quantity of the personnel.
“If we compare the performance of the total package – machine, team and riders – to 2016, we can be satisfied with the progress, but unless the Yamaha R1 is consistently winning there is always more to achieve!”
Jonathan Rea, Alex Lowes – Thailand Race Two – 2019
Are performance and reliability in WorldSBK down to the base package or a combination of factors?
“It’s a combination of the strength of the standard package because so many of the engine components must remain standard, as well as the work Yamaha Motor Racing Europe (“YMRE”) and the team. Early on in the project, the most often asked question was ‘what is needed to go forward?’ and that stage the only answer really could be time and experience.
Alex Lowes with crew chief Andrew Pitt
“So from what has been learnt by the development engineers and what’s learned by the mechanics in preparing the bikes at the track, we’ve taken steps as a team to ensure we have a deeper integration with YMRE and that we continue to close any holes in communication and understanding so that every advantage can be taken!
Alex Lowes – Thailand 2019
“Ultimately one of the biggest restrictions in motorsport is always commercial. We had some fun at the end of last year with Lewis Hamilton and some of the guys from the Mercedes F1 Team, of course riding on track but also chatting about the two projects, and this highlighted the incredible difference between the two forms of motorsport. Considering Mercedes F1 has around 900 people working only to get two cars on the track, our guys should be proud of what has been achieved with such a low head count!”
Alex Lowes and Crew Chief Andrew Pitt
You’ve had the same two riders since the beginning of 2017 – could you give us your honest assessment of Alex Lowes and Michael Van der Mark’s strengths and where they can improve?
“It’s helped us from a technical point of view to retain the same two riders in 2019, considering that the competitive level has moved forward so far during last 12-18 months.
“Michael really had a breakthrough year in WorldSBK during 2018 that saw him finish top three in the championship. His strengths start with his natural talent and simple raw speed; he’s also one of the best ‘passers’ in the game and able to turn a poor grid position into a very good race position almost immediately. He has an uncanny ability to sometimes look wild on the bike from a visual point of view, but in reality, his lap times show incredible consistency and once Michael has found his rhythm, he’s an absolute machine in terms of being able to knock off the laps. We know he’s in a good place when we can measure his lap times within a tenth or two-tenths of a second over a 10-12 lap stint.
#NLDWorldSBK at TT Circuit Assen 2019:
Tissot Superpole:
1. Alvaro Bautista (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) 1’34.740
2. Michael Van Der Mark (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) 1’34.822
3. Markus Reiterberger (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) 1’34.828
“Michael is also extremely fit and works harder behind the scenes than he would like to admit! From a mental point of view, he has a strange strength in that his laid-back approach allows him not to get too focused on the result, but to stay calm and just give his best when it comes to the race itself. This approach makes him a formidable racer as almost nothing affects his mentality – and to see him rise to the occasion at Assen with a double podium gives us great hope for the rest of the season.
Michael van der Mark – Assen 2019
“Without the reverse grid for Race 2 this year, the consistency of Mikey’s qualifying performance is what we are actively working on in 2019 – there are some tracks where you really need to be on the first two rows to be able to challenge for the podium. In addition, looking at the 2018 results, we will be trying to find Mikey’s groove at all circuits and convert that into better results than last year at our “weaker” tracks.
Michael van der Mark – Assen 2019
“Looking at the start of the season, I would say we’ve already improved in that respect. Aside from all that, Michael is one of the easiest riders to manage. He’s very direct, very honest and overall an excellent team player which is always appreciated by everybody in the project.”
Michael van der Mark with the Pata Yamaha crew
That’s Michael Van der Mark, what about the other side of the box with Alex Lowes?
“Alex has been with Crescent since 2014 and with the Yamaha project since the start in 2016. Honestly, “2019” Alex versus “2014” Alex is just two completely different people. Alex has been very impressive in terms of his work rate to understand what needs to be done to improve and this, aligned with his increased maturity and the ability to make better decisions, has turned him into a very strong and consistent competitor.
Alex Lowes with Paul Denning when the pair worked together with the Crescent Suzuki WorldSBK effort in 2014
“Alex has always been extremely fast over a single lap so qualifying has never been an issue. His understanding of the dynamics of the R1, given his intelligence and experience of the bike, is very clear for everyone – Yamaha’s engineers take his feedback very seriously in terms of development.
“So far this year Alex has addressed what needed to improve from 2018 with flying colours, and largely that improvement is off the bike and more in the pit box by keeping his focus and keeping a calm approach. Alex is so ambitious and has such an intrinsic and deep desire to succeed, that in the past when things haven’t gone well it has created frustration and a hot-headed approach that has made it difficult for the team to give him what he has needed.
Alex Lowes – Portimao Test 2019 – Image by GeeBee
“Of course, the team doesn’t always get it right – very far from it – but Alex has realised that he’s the key instigator and driver of the team’s direction in terms of feedback and the way in which he delivers that feedback and encouragement. The best and most successful riders, in one way or another, ultimately lead their teams – Alex is now doing that and that’s created a big step forward over the last six months. He has been consistently impressive so far in 2019 and we believe there is a lot more to come.
“All in all, we’ve got two riders who respect each other on and off track, race extremely hard, are both extremely ambitious – and as they gain maturity and experience, are becoming more rounded athletes in every sense. Simply put, they are riders we can rely on to deliver the goods week in and week out.”
Alex Lowes – Jerez Test 2019
You’ve been quite positive about the number of Yamaha YZF-R1 WorldSBK machines on track this year which is maybe not the reaction most people expect. Could you explain this point of view?
“There are of course challenges behind the scenes when more bikes are supported, but from our side, as the Reference Team, we’ve already seen some positives to having more R1s on the track. With the bikes at the same spec and good riders on them, we’re now able to draw on the shared data of four riders and that’s advantageous for our team and for Yamaha as a whole.
Marco Melandri is back on a Yamaha in 2019 with GRT squad – GeeBee Image
“The overriding point that needs to be remembered is that with a permanent grid at this moment of only 18 riders, it is almost essential to have two more very good riders on very good bikes. From Yamaha’s point of view, it shows that after three years of development and hard work the bike has got to a point where it can be delivered to a team with a base level of technical support and be immediately competitive.”
How do you react when people express surprise if the ‘new’ team beats yours?
“It does make me smile a little when I get asked my feelings on why the ‘rookie team’ with the ‘rookie riders’ are able to run so competitively. In reality, the GRT Yamaha riders Sandro Cortese and Marco Melandri are both, in fact, older than our guys, they have more experience at World Championship level and they’re both World Champions! They are not exactly beginners…
Marco Melandri – Image by GeeBee
“The bike is the same specification and they have the access to all our data both from the past and now – so there is absolutely no reason that they shouldn’t be competitive and it’s positive for everyone involved with Yamaha and the Championship that they are.”
What’s your take on the changes to the WorldSBK schedule this year, including the new Tissot Superpole Race?
“I think the qualifying race is a good thing, it shows a willingness on behalf of Dorna to give the live audience more content and it has created exciting action already! It also gives riders who had a poor qualifying the opportunity to gain a better position for the main points-paying second race.
“Given a choice, I still believe the two-race Sunday format we had in the past was the best for the live audience. The challenges of TV programming are a lot harder these days, but if there was a way to have a Superpole race on Saturday afternoon and two long races on Sunday afternoon – similar to the way MXGP is structured – that would make more sense to me.”
Michael van der Mark – Assen 2019
What about the ‘elephant’ in the room, that a new rider to the series has so far dominated the first eleven races?
“Alvaro Bautista is obviously a very high-quality rider, and you only need to look at his 2018 MotoGP season or his performance when he had the chance to prove himself on a factory machine to understand that. The quality of the rider is beyond question, but it also looks like he has arrived in WorldSBK at the perfect timing, as the bike he’s riding is probably closer to the MotoGP V4 bike in ethos and feel than the previous V-twin machine. The outright speed of the bike is a problem for everyone else, but the bike is of course built within the regulations.
Ducati Panigale V4 R – WSBK
“If we assess Race 2 in Thailand, Alex matched Alvaro over the whole 20 laps in sectors 3 and 4 but lost time in sectors 1 and 2 – essentially two acceleration areas followed by long straights. It was the same for four-time Champion Jonathan Rea, so the goalposts have moved from everyone’s perspective. But until the other riders on the same bike as Alvaro are able to achieve a similar performance level, it’s quite hard for Dorna and the FIM to legislate for one rider’s results.
2019 WorldSBK
Round One – Phillip Island
WSBK Race One
“There are also circuits where outright acceleration and engine performance won’t be such an advantage and hopefully we can use the R1’s strengths to close the gap at those tracks Our focus is to get the absolute best out of the R1 and to take the winning opportunities as they come – the season is yet young and we are hungry!”
Alvaro Bautista’s winning streak continued at Assen despite a max-rpm penalty and weather, with the weekend’s racing all held on Sunday, while the Sprint was cancelled. Taking both race wins the 34-year-old from Talavera de la Reina now equals Jonathan Rea’s consecutive winning streak of 11, albeit with Rea’s race wins being full length races.
Alvaro Bautista
The weekend saw Rea and Michael van der Mark swap the final podium positions each claiming a second-place result and third-place result, with Bautista leaving Assen on 236 points to Rea’s 183. Van der Mark sits fourth in the standings on 115, 11-points behind teammate Alex Lowes.
WorldSBK Race 1
It was a brilliant start by Markus Reiterberger, who was up to second position, demoting Michael van der Mark, while Leon Haslam was fourth. Rocketing through on the first lap from eighth, Jonathan Rea was fifth by the end of the lap one, before getting his teammate for fourth at Turn 1 at the start of lap two.
Markus Reiterberger
As the race settled down, Michael van der Mark began to drop back, unable to fight off a rampant Jonathan Rea. Soon, the Dutchman had Alex Lowes for company, whilst out front, Alvaro Bautista was beginning to stretch Reiterberger. Rea was starting to close but not enough to get on terms with Reiterberger straight away.
Chaz Davies was in a battle with Tom Sykes, before starting to pull away in the middle of the race. Behind Sykes in the same battle were the leading Independent riders, consisting of Jordi Torres and Toprak Razgatlioglu. The two riders swapped positions rather aggressively between Turns 1 and Turn 2. The Spaniard still able to stay ahead of the Turkish rider.
Chaz Davies
With five laps to go, ‘Pocket Rocket’ Leon Haslam had started to line up the rear end of Alex Lowes’ Yamaha, as the two continued to battle and fight. Despite trying to pull away, Haslam was able to remain with Lowes and eventually, with three laps to go, made the pass at the final chicane. However, a mistake by Haslam at Turn 7 allowed Lowes back ahead, making for a great last lap between the two.
Leon Haslam
However, at the front, it was business as usual for Alvaro Bautista, who made history to take the win at Assen and become the first rider to win the opening ten races of a WorldSBK season. Jonathan Rea finished second once again in another damage limitation ride, whereas it home-hero Michael van der Mark who completed the podium – his first of the season. Alex Lowes put in the ride of his life with a determined fourth position, ahead of WorldSBK returnee Leon Haslam.
Jonathan Rea
A fine ride by Markus Reiterberger saw him take a stunning sixth position, whilst Chaz Davies was seventh, a further 1.8s behind the German revelation. It was a big battle on the final run to line between Jordi Torres and Toprak Razgatlioglu, with the Spaniard holding on for eighth position and Toprak in ninth. A dejected Tom Sykes could only manage tenth.
Leon Camier
Outside of the top ten, Leon Camier was in eleventh, with Marco Melandri recovering to 12th ahead of his teammate Sandro Cortese. Eugene Laverty couldn’t replicate his Aragon success and was 14th, whilst Ryuichi Kiyonari rounded out the points. Hector Barbera was two laps down in 16th.
Bautista’s win makes it the first for Ducati at TT Circuit Assen since Sylvain Guintoli in 2012, Race 1. He is also the first rider ever in WorldSBK history to take ten victories in the opening ten races. There were no crashers in the race, but Italians Alessandro Delbianco and Michael Ruben Rinaldi retired.
Alvaro Bautista
WorldSBK Race 1 – Assen
A. BAUTISTA ESP ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati
J. REA GBR Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK +3.130
M. VAN DER MARK NED Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team +4.934
A. LOWES GBR Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team +10.679
L. HASLAM GBR Kawasaki Racing Team +10.859
M. REITERBERGER GER BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team +15.105
C. DAVIES GBR ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati +17.001
J. TORRES ESP Team Pedercini Racing Kawasaki +20.227
T. RAZGATLIOGLU TUR Turkish Puccetti Racing +20.276
T. SYKES GBR BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team +21.748
L. CAMIER GBR Moriwaki Althea Honda Team +32.686
M. MELANDRI ITA GRT Yamaha +38.777
S. CORTESE GER GRT Yamaha +43.075
E. LAVERTY IRL Team Goeleven +46.018
R. KIYONARI JPN Moriwaki Althea Honda Team +46.293
H. BARBERA ESP Orelac Racing VerdNatura +2 Laps
WorldSBK Race 2
Once more, WorldSBK went to war on the famous TT Circuit Assen layout, with ten riders in the leading group in the early stages. However, after an incredible start, Jonathan Rea couldn’t hold off Alvaro Bautista any longer, as the Spaniard battled through to take an 11th race win of the year!
Jonathan Rea in the lead in Race 2
A frantic first lap saw Jonathan Rea erupt through the grid from eighth and was already up to the lead by Turn 5, in what was an impressive opening few corners from the reigning four-time champion. Alvaro Bautista was placed in second but under some serious pressure from home-hero, Michael van der Mark. Leon Haslam was also right in the mix during the opening laps, whilst Alex Lowes and Chaz Davies completed the top six.
Alex Lowes
The race unfolded, and Jonathan Rea was putting in a fantastic effort to defend from Bautista, standing the bike up on the apex of Turn 5 in order to back Bautista up into the chasing pack. Chaz Davies was able to climb up the order and got as high as third, while Michael van der Mark was being pushed back down the order, to fifth.
Chaz Davies
On lap six, Bautista, who had been continuously probing and searching for a way ahead of Rea, made his move at the fierce Turn 8, slamming his Ducati down the inside. The move rattled Rea, who needed to fight back straight away to get a hold of Bautista before he stretched away. The Northern Irishman was then passed by Chaz Davies at Turn 9 and Ducati were first and second at Assen.
Leon Haslam
Rea was soon back into the second place, getting ahead of Davies at the final chicane. Alex Lowes was still ahead of his teammate, but Leon Haslam was the rider who looked rather ominous, lapping quicker than the two Yamaha riders ahead. Just behind, it was another solid ride from Markus Reiterberger who was seventh for the majority of the race.
Markus Reiterberger
From the middle of the race, it was a phenomenal ride from Michael van der Mark, who was lapping far quicker than everyone ahead of him, including Bautista at one point. The Dutch rider was heroic, bridging a huge gap in short time to catch Jonathan Rea with just three laps remaining.
At Turn 13, around the outside, a brave van der Mark roared ahead, with Rea now facing losing more points to Bautista. As Rea went backwards, it was his teammate Haslam who suffered a similar fate after looking so strong, sliding back behind the BMWs of Reiterberger and Tom Sykes.
Tom Sykes
With the last lap upon us, Bautista had secured enough of an advantage to secure another win, and despite a desperate attempt by Rea at Turn 10 to get ahead of van der Mark – where they collided – it wasn’t enough, with the crowd’s favourite battling hard to remain ahead.
Bautista took the victory but on a run to the line, Rea got alongside van der Mark, but the Dutch star held on ahead of the reigning four-time WorldSBK Champion! Fourth position was secured by Alex Lowes ahead of Chaz Davies, whilst Markus Reiterberger held off Tom Sykes on a run to the line for his second consecutive sixth position.
Alvaro Bautista
In eighth position, Leon Haslam struggled home, some 20 seconds behind race winner Bautista. He was only just ahead of the two Independent Kawasaki riders of Toprak Razgatlioglu and Jordi Torres, completing the top ten in that respective order.
Sandro Cortese
Outside of the top ten, it was Sandro Cortese in 11th and Leon Camier in 12th, whilst Eugene Laverty could only manage 13th. Marco Melandri completed a miserable weekend in 14th after a fierce battle with those ahead of him, whilst Michael Ruben Rinaldi was the last point-scorer. Hector Barbera was 16th ahead of Alessandro Delbianco. Ryuichi Kiyonari retired.
Ryuichi Kiyonari
Bautista’s win is a new record in WorldSBK, having won the opening 11 WorldSBK races of a season. He gives Ducati their 352nd race win in WorldSBK and their 27th at the TT Circuit Assen. It is also Spain’s 48th win in the WorldSBK class.
With his 11th win, it puts him level with Jonathan Rea in terms of consecutive race wins, something the reigning champion only achieved last year! It also puts him level with Ruben Xaus, Regis Laconi and Stephane Mertens with number of wins in their WorldSBK career.
Alvaro Bautista claims the overall win from Michael van der Mark and Jonathan Rea
Álvaro Bautista – P1
“I’m very happy because I won two races at a circuit which was maybe not very favourable for us, and where the Kawasakis had always won in the past. The weekend didn’t get off to the best start on Friday, but in any case we managed to be consistent and competitive. Today we did two full-distance 21-lap races and I can tell you that I used up all my energy, but my training helped me a lot. In the first race in the morning there were very cold conditions, but I tried to get a good start and set my own pace right from the start. I was able to open up a bit of a gap on my rivals and manage the situation well to go on to win Race 1. In Race 2 to be honest I didn’t expect to see Rea ahead of me at Turn 4 because he was on the third row, but he made an incredible start. In the early laps I was taking it easy, trying to stay up and study him well but I could see that his pace was a bit slow so I decided to pass him. I always tried to give my all, in fact we also improved on the circuit record, so it was another wonderful weekend.”
Álvaro Bautista
Michael van der Mark – P2
“Today was proper old school Superbike, with two long races in one day. This morning we had to go with the harder rear tyre because the track was quite cold. It made the bike difficult to ride because the rear was spinning quite a lot and there wasn’t so much feeling, but we knew this would be the case and it was definitely the right choice for the race. In the second race the temperature had risen enough to go with the soft option rear, but the pace at the start of the race wasn’t as high as I’d expected. I could see Johnny in front of me, but I was battling with a few riders and trying not to lose position, so I couldn’t chase earlier in the race. I tried to stay calm and, once clear of the battles, I managed to close the gap to Johnny and was planning to make the move with two laps to go. But then the opportunity came to go around the outside of him in a fifth gear corner a lap early, so I took it. After that we had a good battle, I think we touched at least once around the back part of the circuit, but we were both struggling for grip at that point. The team did a great job with the bike this weekend, so thanks to them, and a big thank you to the Dutch fans for their support, in what were very cold conditions for anyone sat in the grandstands. I’m happy we could repay them with two podiums today.”
Michael van der Mark
Jonathan Rea – P3
“I felt good in the fight and my team gave me a good bike to fight with and keep the gap quite stable for a while. I enjoyed today and it was like good old Superbike, two long races in one day. I feel like the only difference today was that I had a shorter time to take lunch and prepare for race two. But it was not anything extraordinary. I really feel like we maximised our potential with the bike this weekend. I felt good with the bike and we were stronger in some sectors and weaker in others compared to Alvaro. Even in the cold conditions I felt like the grip level was really, really good but at the end when the tyres were dropping, I lost a lot of grip. The bike became more physical to ride. Apart from that I was very impressed with the potential of the tyres and I was able to run quite consistently in the start to middle of the second race. I am pretty content.”
Jonathan Rea
Alex Lowes – P4
“I didn’t feel so strong in the colder conditions of the first race this morning, but it was good to get into a bit of a battle with Leon in the race and even better to beat him to fourth place on the last lap. I felt a lot stronger in the second race, when the slight increase in temperature meant we could run the soft rear tyre. I got up into third after passing Michael and I felt quite good, but then when he came back past me there were a couple of sections where he was a bit stronger than me and I couldn’t quite stay with him. I have to be happy with two fourth places, as this was the best we could do here today, so I’ll take the points and start looking now towards the next race in Imola. Congratulations to Michael and the team, as it was great to see a double podium again today. There’s a fantastic atmosphere in the team and we’re making steps forward every week, which is good to see and great to be a part of.”
Alex Lowes and Andrew Pitt
Chaz Davies
“Jumping onto the podium at Aragón was great then coming here and not getting a podium could be a bit of a disappointment, but I felt like I put together a decent second race. The first race was tough, I had a bit of contact with Johnny in the first corner, got pushed out and just didn’t make any progression in the race. The second race was good, I got a decent start and got up to second for a lap but then just struggled a bit with the balance of the bike after six or seven laps and in the longer corners in particular. We need to look at that and become more comfortable in these areas. It would have been nice to stay in the fight close to the podium, but it just goes to show that we have some work to do to improve in every track.”
Chaz Davies
Markus Reiterberger – P6
“I am really happy. The weekend in Assen was great and a big thank you goes to my team for their hard work. We have taken another step and I felt really good on the RR all weekend. I got off to a great start in the opening race and was able to match the pace at the front of the field for the first few laps. After seven or eight laps, however, I had a few issues with the grip on the rear tyre – there was quite a lot of movement entering and exiting the corners. I took wider lines and consequently made two mistakes, and I was forced off while overtaking on one occasion. Despite this, however, I was able to finish in the top six. The second race also went well. We made a few changes to the balance of the bike. Unfortunately, my start was not so good in race two and we lost a few positions. I was able to maintain the same level for a relatively long time. In the end, I fancied myself to finish fifth, but I lost a lot of time behind (Leon) Haslam. That allowed (Chaz) Davies to escape in fifth place. We can now recharge our batteries a bit and prepare for the next races. We are heading in the right direction and will continue to work on further improving the chassis.”
Markus Reiterberger
Tom Sykes – P7
“Everyone has seen the potential of the BMW S 1000 RR is high considering how early the project is. Although the positions weren’t what I was hoping for today, on the positive side we have gained a lot of information. I was able to see where I am losing out and during the race that was confirmed it. We will try to improve now where we are missing out and moving forward we know that we progress on this in the next race. Markus rode really well today, I knew he would be strong from his race here last year on the Superstock bike. One of the positives we can take forward is that in general the RR is working in the right direction. We have been consistently around five seconds from P2 in most races so given my experience and the level of the whole BMW Motorrad WorldSBK team, I think we will get to where we need to be throughout the season.”
Tom Sykes
WorldSBK Race 2 Results – Assen
A. BAUTISTA ESP ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati
M. VAN DER MARK NED Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team +4.688
J. REA GBR Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK +4.706
A. LOWES GBR Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team +10.073
C. DAVIES GBR ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati +13.667
M. REITERBERGER GER BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team +15.373
T. SYKES GBR BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team +15.387
L. HASLAM GBR Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK +20.915
T. RAZGATLIOGLU TUR Turkish Puccetti Racing +22.922
The FIM Supersport World Championship was a yet another fair-bashing, head-to-head squabble, with nothing but pure action prevailing throughout the 18-lap encounter. In a group of six riders, it would be Federico Caricasulo who would take his first win of the season, to claw back points on his championship-leading teammate!
WSSP Race Start
It was a frantic opening lap that saw Raffaele De Rosa lead into Turn 1, whilst Randy Krummenacher slotted into second position. It was a rapid start for Austrian rider Thomas Gradinger who was up to a mighty third position, whereas the same could not be said for Federico Caricasulo, who dropped down as far as eighth on the opening lap from second position on the grid. Hannes Soomer maintained his starting position on the opening lap, with fourth position ahead of Jules Cluzel in fifth.
Raffaele De Rosa
Krummenacher took the lead of the race at the end of the opening lap, whilst title rival Jules Cluzel had pushed his way through the field to be fantastic second by Turn 6. It was a good opening few laps of the race for the pairing of Lucas Mahias Hikari Okubo, running well within what started out as a leading group of nine riders.
The group then fragmented, with top five escaping and initially leaving Lucas Mahias behind. However, it was a strong mid-race that brought Mahias back into the fight, bridging a big gap and setting the fastest lap of the race at the same time.
Federico Caricasulo
Federico Caricasulo had begun his fight back and was already up to second, courtesy of mistakes of other riders. Raffaele De Rosa was also putting hard moves on riders, with a bold move at Turn 1 for third position, shoving Cluzel off line and back to sixth. Momentarily, this allowed Krummenacher and Caricasulo to escape.
However, just half a lap later, De Rosa crashed out at Turn 9, under pressure from Thomas Gradinger and trying to get back in the fight for the lead.
Lucas Mahias
The Italian was OK, remounted but returned his MV Agusta to the pits for a second non-score of the WorldSSP season. Now with the leading group down to five riders, the gloves were starting to come off!
The final lap soon beckoned and having stalked teammate Krummenacher for the majority of the second half of the race, Caricasulo put in a classy, sophisticated pass at Turn 8 to lead the race for the first time with just half a lap left to go. Krummenacher rode closely for the remaining few corners but wasn’t able to get back ahead!
Federico Caricasulo claims the win
Caricasulo took the victory ahead of his teammate, whilst Thomas Gradinger made history for Austria as he gave the nation their first WorldSSP podium. Jules Cluzel was off the podium for the second consecutive race in fourth, whilst Lucas Mahias took his best finish in 2019 with fifth, a little over a second back of winner, Federico Caricasulo.
Corentin Perolari was a strong sixth position, holding off Hikari Okubo and Isaac Viñales. Rounding out the top ten, Glenn van Straalen was ninth and put on a fantastic display in front of his massive home crowd, whereas completing the top ten was Jules Danilo, who finished as top Honda, following a late crash for Estonian, Hannes Soomer.
World Supersport Podium – Assen – 1) Federico Caricasulo, 2) Randy Krummenacher, 3) Thomas Gradinger
Federico Caricasulo – P1
“I’m really happy to win, especially here in Assen, which is not one of my favourite tracks. I worked hard all weekend with the team to make sure I had the best bike possible today and, in the race, I tried to ride more with my head than my heart. I took it fairly easy from the start, as I was running the harder option front tyre and knew it would take time to get up to temperature, but the pace was there from the start and I was able to work my way up to the leading group quite quickly. It’s a great feeling to win my first race of the season and the first with this team and I want to thank everyone in the team for such a fantastic job.”
Federico Caricasulo
Thomas Gradinger – P3
“I am so happy! In Aragon we showed we could be in the fight for the podium, but just missed out in the end, so it’s like a dream to come to the very next race and actually finish on the podium for the first time. It was a really tough race, especially at the start, but I managed to work my way up to the leading group and into third place with six laps to go. Once there I just tried to defend the position to the very last lap and it was amazing to cross the line in third place to finish on the podium finally. Big thanks to me team, my crew and my family, who have worked so hard for me. It’s just amazing.”
Lucas Mahias – P5
“The feeling from this race is that one thing is good and one thing not so good. I am happy because I followed the leading group closely and the gap to first position is very small. But I am a little bit disappointed because it is difficult in some places on the track. When I exit turn four, I lose on that sector and then I have to push very hard in the third and fourth sectors to come back. I finished every lap just behind, lap after lap. So I realised that it would be impossible to win, but I continued to push in case I could get onto the podium somehow. I am happy because the feeling on the bike is really great and the chassis is perfect. I got a good feeling back at this race and that is very good for the future. Thanks to the team because race-after-race they improve the set-up.”
Lucas Mahias
World Supersport Race Result – Assen
F. CARICASULO ITA BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team
R. KRUMMENACHER SUI BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team +0.032
T. GRADINGER AUT Kallio Racing +0.223
J. CLUZEL FRA GMT94 YAMAHA +0.580
L. MAHIAS FRA Kawasaki Puccetti Racing +1.277
C. PEROLARI FRA GMT94 YAMAHA +13.748
H. OKUBO JPN Kawasaki Puccetti Racing +13.873
I. VINALES ESP Kallio Racing +13.959
G. VAN STRAALEN NED EAB Racing +20.784
J. DANILO FRA CIA Landlord Insurance Honda +21.632
World Supersport Standings after Assen
Randy Krummenacher 90
Federico Caricasulo 73
Jules Cluzel 69
Thomas Gradinger 40
Hikari Okubo 37
Corentin Perolari 34
Lucas Mahias 32
Raffaele De Rosa 31
Isaac Vinales 27
Hector Barbera 22 …19. Tom Toparis 5
World Supersport 300
WorldSSP300 once again put on a phenomenal show to complete has been an incredible Motul Dutch Round for the World Supersport 300 championship. 19 riders battled hard to see who would take the victory in front of a packed Assen crowd, which eventually saw Manuel Gonzalez take a second career win!
Jan-Ole Jahnig leads the World Supersport 300 at Assen
Pole position was taken by Galang Hendra Pratama, who got an incredible start and led by Turn 1. However, despite the big initial gap, the race was far from over, as Manuel Gonzalez pushed through to lead, whilst Hugo De Cancellis also came through the field. Teammate Omar Bonoli was also a prominent figure in the leading group, along with Ana Carrasco, Scott Deroue and Nick Kalinin.
As the leaders swapped and changed in frantic fashion throughout the race, there were some massive accidents. Tom Edwards crashed at the ferocious Turn 7, with his bike taking a huge beating on Lap 3. Also crashing in front of him at the same corner and on the same lap, were Kevin Arduini and his teammate, Jack Hyde.
Manuel Gonzalez leading
In a race which saw riders drop back and then surge forwards, one of the most notable improvers was Bruno Ieraci, who qualified in 28th place but was up in the lead on the final lap, having to fend off the likes of Ana Carrasco and Manuel Gonzalez!
It was chaos at the final chicane, as all 19 riders looked to try and make up as many positions as possible. Contact between Jan-Ole Jahnig and Manuel Gonzalez forced the Spaniard off track at the final chicane, but he crossed the line in first! Scott Deroue was in third place as the chasing pack crossed the line, with 2.3s covering the top 19!
Scott Deroue
After a small pause as race direction looked at the results, Gonzalez maintained his victory while Jahnig was forced to drop a place for exceeding track limits! Deroue took second in front of his home fans, whilst Jahnig was third and achieved his first podium! Nick Kalinin was fourth whilst Hugo De Cancellis was fifth.
Manuel Gonzalez – P1
“Again victory, but it was so difficult. Last week it was in the last corner and here again in the last corner. We did really good work in all the practice and qualifying sessions. The bike was very good but it was difficult for me to overtake in the corners. In the straights I could manage to pass and in the last sector I wanted to be first! So thanks to the team for all the work they have done.”
Manuel Gonzalez
Scott Deroue – P2
“It is always special to be at home and take a podium in front of your friends, family and sponsors. Last year we were strong in Imola as well but in the last lap we crashed. In the other races we were strong so I think the rest of the season we can do the same, and that is my goal. Aragon and Assen are really slipstream races but in Imola and Donington, for example, it is more about pace and corners. There are not so many straights. So I am really looking forward to the other races to see how fast we are there.”
Scott Deroue
World Supersport 300 Race Results
M. GONZALEZ ESP Kawasaki ParkinGO Team
S. DEROUE NED Kawasaki MOTOPORT +0.143
J. JAHNIG GER Freudenberg KTM Junior Team +0.320
N. KALININ UKR Nutec – RT Motorsports by SKM – Kawasaki +0.417
H. DE CANCELLIS FRA Team Trasimeno +0.450
O. BONOLI ITA Team Trasimeno +0.500
B. IERACI ITA Kawasaki GP Project +0.588
A. CARRASCO ESP Kawasaki Provec WorldSSP300 +0.780
A. VERDOÏA FRA BCD Yamaha MS Racing +0.945
V. STEEMAN NED Freudenberg KTM Junior Team +1.009
World Supersport 300 Podium – Assen – 1) Manuel Gonzalez, 2) Scott Deroue, 3) Jan-Ole Jahnig
“I felt good in the fight and my team gave me a good bike to fight with and keep the gap quite stable for a while. I enjoyed today and it was like good old Superbike, two long races in one day. I feel like the only difference today was that I had a shorter time to take lunch and prepare for race two. But it was not anything extraordinary. I really feel like we maximised our potential with the bike this weekend. I felt good with the bike and we were stronger in some sectors and weaker in others compared to Alvaro. Even in the cold conditions I felt like the grip level was really, really good but at the end when the tyres were dropping, I lost a lot of grip. The bike became more physical to ride. Apart from that I was very impressed with the potential of the tyres and I was able to run quite consistently in the start to middle of the second race. I am pretty content.” http://jonathan-rea.com/news/double-podium-assen-rea
After the postponement of the first planned race from Saturday to Sunday, both of Assen’s 21-lap races took place today, with Kawasaki Ra Source: Jonathan Rea On Facebook
In cold, windy conditions the 2019 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship continued to put on a phenomenal show at the Motul Dutch Round during their Tissot Superpole session.
Snowstorm hits Assen
Alvaro Bautista (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) sneaked pole position with a minute to go but big crashes involving Ryuichi Kiyonari (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team) and Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing) at Turn 15 brought the red flags out and a premature end to the session.
Alvaro Bautista
Championship leader Alvaro Bautista was back up the sharp end of proceedings on Saturday, having endured a difficult opening day by his own standards. The Spaniard was a persistent top three runner throughout the session and maintained his front row starting record, placing on pole position for a third consecutive round.
Teammate Chaz Davies, who has never had a pole position or win at the TT Circuit Assen, featured inside the top ten for the entirety of the session, completing it in seventh position and without setting a fast time on the Superpole tyre.
Michael van der Mark enjoyed a positive Superpole session, finishing second at the end. The Dutch rider will look to add to his win tally from the front row, with his first front row starting place after Superpole since his only pole position in Thailand, back in 2016!
Michael van der Mark
It was a positive start to the session for Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) as he led the session for the most of the first half. Having suffered two big crashes on the opening day of action on Friday, it was a pleasant return to the front for the third-placed man in the championship. Lowes finished in fourth at the end of the session.
It was a fantastic session for the BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team, as Tom Sykes and Markus Reiterberger continued their progress throughout the session. Before the red flag, Tom Sykes had been inside the top four but eventually slipped to sixth having not set a time with the Superpole tyre, whilst Markus Reiterberger bolted in a lap time for his best ever Superpole starting position of third – becoming the first German rider to start on the front row at Assen. It is BMW’s first front row at Assen since Troy Corser in third in 2010.
Tom Sykes
It was another difficult Tissot Superpole session for Kawasaki riders, as fifth was the best that Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) could manage. The British rider will be looking to mount the podium from the second row on his return to WorldSBK racing at TT Circuit Assen. His teammate Jonathan Rea was outside of the front row for the second consecutive round, with an eighth place – the red flag hindering his progress at the end. The reigning four-time WorldSBK Champion had beaten Bautista across all session leading up to Superpole, so expect a race charge from the Northern Irishman.
Once again there were two Independent team riders who made the top ten, with Jordi Torres (Team Pedercini Racing) achieving his second consecutive ninth place start after the Tissot Superpole session. The Spaniard will be looking to remain inside the top ten during the races. Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing) completes the top ten but the Turkish rider was taken to the medical centre after his Turn 15 crash that brought a red flag out to the session.
Other notable positions included Leon Camier (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team) who was in 11th, whilst rookie Hector Barbera (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) was 14th, and Alessandro Delbianco (Althea MIE Racing Team) secured a career-best 15th. Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) was a shock down the order in 17th.
Following a snowstorm hitting the TT Circuit Assen early in the afternoon during the WorldSBK grid, Race 1 start had been delayed twice before being rescheduled at 11:00 AM on Sunday morning, to guarantee riders’ safety.
Snowstorm hits Assen
Pole position – Alvaro Bautista (ARUBA.IT Racing – DUCATI)
“On Friday we struggled a bit because we tried a different setup but I didn’t feel good on the bike, so we decided to go back to our standard setting. I didn’t make a good lap time in the Tissot Superpole, compared to the past rounds, but thanks to the red flag I was able to finish on pole position. What happened this afternoon, I’ve never seen it before in my career! It was snowing, and with these conditions, it was just too dangerous to race. Tomorrow we will have Race 1 and Race 2, and hopefully, the weather will improve for then”.
#NLDWorldSBK at TT Circuit Assen: Tissot Superpole: 1. Alvaro Bautista (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) 1’34.740 2. Michael Van Der Mark (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) 1’34.822 3. Markus Reiterberger (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) 1’34.828
P2 – Michael Van Der Mark (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team)
“I am quite happy about the second position in the Tissot Superpole. I think it is the best qualifying I have ever done with the Yamaha and it was special to do it at my home round, but I am a bit disappointed because I felt that I could improve my lap time, but then we had the red flag. This afternoon I was ready to race, and it was frustrating that in the end, we had to postpone it. It’s freezing, but still, many fans were here to support me. We really wanted to race but since it was snowing it was the safest option to wait and then postpone it. It has been a strange day today”.
P3 – Markus Reiterberger (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team)
“Since the start of the weekend I have been feeling good on the bike, and I want to thank all my team for their help. I am starting to getting comfortable on the bike, and I know Assen very well, and I like this track a lot. My qualifying lap was not that good, but in the end, I was lucky that the session was red flagged. Starting from the front row is really important for the race. Let’s see what we will be able to do tomorrow”.
Superpole
Pos
No. Rider
Bike
Time
1
A. Bautista
Ducati Panigale V4 R
1’34.740
2
M. Van Der Mark
Yamaha YZF R1
1’34.822
3
M. Reiterberger
BMW S1000 RR
1’34.828
4
A. Lowes
Yamaha YZF R1
1’34.935
5
L. Haslam
Kawasaki ZX-10RR
1’35.086
6
T. Sykes
BMW S1000 RR
1’35.155
7
C. Davies
Ducati Panigale V4 R
1’35.288
8
J. Rea
Kawasaki ZX-10RR
1’35.530
9
T. Razgatlioglu
Kawasaki ZX-10RR
1’35.844
10
L. Camier
Honda CBR1000RR
1’35.920
11
J. Torres
Kawasaki ZX-10RR
1’36.076
12
S. Cortese
Yamaha YZF R1
1’36.175
13
E. Laverty
Ducati Panigale V4 R
1’36.222
14
A. Delbianco
Honda CBR1000RR
1’36.828
15
R. Kiyonari
Honda CBR1000RR
1’36.879
16
M. Melandri
Yamaha YZF R1
1’37.042
17
M. Rinaldi
Ducati Panigale V4 R
1’37.221
18
H. Barbera
Kawasaki ZX-10RR
1’37.283
WorldSSP
World Supersport took to the historic TT Circuit Assen for the fourth round of their championship season. It was yet another thrilling session for the class, with riders swapping back and forth throughout the session before Randy Krummenacher (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team) took pole position. However, with just under 11 minutes to go, Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) had an engine blow up which led to fluid being dropped between Turn 13 and 15, with a red flag needing to be brought out.
Randy Krummenacher put a solid lap time in before the red flag came out and the weather turned inclement, cementing his position at the top of the time-sheets. Krummenacher takes his second pole position at Assen, with his first WorldSSP pole coming at the Dutch venue back in 2016.
Federico Caricasulo
Federico Caricasulo (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team) joined his teammate on the front row for his fourth consecutive front row, whilst Raffaele De Rosa (MV AGUSTA Reparto Corse) completed the front row, despite crashing on Mahias’ fluids down at Turn 15.
#NLDWorldSBK WorldSSP at TT Circuit Assen: Tissot Superpole 1. Randy Krummenacher (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team) 1’38.010 2. Federico Caricasulo (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team) 1’38.115 3. Raffaele De Rosa (MV AGUSTA Reparto Corse) 1’38.521
The second row will comprise of Estonian-ace Hannes Soomer (MPM WILSport Racedays), as the Honda-mounted rider took his best Tissot Superpole qualifying position, whilst also being Estonia’s best starting position in WorldSSP. Fifth position belonged to Hikari Okubo (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing), who also crashed on teammate Mahias’ spillage at Turn 15. Rounding out the second row is Jules Cluzel (GMT94 YAMAHA), who lies second in the championship.
Raffaele De Rosa
Row three comprises of Aragon pole-sitter Thomas Gradinger (Kallio Racing), who was just over a second behind Krummenacher. Lucas Mahias, despite his problems, finished in eighth, whilst fellow Frenchman Corentin Perolari (GMT94 YAMAHA) was ninth. Completing the top ten was Spanish rider, Isaac Viñales (Kallio Racing).
Pole position – Randy Krummenacher
“It was a really strange Superpole, and it was a pity because I couldn’t take full advantage of my bike. I was able to do just one flying lap, but it was enough to take the pole position. I am happy about it and I am really confident for tomorrow. My rivals are also very fast here and we don’t know which conditions we will find tomorrow. I will try to do a good race and just focus on my consistency”.
Randy Krummenacher
Pos
Rider
Rider
Time
1
R. Krummenacher
Yamaha YZF R6
1’38.010
2
F. Caricasulo
Yamaha YZF R6
1’38.115
3
R. De Rosa
MV Agusta F3 675
1’38.521
4
H. Soomer
Honda CBR600RR
1’38.664
5
H. Okubo
Kawasaki ZX-6R
1’38.724
6
J. Cluzel
Yamaha YZF R6
1’38.771
7
T. Gradinger
Yamaha YZF R6
1’39.054
8
L. Mahias
Kawasaki ZX-6R
1’39.264
9
C. Perolari
Yamaha YZF R6
1’39.295
10
I. Vinales
Yamaha YZF R6
1’39.333
11
A. Badovini
Kawasaki ZX-6R
1’39.394
12
R. Hartog
Kawasaki ZX-6R
1’39.455
13
G. Van Straalen
Kawasaki ZX-6R
1’39.608
14
J. Danilo
Honda CBR600RR
1’39.905
15
F. Fuligni
MV Agusta F3 675
1’39.939
16
K. Smith
Kawasaki ZX-6R
1’40.164
17
P. Sebestyen
Honda CBR600RR
1’40.470
18
L. Cresson
Yamaha YZF R6
1’40.545
19
J. Van Sikkelerus
Honda CBR600RR
1’40.710
20
W. Tessels
Yamaha YZF R6
1’40.752
21
D. Rubin
Yamaha YZF R6
1’41.117
22
C. Stange
Honda CBR600RR
1’41.281
23
A. Coppola
Honda CBR600RR
1’41.706
24
M. Herrera
Yamaha YZF R6
1’42.124
25
X. Navand
Yamaha YZF R6
1’42.943
Not Qualified
NQ
G. Matern
Kawasaki ZX-6R
1’45.426
NQ
N. Calero
Kawasaki ZX-6R
n/a
NQ
A. De Wintere
Yamaha YZF R6
n/a
World Supersport 300
Galang Hendra Pratama took the pole position in a flurry of activity in the middle of the session, in the optimum weather conditions as rain came and went through the 25-minute stint. Joining him on the front row, Aragon race winner Manuel Gonzalez (Kawasaki ParkinGO Team) was second, looking to launch his attack for a second career victory from a good starting position. Completing the front row is Mika Perez (Scuderia Maranga Racing).
Manuel Gonzalez
Continuing to impress in the 2019 World Supersport 300 class was Hugo De Cancellis (Team Trasimeno), who was fourth. The Frenchman will be looking for another podium from the front of row two, whilst teammate Omar Bonoli vastly improved to fifth position on the grid, as the 17-year-old took his best qualifying position of the year. Completing the front row is the first rider from Group B, home-hero, Scott Deroue (Kawasaki MOTOPORT). He will be looking to put on a good show for his home fans.
Row three features Ukrainian rider Nick Kalinin from Group A (Nutec – RT Motorsports by SKM – Kawasaki), who finished ahead of Jan-Ole Jahnig (KTM Freudenberg Junior Team) in eighth and then Borja Sanchez (Scuderia Maranga Racing) in ninth. Rounding out the top then was reigning champion, Ana Carrasco (Kawasaki Provec WorldSSP300).
Due to the severe weather conditions in the afternoon, WorldSSP300 Last Race Chance was cancelled.
Pole Position – Galang Hendra Pratama
“I am really happy! It was difficult to manage the tyres and find the grip but my team did such a great job, and they were able to solve the problem before the Tissot Superpole. Step by step we were able to find a good setup for the bike! Thank all my team and my Indonesian fans, my sponsors and family that always support me. For tomorrow I will keep concentrate and try to do my best.
Unfortunately we haven’t been able to get a race today after Race Direction cancelled the race due to the weather conditions. Of course, they were very extreme conditions with sleet and snow but I feel for all the fans out here that came and didn’t really get to see a race. The track temperature was in a decent ballpark to go and at least try in the wet but let’s see the race schedule tomorrow. I feel really strong with the bike, the team has given me a good set-up and this morning was confirmation of this. Unfortunately we got a little bit of bad luck in Superpole so let’s just see how it plays out tomorrow with the new schedule and the start positions for both races. http://jonathan-rea.com/news/worldsbk-race-one-cancelled-assen
New race schedule 🏍 #AssenWorldSBK🇳🇱 🏁 Assen
🗓 Sunday 14April 📋 Race 1
⌚ 11.00 (10.00 UK)
📺 Live Eurosport UK 2
⛅️6*C
🏍 21 Laps #AssenWorldSBK🇳🇱 🏁 Aragon
🗓 Sunday 14 April 📋 Race 2
⌚ 14.00 (13.00 UK)
📺 Live Eurosport UK 2
⛅️ 9*C
🏍 21 laps Source: Jonathan Rea On Facebook
#AssenWorldSBK🇳🇱 🏁 Assen 🗓 Saturday 13 April 📋 Race 1
⌚ 14.00 (13.00 UK)
📺 Live Eurosport UK 2
⛅️ 7*C 🏍 21 Laps Source: Jonathan Rea On Facebook
A freezing cold and windy Assen played host to a close session that saw the top five riders covered by just 0.031s, Tom Sykes taking the BMW to finish the opening day at the TT Circuit Assen on top!
Tom Sykes – P1
“I am looking forward to this weekend especially if it’s going to stay dry, I feel if the rain comes there could be a lot of trouble with the temperatures and the rain tyre. Having said that the whole of the BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team are working really well, we have done a lot with the BMW S 1000 RR and got off to a steady start doing a few things in this morning’s FP1 and FP2 sessions. We now feel we have a strong pace in these conditions. Tomorrow we will look to refine our setting further, however we will keep an eye on the conditions during tomorrow’s 9am start… that being said I am looking forward to the races, I enjoy Assen and the layout of the track is fantastic so I hope we can convert this speed into some results.”
Tom Sykes
Having led the session in FP1, Kawasaki’s were on form at the famed Dutch venue. It was the reigning four-time WorldSBK Champion Jonathan Rea who consolidated a positive opening day with a second place as Friday concluded. The Ulsterman setting multiple fast times and eventually toppling his teammate. Rea will be hoping to continue his search for his first race win of the season.
Jonathan Rea – P2
“A very positive day to be honest. We have changed the bike set-up a little bit and gone back in a different direction from what we had been in the winter tests and the first few rounds. I have gained a little bit of agility on the bike set-up and I am able to do things a little bit differently. The bike is turning better in the longer corners and I am able to make the difference, so the window is a little bit bigger. With such a big change, step-by-step, I need to adapt a little bit more. Of course it is a learning process and I feel quite good, but here the temperatures are so low that it is important for us to analyse both the SC0 and SC1 option rear tyres for tomorrow. We need to understand exactly where the crossover in performance is, if any. Then we can find our race set-up. I feel quite positive after the work we have done today and we understand where we need to improve for tomorrow.”
Jonathan Rea
Leon Haslam returned to the TT Circuit Assen in The Netherlands with a fine third place. The ‘Pocket Rocket’ will be hoping to return to the podium for the first time since Australia.
Leon Haslam – P3
“I am really happy because I did not expect to be third quickest. Our plan was to do this morning with a hard tyre and this afternoon with a soft tyre and we did over race distance in both sessions. So to just use two tyres over the whole day I am really happy. Always Assen is close, one tenth here, one tenth there, and the race is always a close battle. There are a few areas I want to improve in still but so far so good. The biggest thing is to keep the tyre temperature up. Normally in these conditions the SC0 would never last but the new bigger profile tyre is lasting just unbelievably.”
Leon Haslam
Markus Reiterberger was one of the revelations on Friday, lapping multiple consistent times and eventually placing fourth overall. Reiterberger looking to improve on a best Superpole result of sixth, achieved in Sepang 2016.
Markus Reiterberger – P4
“First of all I have done many laps around Assen. My first impression of the bike was not the best and we put this down to the rear tyre, despite this feeling we were still able to put ourselves into the top 6 during FP1 so we have to be happy about that. Going into the second session we didn’t expect too much with the results but we continued with some changes to the chassis and the electronics. I again struggled with the rear during the early stages of FP2 so we made a change of tyre to the SC1, this immediately changed the setting of the bike which was good step for me and I could consistently lap 1’35.00/1’36.00 times and finished the day in P4. I am happy with the setting change we made from today’s second outing, I hope we can continue this into tomorrow’s qualifying and race.”
Markus Reiterberger
In what was one of the closest sessions in recent WorldSBK memory, home-hero Michael van der Mark completed the session in fifth position, just 0.031s behind session leader Tom Sykes. The Dutchman was looking to put on a good show in front of a loyal home crowd and goes into Saturday full of confidence.
Michael van der Mark – P5
“It’s not ideal to be riding in such cold conditions as we had here today, not just for us but also for the tyres. It means you have to be a bit careful the first few laps but, overall, I’m quite happy with today. This morning I felt good on the bike and, on the last run, I improved my lap time a lot and it was clear what we needed to improve for the second session this afternoon. We made some changes to the bike for FP2, but this didn’t bring the improvement we were expecting, so we reverted back to a set-up closer to the one we ran this morning and I immediately felt better. I was struggling a little on corner exit, as the bike wanted to wheelie out of the turns, so we’ll need to look at that during FP3 tomorrow. The times are very close and I was able to put together some consistent laps, so I’m happy enough with the first day here in Assen.”
Michael van der Mark
It wasn’t an all-conquering opening day for ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati team, who struggled throughout the session. Alvaro Bautista languished for the majority of FP2, in the pits with his crew hard at work, implementing the settings needed to challenge at the front. The championship leader finished the session in sixth, with a flurry of fast laps towards the end of FP2.
Álvaro Bautista – P6
“Today was a bit of an unusual day. The temperatures were very low and we used a slightly different setting from the last races to try and be quick right from the start. Maybe it was because the track was too cold, but I wasn’t able to improve the way I wanted during the first session. In the afternoon session, after a few laps, we decided to go back to the set-up used in the last races. The mechanics were very quick to carry out the modifications required and the feeling with the bike improved immediately. Basically in two practice sessions, we only lapped without any problems for the last ten minutes. These things happen sometimes, but luckily we were able to finish the day with a good feeling. The times are all close together, but I think we’ve found the right direction for the weekend.”
Álvaro Bautista
Chaz Davies had a small crash at Turn 5, soon remounting but returning to the pits. The Welshman, who is looking to continue his search for a third podium of the season, finished the session in ninth position, ahead of his teammate for most of the session.
Chaz Davies – P7
“It wasn’t so bad today and the lap times were really close. We are in ninth place but only 0.4s away from the top and I felt like there is more on the table. I had a really small crash, because I’m struggling to do what I want in Turn 5; it’s quite cold and I don’t have full confidence there. As soon as I went on the track this morning, my Panigale V4 R was working pretty good so I’m reasonably happy and at the end of the day we definitely found our base set-up. I have a lot more confidence with the front of the bike, which has probably gone up from 60 to 90%, and I’m much happier than what I was in the early rounds of the season.”
Chaz Davies
Yamaha’s Alex Lowes suffered another crash in FP2 and finished his first day at Assen in tenth.
Alex Lowes – P10
“The track conditions today were really cold, which isn’t something we were expecting coming into this weekend, but it wasn’t too bad. This afternoon I stayed on the used tyres and did a long run, almost race distance, but then the front tyre wear towards the end was quite severe. I tried to keep going until the end, to give us more information but in hindsight, maybe I should have come in a lap earlier because I lost the front on the bump into turn one and crashed. If I’d have come in for new tyres then I felt like I’d have been quite strong at the end. Now we need to work out why we’re getting excessive tyre wear, so that’s what we’ll be focusing on tomorrow.”
Alex Lowes
Two Independent team riders once again squeezed into the top ten, with Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing) in seventh, just 0.140s from the leading time by Sykes. One position behind the Turkish rider, Sandro Cortese (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) was one of the biggest improvers and finished in eighth, as second Yamaha rider too.
Sandro Cortese – P8
“I’m a little bit more relaxed after FP2, because this morning was a bit of a disaster for me. When I started FP1 it was like I’d forgotten how to ride a bike in the one week since Aragon! For the first time ever, I didn’t have a feeling for the bike but, obviously it was very cold this morning. We made some big changes on the bike to try and improve and we continued with this in the afternoon, but then we made the decision to go back to the base set-up we’ve used over the last three races, with positive results. This is how we need to work, rather than looking at what the other Yamaha riders are doing, as they are so completely different. I’m happy that we remained calm, stayed focused and made some good progression this afternoon. Of course, we are still missing a bit but if we look at the gap this morning, which was almost 2.5 seconds, and then compare it to the 0.2 seconds we’re missing now, I think we can be happy with the job we did. Now we just need to continue in this way.”
Sandro Cortese
It was another difficult day for Melandri, with the GRT Yamaha rider again struggling to find a set-up on his R1 with which he was comfortable and that would allow him to rediscover the form that saw him finish on the podium at the opening round in Australia. Melandri and his crew will analyse the situation further overnight, in a bid to find an improvement ahead of FP3 tomorrow morning.
Marco Melandri – P14
“It was one more difficult day for me here in Assen. I’m still struggling with the same issue I had on the first day with the R1; I am trying to adapt my riding style and move my position on the bike to try and improve things, but it just seems to get worse. It’s difficult because we can’t go the way I’d like to with the set-up and, in the cold conditions we experienced today, the problem is even worse. The biggest issue is that, right now, I have no confidence and that means I can’t push as hard as I need to.”
Marco Melandri
In what was a phenomenally tight session, the leading 12 riders were covered by just 0.821s, with four Independent riders inside that gap.
#AssenWorldSBK🇳🇱
🏁Assen
🗓 Saturday 13 April 📋 Superpole
⌚ 11.00 local time (10.00 UK)
📺 Live Eurosport UK 2
⛅️ 5*C
🏍 25 mins Source: Jonathan Rea On Facebook
A very positive day to be honest. We have changed the bike set-up a little bit and gone back in a different direction from what we had been in the winter tests and the first few rounds. I have gained a little bit of agility on the bike set-up and I am able to do things a little bit differently. The bike is turning better in the longer corners and I am able to make the difference, so the window is a little bit bigger. With such a big change, step-by-step, I need to adapt a little bit more. Of course it is a learning process and I feel quite good, but here the temperatures are so low that it is important for us to analyse both the SC0 and SC1 option rear tyres for tomorrow. We need to understand exactly where the crossover in performance is, if any. Then we can find our race set-up. I feel quite positive after the work we have done today and we understand where we need to improve for tomorrow.
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