Motul TT Assen

FIM MotoGP World Championship

TT Circuit Assen, Netherlands

June 29, 2018

Free Practice Two Results (all on Michelin tires):

1. Maverick Vinales, Spain (Yamaha), 1:33.378

2. Andrea Iannone, Italy (Suzuki), 1:33.499

3. Danilo Petrucci, Italy (Ducati), 1:33.764

4. Valentino Rossi, Italy (Yamaha), 1:33.779

5. Cal Crutchlow, UK (Honda), 1:33.812

6. Andrea Dovizioso, Italy (Ducati), 1:33.859

7. Jorge Lorenzo, Spain (Ducati), 1:33.870

8. Marc Marquez, Spain (Honda), 1:34.041

9. Alex Rins, Spain (Suzuki), 1:34.047

10. Johann Zarco, France (Yamaha), 1:34.133, crash

11. Dani Pedrosa, Spain (Honda), 1:34.167

12. Hafizh Syahrin, Malaysia (Yamaha), 1:34.246

13. Aleix Espargaro, Spain (Aprilia), 1:34.318

14. Alvaro Bautista, Spain (Ducati), 1:34.484

15. Karel Abraham, Czech Republic (Ducati), 1:34.522

16. Jack Miller, Australia (Ducati), 1:34.535

17. Tito Rabat, Spain (Ducati), 1:34.576

18. Bradley Smith, UK (KTM), 1:34.700

19. Pol Espargaro, Spain (KTM), 1:34.822

20. Takaaki Nakagami, Japan (Honda), 1:34.855

21. Scott Redding, UK (Aprilia), 1:34.970

22. Franco Morbidelli, Italy (Honda), 1:35.287

23. Thomas Luthi, Switzerland (Honda), 1:36.129

24. Xavier Simeon, Belgium (Ducati), 1:36.157

More, from a press release issued by Monster Yamaha Tech3:

Determined Monster Yamaha Tech3 pair gets to grips with Assen Circuit

Johann Zarco initiated the Dutch Grand Prix today with a solid performance, improving his fastest lap from FP1 to FP2 by one second to eventually reach the top 10 and therefore a provisional entry to Q2 on Saturday. Meanwhile the fastest rookie of the field, Hafizh Syahrin did well to lower his best lap time from the first to the seconds session by impressive 1.592 seconds. Yet, the Malaysian concluded day one at the sunny TT circuit in P12, before pushing hard again tomorrow in Free Practice 3 at 9.55 local time.

Johann Zarco

Position: 10th – Time: 1’34.133 – Laps: 37

“This morning the beginning here in Assen was difficult. I was sliding a lot with the bike and when this happens, you lose the control too much. So, I was fighting from the first practice on and knew, that we have to try to control the bike better. In the afternoon we did a huge step, that helped me a lot. Unfortunately, I had a small crash, but luckily I don’t feel any pain, plus we understand the reason for this, which is important. I think we can keep on working with this good feeling we had in the afternoon, I still enjoy sitting on the bike and this will for sure help to find the pace to be with the top guys again.”

Hafizh Syahrin

Position: 12th – Time: 1’34.246 – Laps: 41

“I felt very good on the first day, we are just 0.8 from the front. I have the sensation that I can do a little bit better, but sometimes you feel this, but something disturbs you. I was on the fast lap and found a bit of traffic. Anyway, I believe that I can improve my lap time from now. Overall, it’s ok. In the first Free Practice I tried to learn and tried to understand the track, because this circuit is very fast. In FP2 I felt really good, like in Montmeló we are close to the top 10 again, which is quite good. I’m the first rookie again and aim to stay in this position, plus trying to get into Q2. I hope that we can make another step forward tomorrow.”

More, from a press release issued by Angel Nieto Team:

ÁNGEL NIETO TEAM IN TOP TEN CONTENTION AT ASSEN

Spanish MotoGP team have both Álvaro Bautista and Karel Abraham inside top fifteen on opening day of free practice

Maverick Viñales was smiling again today after leading the opening day of free practice at the Dutch TT. The Spanish rider set the quickest lap time on a day that saw four different manufacturers represented in the top five positions. Behind him, Andrea Iannone and Danilo Petrucci completed the top three as Marc Márquez ended the day eighth, six tenths off the time set by Viñales, just behind the back-to-back winner from Italy and Barcelona, Jorge Lorenzo.

The Ángel Nieto Team were pushing for top ten positions on the opening day of the Dutch TT as both Álvaro Bautista and Karel Abraham made one of their strongest starts to a weekend this season. The Spaniard finished both Friday sessions with a good feeling although his position perhaps doesn’t reflect it. Some traffic on his final flying lap prevented him from finding some crucial tenths that would have propelled him into the top 10. Karel Abraham is also feeling good with his Ducati GP16, having improved the bike on each exit before setting a 1’34.522 that leaves him fifteenth overnight.

14th Álvaro Bautista 1:34.484 (35 laps): “It has been a positive day, the position is not one of the best but we were always close. In the end I was unable to put one good lap together because I ran into some traffic and couldn’t take much time off my best lap. I am happy because we did some tyre tests this afternoon so that we know what compound to run in the high temperatures that we are encountering. We more or less have a clear idea about the set-up for tomorrow so we will push hard in FP3 to try go directly to Q2, then set a good grid position and make the most of my pace in the race.”

15th Karel Abraham 1:34.522 (38 laps): “I think we had a very good day today. We had a couple of issues to sort out on both ends of the bike so we worked hard and improved a little bit with every exit. Our strategy was to use a fresh tyre, a different tyre, on the last exit and again it was a little bit better. I was in a good group in front of me and made a pretty good lap time. It wasn’t just one lap though, we made quite a few in the mid to high 1’34s and we are very close to Alvaro so that’s good.”

More, from a press release issued by Aprilia Gresini Racing:

FIRST DAY OF MOTOGP PRACTICE IN ASSEN

ALEIX REDISCOVERS CONFIDENCE WITH HIS RS-GP

SCOTT IMPROVES BETWEEN THE TWO SESSIONS

After the first two practice sessions in preparation for the GP on Sunday, Aleix Espargaró (13th with 1’34.318 but just a half a second outside the top-5) rediscovers confidence with his RS-GP. This is a clear improvement compared to the last race held in Barcelona which, partly due to the very “tight” rankings, makes him confident for tomorrow when the sessions will be decisive for defining the starting grid order.

Scott Redding finished the two sessions in 22nd position with a time of 1’34.979, improving by almost a full second between the first and second session.

ALEIX ESPARGARO’

“Today I rediscovered positive sensations on my Aprilia – much better than in Barcelona. It is true that we are not high up in the provisional standings, but we are not too far away. I turned a lot of laps, maintaining a good pace. I think that tomorrow we’ll have an excellent chance of improving further and, with a good lap, aiming to go straight through to Q2.”

SCOTT REDDING

“This morning I struggled a bit in terms of stability and tyre combination. The RS-GP moved around a lot. In the afternoon, we were able to improve. I felt good in the saddle and I had fun riding. On the last run, a problem with the transponder kept the electronic settings from working the way they should have, so it wasn’t possible to do a better time. We need to work on making the bike less twitchy. When it moves around it makes it hard to ride and it makes you lose precision.”

More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki ECSTAR:

IANNONE SECOND IN DUTCH TT OF ASSEN FIRST DAY

Andrea Iannone: 2nd – 1:33.499 (+ 0.121)

Alex Rins: 9th – 1:34.047 (+ 0.669)

• Iannone showing good early form.

•Rins with Top 10 pace.

•Both riders using new spec. engine.

Sunshine and heat welcomed the riders at Assen circuit on Friday morning – a place usually famed for it’s chilly mornings and damp conditions!

Andrea Iannone and Alex Rins used FP1 to get to grips with the new engine spec. which was trialled in Montmelo by Sylvain Guintoli, this is hoped to offer them more power and a slightly better top speed.

In the afternoon’s FP2 session the temperatures soared and the track was registered at 46c. As the heat went up, the lap times dropped. FP2 was a very tight session with riders separated by tiny margins. Andrea Iannone was strong throughout and placed himself 2nd with a 1:33.499, just +0.121 from the top. Alex Rins hovered around the Top 10 all session and completed FP2 with a 1:34.047 and 9th place. This means both riders are provisionally through to tomorrow’s Q2.

Davide Brivio – Team Manager

“It’s been a positive day, Andrea did a very good lap at the end with the soft tyre, but also we were able to improve the bike during the sessions with the settings, and it looks like now it’s more comfortable. Alex also did a very good session, making his best laps with the hard tyre. It’s been a good practice with both riders in the Top 10 at the moment, so we’ll try to keep that performance for tomorrow and see how we can progress.”

Andrea Iannone

“I think it’s been a positive FP2 for us and we worked well during the afternoon. And we improved a lot compared to this morning, because in FP1 I struggled a bit with stability. We need to make one more big step because we’re losing traction, especially in the long corner, and we’re getting a lot of sliding and spinning. We’ll try to improve for tomorrow. I don’t feel the new spec engine that much at this track, but for sure it’s always positive to improve the engine.”

Alex Rins

“I can feel the improvement in power delivery from the new engine spec. on the straight. In the middle of the corners and the corner exits, the engine is working in the same way, so it’s mainly on the straight where it gives us a bit more power and thanks to this I can be faster on the straights. We’ve started this weekend well and we’re working step-by-step on race set-up. Tomorrow we’ll work on the stability of the bike.”

More, from a press release issued by Alma Pramac Racing:

 DutchTT Assen – Free Practices

#DutchGP FP. Stunning P3 for Petrux on Assen’s Friday. Jack (16th) with lack of rear grip.

The #DutchGP started very well for Danilo Petrucci who, on the first day of free practice, was incisive and finished in P3. Jack Miller laps fast in FP1 (4th quickest) but in FP2 he can’t get the most out of the soft tyre.

Petrux started out strong in the morning practices and ended up FP1 in Top 10 recording a good pace. In the afternoon free practice, the rider from Terni pushed hard with used tyres and in the time attack, he finished in the third position.

Jack has to solve rear grip problems. The Australian rider laps consistently in the FP1, first with the medium tyres and then with the hard tyres. In the FP2, however, Miller wasn’t able to be fast and had to settle for 16th place.

3rd – Danilo Petrucci 1’33.764

“I am pleased with this first day of free practice. I did a good time in FP2 although I am sure that the real battle will be tomorrow in FP3. The Top 10 standings are very tight but I think we have the potential to win the direct Q2”.

16th – Jack Miller 1’34.535

“We have problems with the rear grip. We can’t find traction especially in the first part of the circuit. With the hard tyre I went strong but in the time attack, I wasn’t able to be competitive. We’ll work to solve the problems tonight and I’m confident.

More, from a press release issued by Repsol Honda:

Marquez and Pedrosa start preparation for the Dutch TT at sunny Assen

Sunny weather (somewhat unusual but universally praised) welcomed the MotoGP field on the opening day of the Dutch TT at Assen, and with a favourable forecast continuing for the rest of the weekend, Marc Marquez and Dani Pedrosa started their preparation for Sunday, working on the RC213V’s race setup.

After setting the fastest time in the morning, Marc continued his work on used tyres and wrapped up the day eighth fastest, just over 6 tenths off the top. In the afternoon, Dani improved his pace from FP1 and ended 11th fastest for the day, 0.126” behind his teammate.

Marc Marquez 93

8TH 1’34.041

“All in all, the day was quite good because here in Assen we normally struggle, whereas today I felt good with the bike from the beginning and was able to keep a good rhythm. The bike was a bit unstable, but we improved that with the setup. In the afternoon, we worked a lot for the race, on hard tyres. It looks like everything is going in the correct direction, but at the same time it seems that everything is very tight this weekend. The weather is good, so everyone can prepare well for the race. Choosing the right tyres will be important, especially the rear. We have two very similar options, and that can lead to an advantage or a mistake. We have to choose well.”

Dani Pedrosa 26

11TH 1’34.167

“As always, things are a bit difficult at this track, but some runs were better that others. Something we need to focus on is our performance with the soft tyre. Today we weren’t able to improve when we fitted it. Another area we need to address is the T4 sector of the track, where we want to perform better and be faster. For the rest, we’re getting on the rhythm and hopefully we’ll be able to exploit the good weather and take a step tomorrow.”

More, from a press release issued by Movistar Yamaha:

CONFIDENT START BY MOVISTAR YAMAHA AT ‘CATHEDRAL OF SPEED’

Movistar Yamaha MotoGP’s Maverick Viñales and Valentino Rossi enjoyed a strong opening to the TT Assen weekend, securing first and fourth place respectively in today’s combined free practice timesheets.

Assen (The Netherlands), 29th June 2018

The Movistar Yamaha MotoGP Team was back in action at the TT Circuit Assen today, starting the first free practice sessions in strong form. Maverick Viñales and Valentino Rossi made the most of the perfect riding conditions and landed first and fourth place respectively in the combined session times.

Viñales is a great fan of the Dutch circuit and it showed. He built up his pace throughout FP1 and it wasn’t long before he climbed to the top of the leaderboard with a 1’34.550s. He spent the remainder of the session tweaking his bike’s settings. As the pace quickened in the latter stages he posted a 1’34.404s to finish in second place, 0.177s from first.

The Spaniard was keen to pick up where he left off in the afternoon session. He dedicated a large part of FP2 to perfecting the balance of his YZR-M1 and, whilst the temperatures kept rising, Viñales’ times were dropping rapidly. He had saved his best for his last stint and dropped a 1’33.378s to end the day in first place, 0.121s faster than his closest rival.

Eager to repeat last year’s win, Rossi began his Assen challenge with finding a solid basis set-up and trying different tyre combinations. He was looking to better his feeling with the front tyre. The Italian spent most of the practice time working on the balance of his bike until his last run, when he improved his time to a 1’34.513s on a medium front and rear tyre. He secured third place, with a 0.286s gap to first.

The afternoon saw more of the same from The Doctor. He spent the majority of the 45 minutes working on the same matter as in the previous session, before putting his bike to the test in the final stages. Clearly feeling at home at one of his favourite tracks, he wrapped up the first day of the TT Assen with a fourth fastest time of 1’33.779s, 0.401s behind his teammate.

Today’s results also see Viñales and Rossi take first and fourth place respectively in the combined standings.

MASSIMO MEREGALLI

TEAM DIRECTOR

We made an assertive start to the GP in Assen. We liked the approach Maverick showed today. He pushed from the beginning of each run, switching bikes each time. His results are encouraging, especially considering that the bikes were both always in race configuration. He’s feeling very comfortable and this was confirmed with his 1’33.378s fastest lap, so that boosts our confidence, but we still have some room for improvement. Valentino didn’t have a good feeling with the front during both practice sessions. During FP2 he spent most of the time working on improving this. Nevertheless, he was able to set the fourth fastest time. There’s some more work to do, but we still have time to give him a setting that makes him more comfortable. All in all, so far we’re feeling positive and we’ll focus on preparing for Sunday’s race.

MAVERICK VIÑALES

We worked on some small details, the parts where we lost the most in Montmeló, especially the start and the first few laps. We were competitive there at the end of the race, so we are trying to give me a good feeling with the bike in the early laps. I feel good in Assen, it’s a good track for me. The bike is working really well and I’m so happy about the work of the team. We’ll still keep focused and maintain this level of concentration to work on the small details and build up to a good weekend. We want to make the start the best we can. We were struggling last time, but we’re hoping to solve it. It’s difficult to predict what we can expect, but after a positive first day, we are on the level to fight for the race.

VALENTINO ROSSI

On paper we expect to be strong in Assen, but you never know. The first day was positive, because I was good in the morning and also in the afternoon I was inside the top-4, which is not so bad. The bike works well here in Assen and also the tyres are good, allowing you to push and have a good pace for many laps. On the other side, it‘s also true that all the top riders are very fast. The pace is very similar, so we need to work well, also to try to understand the best tyre choice for Sunday. We hope that this weather will continue for the entire weekend.

More, from a press release issued by Dorna:

All change: Viñales leads Iannone and Petrucci at Assen

Yamaha strike back on Friday at the Motul TT Assen, with the Spaniard leading Iannone’s Suzuki after FP2

After two weekends ruled by one man, the timesheets have had a shake up once again at the Motul TT Assen – with Maverick Viñales (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) taking to the top late in FP2 to go fastest on Friday, 0.121 seconds ahead of Andrea Iannone (Team Suzuki Ecstar). After reigning Champion and Championship leader Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) went quickest in FP1, it was all change in the afternoon as the number 93 was eighth fastest.

Under sunny – and scorching – skies at the TT Circuit Assen, the two men who fought for the 2017 win dueled it out for third, with Danilo Petrucci (Alma Pramac Racing) just 0.015 ahead of compatriot Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) by the end of action. ‘Petrux’ was also top Independent Team rider on Day 1 on his Ducati, with fastest Honda and fellow Independent Team rider Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda Castrol) locking out the top five.

After the swing of momentum of late in the Ducati Team, Andrea Dovizioso will be happy to have edged out teammate Jorge Lorenzo on the combined timesheets, with ‘DesmoDovi’ taking P6 and Lorenzo just behind in P7 – despite a rare crash for the ‘Spartan’ sustained in FP1. The two were split by almost nothing, with a difference of only 0.011 and both just ahead of Marquez in eighth. Marquez also suffered a few moments and twitches in FP2 but no crash, not focusing on a fast lap.

Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) was back on song on Friday at the Dutch GP after a more difficult home race at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, making it two Hamamatsu factory machines on for provisional Q2 graduation as the Spaniard took ninth – and only 0.006 off reigning Champion Marquez. Johann Zarco (Monster Yamaha Tech 3), who crashed in the afternoon – rider ok, locked out the top ten as the Frenchman continues his search for his earlier season momentum.

Hafizh Syahrin (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) was top rookie in P12 overall after initially making it into the top ten, only just behind Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team).

Jack Miller (Alma Pramac Racing) was another big name who, like Pedrosa, stands to lose out on automatic graduation to Q2 if he can’t improve in FP3, with the Australian having been P4 in FP1 before only going thousandths faster in the afternoon. He ended the day in P16.

Lucky for the likes of Miller and Pedrosa, Friday was a sunny one and it doesn’t look set to change despite the reputation of the TT Circuit Assen for rain. Tune in on Saturday as the grid is decided, with practice from 9:55am (GMT +2) and qualifying from 14:10.

Back on top: perfect Friday for Bagnaia

The Italian was quickest in both Free Practice sessions on Friday to beat Mir and Sky VR46 teammate Marini

Francesco Bagnaia’s (Sky Racing Team VR46) Motul TT Assen got off to the perfect start as the Championship leader topped both FP1 and FP2 on Friday, with Joan Mir (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) second on the combined timesheets and Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46) third on the opening day at Assen.

Bagnaia improved his time by over a tenth of a second in the afternoon, setting a 1:38.019 to finish 0.100 ahead of rookie sensation Mir, who in turn improved his time by seven tenths from FP1 to jump up to P2 from P10 this morning. Marini made it two VR46 bikes in the top three in the Netherlands after finishing 16th in FP1, an impressive afternoon session from the Italian.

After finishing third in FP1, Barcelona race winner Fabio Quartararo (Lightech – Speed Up Racing) confirmed he’s in the hunt for another podium fight after ending the day fourth on the combined timesheets, just 0.010 behind Marini and 0.165 off Bagnaia’s time. Just behind the Frenchman and rounding out the top five in the intermediate class was Lorenzo Baldassarri (Pons HP40), cementing his P5 from FP1 – 0.280 off the top at the close of play.

Fellow Italian Mattia Pasini (Italtrans Racing Team) was sixth quickest on the opening day, jumping up two positions from his eighth-place finish in the morning, with teammate Andrea Locatelli the only rider in the top ten who failed to improve his time from FP1 – slipping from P2 to P7 in the afternoon.

After a crash in the morning session, Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) had no such trouble in FP2, ending the day eighth fastest overall to finish 0.434 behind Bagnaia’s time. Marcel Schroetter (Dynavolt Intact GP) consolidated ninth place on the combined timesheets after finishing just inside the top ten in both sessions, with Romano Fenati’s (Marinelli Snipers Team) time of 1:38.988 just 0.039 behind the German – the rookie climbing five positions from his P15 in FP1 to end Friday as the tenth quickest rider.

Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo), who sits second in the Championship, ended Friday 12th on the combined timesheets, 0.488 off the quickest time set by title rival Bagnaia and 0.008 behind teammate Brad Binder – the South African ended the day 11th overall.

Stefano Manzi (Forward Racing Team) crashed twice in the session, with Federico Fuligni (Tasca Racing Scuderia Moto2) also crashing – riders ok. Tetsuta Nagashima (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) then crashed heavily at Turn 15 towards the end of the session, with the Japanese rider taken to hospital for further checks to his left hand.

Bagnaia was the man to beat on Friday, but with a second covering the top 18 riders, Saturday’s Moto2™ action looks set to be unmissable. Tune in for FP3 at 10:55 local time, with the battle for pole igniting at 15:05 local time (GMT +2).

Canet leads Martin on opening day

The two Spaniards top the timesheets at Assen in the lightweight class, but Martin also suffered a heavy crash late in FP2

Aron Canet (Estrella Galicia 0,0) was the quickest rider in Moto3™ FP2 at the Motul TT Assen to top the combined timesheets on the opening day, after finishing fourth in the morning. The Spaniard leads compatriot Jorge Martin (Del Conca Gresini Moto3) overall, but FP1’s pace setter suffered a heavy crash at the end of FP2 at Turn 4 and needed to be stretchered off.

On his final run, Canet set a flurry of quick times to confirm his speed at Assen, a venue he was victorious at last season. Thankfully, Martin was declared fit after a checkup in the medical centre and will be ready to battle on Saturday. Meanwhile, after earning his first Grand Prix podium at the Catalan GP, Gabriel Rodrigo (RBA BOE Skull Rider) enjoyed a great Friday at the Dutch GP, finishing the day third fastest overall after ending FP1 in P10. The Argentine was one of three riders to set a time in the 1:42.8 bracket, with John McPhee (CIP – Green Power) firing in an impressive final run of the day to finish fourth quickest on the combined timesheets, 0.155 off Canet after the Scotsman was third in the morning.

Jerez race winner Philipp Oettl (Sudmetal Schedl GP Racing) set a 1:42.856 to end the day fifth quickest, jumping up the timesheets late in FP2 after ending FP1 in ninth place. 0.086 behind the German was the resurgent Nicolo Bulega (SKY Racing Team VR46) in sixth, upping his time by over a second in the afternoon to leap up from 11th place finish in FP1.

Championship leader Marco Bezzecchi (Redox PrüstelGP) was second in the morning and lead for the majority of the afternoon session, but the Italian eventually ended the day seventh fastest – 0.288 behind Canet’s benchmark. Teammate Jakub Kornfeil consolidated a top ten place in the afternoon after ending FP1 sixth, the Czech rider was a slender 0.022 off Bezzecchi’s time in eighth.

Japan’s Kaito Toba (Honda Team Asia) was ninth on the combined times, impressively jumping up from 24th in FP1. Rounding out the top ten in the lightweight class was second in the Championship Fabio Di Giannantonio (Del Conca Gresini Moto3), the Italian was P14 in the morning but ended the day less than half a second behind Canet in 10th on the combined timesheets.

It’s looking tight at the top in the lightweight class after the opening day at Assen, with a second covering the top 18. Don’t miss the Moto3™ riders out on track for FP3 on Saturday morning, with qualifying getting underway at 12:35 local time (GMT +2).

More, from a press release issued by Ducati:

Andrea Dovizioso sixth and Jorge Lorenzo seventh at the end of first day of practice for Dutch TT at Assen

Both Ducati Team riders finished inside the top 10 on the first day of practice for the Dutch TT, round 8 of the MotoGP World Championship which is being held this weekend at the Assen circuit.

At the end of the second free practice session, Andrea Dovizioso had set a time of 1’33.859 to take sixth place on his Desmosedici GP18, while his team-mate Jorge Lorenzo, who set a lap time of 1’33.870, ended the day in seventh.

Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team #04): 6th (1’33.859)

“Today was a positive first day: we started off well in the morning and this afternoon we made a further step forward. I’m pleasantly surprised because half-way through the session we lapped with a very good pace and to be honest I didn’t really expect that, seeing as it’s never easy here at Assen. There are a lot of fast riders out there, but we are fast as well and this was the main aim for today. Now we must continue to work on several aspects that can make all the difference in the race, while on my quick lap I could have done better but I encountered a lot of traffic.”

Jorge Lorenzo (Ducati Team #99): 7th (1’33.870)

“It wasn’t a particularly brilliant day because we weren’t up amongst the quickest riders, but I’m quite happy with my sensations and I think we have a wide margin for improvement. At the moment our weak point is the final sector, where I still have to understand what the right line is so I can be as quick as the leading guys, and also with the set-up we will have to modify a few details, because the bike is a bit unstable in the fast corners. We still have a lot of work to do but we know we have the potential to be competitive.”