The first day on track at Assen for the FIM Superbike World Championship riders ended with Jonathan Rea and Tom Sykes fastest and third fastest respectively, posting lap times that were already under the existing lap record.
Despite the cold track surface the pace was hot from the start, with Sykes and Rea 1-2 in the morning session, before Rea took the lead this afternoon. Sykes finished third, just 0.149 seconds behind.

With Friday the most important day in terms of machine set-up under the Saturday/Sunday race format in WorldSBK, Rea worked his way through possible set-up and tyre options on his Ninja ZX-10RR before selecting the ideal one for the prevailing conditions. He then posted a 1’35.383 lap to lead the charge of the top ten riders into Superpole 2 on Saturday.

For Sykes Friday was proof that his physical condition is improving, despite still suffering some adverse effects from an existing stomach infection. He was instantly happy with the performance and feel of his Ninja ZX-10RR today, boosting his confidence as he approaches both Superpole 2 and then the opening race of the weekend, on Saturday 29th April.

With air temperatures in single figures at times today there is hope of improved weather conditions as the weekend progresses. This will require both KRT riders to keep working on set-up right through to the beginning of the two 21-lap races, which will start at 13.00 CET each day.


Jonathan Rea, stated: 

“I am really satisfied with today as we managed to set up the bike a little bit in the morning and confirm some suspension items we have been testing recently, in Motorland Aragon and Portimao. Once we confirmed those, in the afternoon we decided to make a long run with some of the new Pirelli tyre options that they brought for both the front and the rear. I rolled out of that simulation after half distance and came into the pits. We tried another set of tyres and went back to the morning settings, which had different final gear ratios and were a little bit softer in the suspension. I felt a little bit more comfortable then. I made a pretty much a full race simulation at a pace I feel quite satisfied with. After gaining that knowledge I know exactly the critical areas to improve to be strong at the end of the races. As far as Fridays go, today’s has been a positive one.”

Tom Sykes, stated: 

“I feel a bit better than Motorland Aragon but compared to my full fitness there is still a long way to go. I am enjoying riding Assen, that’s for sure, and the bike is working really well. It was nice, considering my condition to have been under the race lap record pace in the first free practice. That enabled me to relax. I feel quite happy with our set-up, even this early, and I feel ready to race on Saturday - which is the main thing. We had a good test in Motorland Aragon and things have carried forward to here so I feel prepared for the races. Today I did quite a lot of laps and I feel that, for the race, there should be no problem - so I am happy about that.”