Tough job awaits Bendsneyder and Odendaal in Assen

The solution seems to be within reach, but the time is too short. The result is that Bo Bendsneyder tomorrow has a hell of a job in his home race on the TT Circuit to get some points from the 24th starting place. His South African teammate Steven Odendaal has it even more difficult from 29th place.

NTS RW Racing GP is having a tough time at the Assen TT. Finding the right setting for the machines of Bendsneyder and Odendaal is not going smoothly. A solution for one problem can cause a new problem somewhere else, and that makes it difficult to find the right balance and a compromise that works. In the case of Bendsneyder, the problem seemed to be at the rear on Friday, so the team focussed on that area, but in the end it turned out to be in the front of the machine. With that problem solved, Bendsneyder and his technical staff actually had to start over again. The times did improve, but the rest of the Moto2 field had already made the next step. The 1.38.081 from Bendsneyder in Q1 was therefore not sufficient to advance to Q2. In the first qualifying round he finished tenth, which means that he will start from 24th in the Moto2 race, which starts at 12.20 pm CET.

Bo Bendsneyder: “We have made a step compared to yesterday, but that step actually came too late and therefore it cannot be seen in the laptimes. In fact, we wasted a lot of time Friday, because the problem turned out to be elsewhere. It is a constant puzzle and sometimes the piece seems to fit, but it turns out to be wrong. The pace is reasonable. I’m afraid the top 10 is not realistic at the moment. Unfortunately, that little extra is not in it now. But if the first lap goes well, points are definitely possible.”

Steven Odendaal: “We just keep searching and trying, but we can’t figure it out. The machine was totally different today than it was yesterday, but the laptimes stay about the same. What it is then? No idea. But we keep puzzling.”