With the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship heading to the TT Circuit Assen for Round 3 of the enthralling 2024 campaign, the practice sessions on Friday gave the perfect opportunity to talk to key figures from the paddock. Topics included the season so far, previous wins sinking in and the potential at Assen, the first round with no testing directly before it this season.

SINKING IN: “It took me a couple of days to react to the messages!”

Speaking in FP1 about whether BMW’s wins in Barcelona had sunk in yet, BMW Motorrad Motorsport Director Marc Bongers said: “It has, we had three weeks for it to sink in, but it was really great to come back to the office with loads of trophies even going to the canteen there were so many people who came up to me, and it took me a couple of days to react to the messages and of course, at the same time it pushed the expectations further but we are positive and prepared.”

GRT YAMAHA HOPES: “Both our riders could potentially fight at the front…”

Both Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) and teammate Dominique Aegerter (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) have been quick in 2024. Discussing whether they could fight at the front at Assen, Team Manager Filippo Conti said: “The Australian Round and the Barcelona Round were two interesting weekends where we improved and worked a lot, they were not the best track for us, but we got some good results and experience. Now is the time to push and the time to get a good result and performance as expected. Both of our riders could potentially fight at the front, but I think we are in for a good round to show off our potential.”

WET WEATHER IMPACT: “It is impossible to say what his potential is…”

Rain fell on Friday and the weather at Assen is always unpredictable. After a strong start to Andrea Iannone’s (Team GoEleven) rookie campaign, Team Manager Denis Sacchetti spoke about the #29’s potential at Assen should it rain: “This time here at Assen is the first round this year with no testing. However, Andrea knows this track well, which is good, but it is his first time on a Superbike, and he needs time on track to understand how to ride a Superbike on this circuit. It is impossible to say what his potential is as we don’t have data in the wet conditions, so we will see.”

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Source: WorldSBK.com