Ducati’s Davide Giugliano was not going to let the Brit pack of Pata Honda’s Jonathan Rea and Kawasaki’s Tom Sykes get in the way of him topping the timesheets in the second World Superbike free practice session at Assen this afternoon.
The lead at the top of the timing screens changed between the top three riders for most of the session, but in the end it was Giugliano who had the edge after a 1’35.396. Rea did better his best lap from this morning and clocked a 1’35.880, with Sykes unable to lap inside the 1’35’s and had to settle for a 1’36.146.
After the initial five minutes of track time it was Giugliano who set the standard for the remainder of the session – and went one-nine thousandths of a second quicker than Rea’s time in the first session to top the timesheets.
But in a repeat of the first free practice outing Rea did not hold back, and regained his lead on the timing-screens after a 1’36.293 with 30 minutes remaining. Soon after Sykes found that extra power that he lacked in the first session and clocked a 1’36.391 to place him second behind Rea.
Then Giugliano decided to have another go – and it worked as he went one-three hundredths of a second faster than Rea to go top the timesheets once again with just over ten minutes left to the session.
Voltcom Suzuki's Alex Lowes left it till there was just over eight minutes left, to the final free practice session of the day at the Cathedral of Speed to clock his fastest lap of the day – a 1’36.219, and that was enough to place him on a provisional pole spot. But seconds later Sykes went one tenth faster knocking Lowes back down to second.
Giugliano made another come back and it worked for the third time this afternoon, as he went around the Dutch track with a 1’35.396 – leaving him top of the timesheets once again, but he ended the day in the gravel after crashing unhurt at Geert Timmer Bocht, but he already done enough to cement his place as the quickest rider today.
Rea attempted a last lap dash but he was five tenths of a second too slow and had to settle for second with Sykes, Lowes and Ducati’s Chaz Davies rounding off the top five. Lowes did crash on his last lap - uninjured at Veenslang.
Sylvain Guintoli just pipped his Aprilia team-mate Marco Melandri to the post to take seventh, just behind Kawasaki’s Loris Baz and Voltcom Suzuki’s Eugene Laverty. Pata Honda’s Leon Haslam ended the afternoon tenth fastest with a 1’36.709.
Althea Racing’s Niccolo Canepa was the leading Evo bike – having just missed out on a top ten place. BMW Italia’s Leon Camier was six tenths off Haslam’s best lap and finished twelfth, with Alstare’s Christian Iddon sixteenth fastest after a 1’37.876.
