Britain’s Scott Redding thought he had got rid of the grip issues that had been haunting him all year with a new swingarm and setup ideas at the Sachsenring but they returned with a vengeance at Indianapolis and he is at a loss for the reason why.

Redding had been quick enough for most of free practice but was again squeaked out of qualifying one and couldn’t contend with those on the soft tyre. Although the start of his race was good, rear spin and loss of front feel again meant he couldn’t run with the second group.

“The start was good, I was in the right place but when the guys started putting the laptimes in, I couldn’t hold it. I kept losing the rear on exit for a few laps. Even in the morning we were struggling for the laptime. I had quite a loose feeling, it was pulling the front. The race was better but I was still having the problems. I couldn’t go fast, I was trying and trying but making mistakes every time I tried to improve,” said Redding, speaking at the track.

“I felt like I was floating the whole time. The rear was coming around and the front wanted to pull away, I get on the gas it is not digging in. I struggled with that and then the front folding from the middle of the race. It was a struggle all the way to the finish.

“In practice, I was doing mid-33s, which would have held us in the second group but I couldn’t do it. I stayed for a while but had to settle for 34s. The feeling from yesterday today was just more sliding, all the way through the corner.”