Team Ducati Alstare’s Carlos Checa was faced with cold and wet conditions for today’s first World Superbike practice sessions, but did manage to battle through the wet Assen track to finish inside the top ten in both the free practice and qualifying practice laps.
The former World Superbike champ worked with the technicians to prepare a good base setting suitable for the wet conditions, and finished the day with a fastest lap of 2’01.7. Checa did manage to improve throughout the day, lowering his time by almost a second in the practice qualifying round.
“Today, in view of the conditions, we worked on identifying a good wet setting for the bike in case of future wet races. We’ve worked well, trying to see how the bike reacts in these conditions, like how the tyres behave," said the Spaniard.
“We made some changes between the morning and afternoon sessions and I think we’ve made progress. I’m feeling confident, and forecasts show that it should be dry for the rest of the weekend so our aim is to improve our package as much as possible in preparation for Sunday’s races."