Barros and Xaus shine in Holland despite difficult weather conditions.
Alex Barros second and Rubén Xaus, with another excellent performance, sets the third fastest time in MotoGP. Rainy day in Assen
Water -a lot of water-, wind and low temperatures, this is what the World Championship riders experienced during the first official practices of the Dutch Grand Prix. The 13º of temperature and the rain falling all day turned the Dutch track into a rather unsuitable place for motorcycling.
In MotoGP, Alex Barros flew low over the Dutch track setting the second fastest time behind Gibernau. Rubén Xaus, after his sixth place in Barcelona, showed his best shape in Holland taking the third place after having been fighting with Gibernau and Barros for the provisional pole. Nicky Hayden was the less positive side of the MotoGP Repsol riders. Twentieth in the morning practice, the North American rider of the Repsol Honda Team was not able to get close to the top times, setting the fifteenth fastest time in the afternoon.
In the 250 GP, Sebastián Porto and Fonsi Nieto have been quite behind of their usual performance in the class, both in the morning and in the afternoon during the qualifying practice. The Argentinean was tenth fastest in the morning and his teammate fourteenth. The weather conditions did not change in the afternoon and both riders worked on the wet settings of their bikes, without wanting to push too hard, hoping for a weather improvement tomorrow. Sebastián Porto was finally eleventh fastest and Fonsi Nieto thirteenth.
In the minor class, the Repsol riders preferred not to take any unnecessary risks, thus finishing in rather backwards positions both in the morning and in the afternoon practices. In the morning’s free practices, Pablo Nieto was sixteenth and Sergio Gadea, on his first contact with the Dutch layout, finished twentieth. In the afternoon, under the same weather conditions – rain, cold and wind – both preferred to continue being prudent and did not force the pace to avoid an unnecessary crash. Nieto finished tenth – third row of the starting grid – and Gadea twenty-fourth.
