Ten Kate trial new electronics in Portimao
Added on Wednesday, March 31st, 2010 by Carole Nash Editor
Ten Kate trial new electronics in Portimao
Jonathan Rea and Max Neukirchner stayed behind to put in some extra laps in Portugal on Monday and Tuesday, with the Ten Kate Honda team taking the time in Portimao to redress some of the issues behind their slow start to the championship.
Whilst Rea did claim a podium in race one of the second round of the championship on Sunday, it has been a relatively disappointing start for the Northern Irish rider compared to the form he demonstrated at the end of 2009, with a mechanical failure forcing him out of race two at the weekend.
To address those problems, Rea tried out a new electronics package and despite the wet weather in the Algarve, he was more than impressed with the results.
“With the rain in the morning we couldn’t do much because the track was so wet. Even so, I went out and did a few laps, but testing a new electronics package in those conditions is pretty scary,” he said. “After lunch the track dried, although there were still some streams running across parts, and I got to do about 25 laps.
“The electronics were really good, and I was easily able to match the lap times that I did in the race. I think we’ll roll out the new package at Valencia, so I’m looking forward to that.
For new teammate Neukirchner, life with Ten Kate has also started off disappointingly, with the highly rated German yet to finish in the top ten from the first four races but the German claimed that he is making progress in getting used to the Honda.
“I was happy that we got a chance to make some improvements to the bike’s chassis. It’s still not perfect for me, but it’s now more stable on corner entry, which is where I was having some big problems during the weekend at Portimao,” he claimed. “The balance is better now – I don’t have to brake so early and it is a little easier to hold the line. I was able to improve on my best lap in the race and I hope that we can continue this progress when we get to Valencia next week.
