World Endurance Assen; Honda Report
Added on Monday, May 26th, 2003 by Carole Nash Editor
World Endurance Assen; Honda Report
HONDA SUPERSPORT TEAM TAKE FOURTH IN ENDURANCE RACE
Honda’s Ten Kate World Supersport championship team grabbed fourth place in Sunday’s 200-mile World Endurance race at Assen in Holland aboard the new CBR600RR machine.
Riders Karl Muggeridge and Dutchman Barry Veneman (the latter replacing the injured Chris Vermeulen) stormed into the lead from pole position against a field of 1000cc-mounted World Endurance championship regulars.
But two lengthy pit stops relegated the Dutch team to an eventual fourth place on their debut in the championship.
Team manager Ronald ten Kate explained: `We always knew it would be difficult to perform a really fast pit stop like the World championship regulars, they have the quick release equipment for changing wheels and quick-fill gear for refuelling.’
`We lost about two minutes on the other teams, one minute on each of the two stops so I’m sure we could have won it but the event served its purpose of giving us valuable track testing time.’
There was, however, some joy for the team as Muggeridge won the Dutch Open championship race at Assen. The Australian pipped Veneman to victory while the British championship Vitrans Honda team took fourth place with Dean Thomas.
Vitrans rider Michael Laverty was in a safe third place but crashed at the final corner on the last lap as he came across five backmarkers. Laverty escaped injury and he and Thomas will now contest next Sunday’s fifth round
of the World Supersport championship at Oschersleben in Germany.
Ten Kate concluded: `The weekend proved successful and reinforced the performance of the CBR600RR. Karl’s bike did all practice and qualifying, the endurance race and the Dutch Open race!’
