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Assen, 250: Aleix Espargarò ninth fastest in free practice

In MotoGP

26 giugno 2009

Assen, 250: Aleix Espargarò ninth fastest in free practice

The 250cc riders were able to take advantage of warm sunshine action at the Dutch TT got underway this afternoon. The constant direction changes and the mixture of fast and slow corners make Assen one of the most exciting circuits on the calendar, with the final chicane always capable of deciding races. Spaniards again dominated proceedings today despite leaving local shores behind following the last race in Barcelona, as Álvaro Bautista and Héctor Barberá headed up the time sheets, separated from each other by just two tenths of a second but from the rest of the field by six tenths.

Following an unfortunate injury to Balázs Németh during tests in Valencia last week, the Balatonring team put their faith in Spanish rider Aleix Espargaró for this race. Despite not competing in the two-stroke quarter-litre class for eight months, Aleix was straight back on top ten pace today. Despite riding carefully on the Aprilia and making sure he didn't crash as he re-accustomed himself with the category, he latched on to the rear wheel of Álvaro Bautista on his final lap and charged up the order from 17th place to finish ninth, improving his best lap by half a second.

Aleix Espargaró: "I'm really glad to be back in the World Championship - after such a long time away I'd almost forgotten what it's like! It's incredible how things can change - one minute you are sat at home and then you get a call four days before a Grand Prix from one of the biggest teams in the 250cc class to see if you will ride for them! I just tried to stay focused from the start today and even though the bike felt really small I just tried to get some laps in and get a feel for it. Thankfully the team helped me a lot - they just said get out there and ride until you feel comfortable. I honestly didn't know where the limit was so I just made sure I wasn't taking too many risks because the last thing I needed was a crash. At the end of the session Álvaro came past so I latched onto him and managed to get a fantastic lap in. The objective today was to break the ice and get a feel for the Aprilia, which I think we have done and then some!"