Danny Webb shrugged off the unpredictable weather conditions to qualify 11th for tomorrow's TT Assen, his best grid position of the season so far.
Rain fell five minutes into the session, resulting in a mad scramble in the closing stages as the track dried out and the times tumbled rapidly. The Mahindra rider was as high as fourth at one stage but the constant changes saw him eventually drop outside the top ten.
The Briton was hoping for a fully dry session to allow the Indian team to perfect the set-up of his GP125 machine, but wasn't complaining with the end result.
“We lost a session yesterday, and the rain cost a bit more in the qualifying session – we could have done with a bit more time to work on the settings. Even so, we've shown how much we've improved. The Mahindra engine is good, especially at the top end, and we've been getting the chassis better and better over the last four races. I'm hoping for another good result.”
Teammate Marcel Schrotter also had his best qualifying performance of the season and will start one row behind Webb in 14th. The German admits he is feeling more and more confident with the bike each session.
“Qualifying was a bit of a gamble because of the weather. Some riders risked a lot on the first lap, but I saw rain on my first flying lap and I decided it was better not to risk crashing but wait for it to dry. I was in 21st, so I was quite anxious as the time passed. But it did dry at the end, and then I gave it some gas. It's my best qualifying yet: I am feeling happier and more confident as the Mahindra gets better for me.”
Later on Friday evening, championship leader Nicolas Terol pulled out of the TT Assen with a finger injury, meaning Webb and Schrotter have been promoted to 10th and 13th respectively on tomorrow's grid.
