Rizla Suzuki‘s Ãlvaro Bautista has set out his stall for this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix, with a strong performance in the first free practice session that saw him consistently in the top ten. At the end of the hour session he finished in 10th place with a time of 1:50.658.
After a sunny first session the second session was affected by rain, but unlike Assen and Silverstone before it, the rain was so light that the track was in no fit state to run with either slicks or wets. Most riders, including Bautista, decided to sit in the garage for most of the session, waiting until the final moments to venture out on slicks.
“It was a bit like my first time at a MotoGP at Mugello here today because I could not ride like I wanted to last year as I was still recovering from the injury to my shoulder.” said Ãlvaro.
“This morning I felt quite good on the bike and I think the track is much better now as well! It is a lot flatter and most of the bumps have gone, the grip is still as good, but without the bumps it makes it more fun to ride. We tried to get a better feeling in the front this morning because I didn't quite have the stability I wanted in the corners and for this afternoon we wanted to try something else, but that was impossible because of the rain.” he continued.
Finishing with confidence, Bautista said, “I did a couple of laps in the afternoon session, but it was very difficult out there, because the track was not completely dry. We will have to work hard tomorrow morning to get the best setting for Sunday's race, but I'm sure we can do a decent job here.”
