Raffin and Bendsneyder miss that one perfect lap

A very local rain shower threw a spanner in the works in the final phase of the first qualifying session for the Grand Prix of Thailand. Due to the sudden wetness in turn 3 of the Chang International Circuit in Buriram, Jesko Raffin and Bo Bendsneyder saw no chance to make a perfect lap. They ended the session in ninth and eleventh respectively and will start the Moto2 race from 23rd (Raffin) and 25th (Bendsneyder).

Although both riders of NTS RW Racing GP improved their lap time compared to Friday, the rankings did not get much better. Raffin won a number of places, but Bendsneyder lost one.

The second day of the Thai Grand Prix was erratic. The third free practice was delayed by a few heavy showers. The track then dried up quickly, so that the training for the Moto2 was held under almost dry conditions. The qualification also seemed to be dry, but in the final phase of Q1 suddenly a shower fell in turn 3, as a result of which a number of riders crashed and the rest could not finish the lap according to plan. Bendsneyder was improving his time just at that moment, but could not keep the speed high enough due to the local wetness. He therefore starts from 25th place, two places behind his Swiss teammate.

Bo Bendsneyder (1.36.404): “Too bad about the qualification. I could not ride the lap time that I wanted to. That does not make it any easier for the race. I hope the speed is good tomorrow, because I have only one goal and that is to win as many positions as possible. I’m going to give everything for that.”

Jesko Raffin (1.36.347): “I couldn’t do the perfect lap in qualifying, but we made a big step compared to yesterday, especially at the front, and I’m happy with that. It is important to run many laps and make miles to build up confidence. That is getting better and better and I feel much more confident already. I was even able to play a little with the bike. Compliments for the team for doing a good job!”