Tricky conditions on the first day in Valencia

Racing in Spain does not always mean warm weather and a beautiful sunshine. On the first day of the Grand Prix of Europe at the Ricardo Tormo circuit in Valencia, it was fresh, wet and very tricky. Despite the difficult circumstances, Bo Bendsneyder finished the day in 18th place, with a time of 1.37.732. Piotr Biesiekirski finished in 27th with 1.39.457.
In the morning it was cold and wet, so the lap times were around 1.49, 1.50. In the afternoon it was slightly better, so the times went down considerably, although the track was only one degree warmer than in the morning due to the heavy clouds and there were still damp spots everywhere. The forecast for the rest of the weekend is mixed, which made it difficult for the technicians and riders of NTS RW Racing GP.

Bo Bendsneyder: “On the wet track this morning, the feeling was not bad. We would have liked to adjust a few things, but the weather forecasts are very variable, so that is difficult. For now it looks like it will be dry on Sunday, so we decided to do as many laps as possible this morning, so that we have enough information in case it will be wet tomorrow. This afternoon it was dry, except for some damp spots. Especially in the first corner it was still quite wet. The feeling was pretty good. We just miss a few tenths for a place in the top 14, but it looks promising. We will have to wait and see what the weather will do, but if it is dry tomorrow morning, we can hopefully take a step towards direct access into Q2.”

Piotr Biesiekirski: “Today was a good and interesting day with very different conditions in the two sessions. I felt good in the wet this morning and kept improving every lap. I had some slides along the way but was able to control them and really enjoyed myself. The conditions in the afternoon were really difficult with a damp and drying track but again I felt good. The gap to the front wasn’t bad today considering the conditions and I know where I can still improve quite a bit so I’m really looking forward to tomorrow.”