Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda Castrol) had a good start to his Motul TT Assen weekend, locking out the top five on the combined timesheets although just beaten to top Independent Team rider by Danilo Petrucci (Alma Pramac Racing).
The British rider finished 0.434 behind Maverick Viñales’ (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) quickest time, with his aim to improve the stability and rear grip on his LCR Honda. “It’s good to have consistent weather, last year we only had FP1 and FP2 to try things before it started to rain so knowing the plan ahead is good,” commented Crutchlow, who will head to Brno on Wednesday to take part in a one-day test. “So, we can look at what to work on tomorrow which I think will be to try and make the bike more stable, and try and find a bit more rear grip.”
Nonetheless, the number 35 was happy with his pace on the opening day, confirming the speed is there as he aims to go one better than he did in Barcelona and stand on the podium for the first time since his Argentina victory this weekend.
“But overall today we were pleased, with the pace and performance of the bike. It seemed quite difficult to ride in the change of direction but the lap time wasn’t bad – and the speed was there.”