TT Assen: Gresini Racing Thursday report

After a disappointing weekend at Silverstone the Moto2 series leader Toni Elias was back amongst the pacesetters at Assen today -- the fruit of a determined performance from the rider himself and a good job done by his engineers. The Team Gresini man looks to be back to the form he showed before Mugello and ready to resume his role as the standout rider in the intermediate class. For the Spaniard it is a good start to the Dutch TT, which continues with qualifying tomorrow.

Toni Elias (2nd 1' 39" 795): "I am really happy because we are competitive again. Our practice pace at Mugello and Silverstone was not good enough and we cannot afford to repeat that kind of performance. We have learnt what it is we need to change on the Moriwaki MD 600 and after taking a small step backwards it suddenly worked. We were immediately back on the pace and now everything is looking good again. We obviously still have to keep working ahead of a very important qualifying session tomorrow but for now we are much happier and more optimistic."

Vladimir Ivanov (34th 1' 41" 776): "I was hoping to make a better start than this but it wasn't to be. I know Assen well but I wasn't able to find my best form today. Now I need to sit down with the engineers and work out what we can do to improve my position tomorrow."

Fausto Gresini: "Today was a positive day for Toni and I'm really happy because we have found our way again. We have been working on the bike after finally understanding what it was we needed to change and it immediately worked. I am happy for Elias and for the team because they have been working hard and they deserved to return to the position they merit. It was important to do that and now we can be more calm. We have to make another big effort tomorrow and we'll see where we are for the race but for now I am feeling calm and positive."

-source: gresini racing