Bautista struggling with rear grip on first day at Brno but staying confident for qualifying

Alvaro Bautista’s first day at Brno was not as positive as he had hoped, but the Spanish rider remains confident that things will improve tomorrow when qualifying practice takes place for the Czech Republic Grand Prix.

After trying some new parts on his bike the Spaniard ran out of time to run the soft tyre at the end of the second session this afternoon and lost some positions as a result, but the important session will be the one that decides the grid positions for Sunday’s race.

Alvaro Bautista (8th 1’57”401) “Today did not go as well as we expected, because we had a lot of rear grip issues and I couldn’t get confident with the tyre. We tried a few different things, but couldn’t find what we were looking for. Anyway, we have some clear ideas for tomorrow and I am confident we can improve and close the gap to the top. We will work hard tonight, but we are not panicking.”

Fausto Gresini “Let’s say the position today does not reflect our potential here. We have tried some new brakes and suspension solutions today and that set us back a little compared to the other riders, because we didn’t have time to try the soft tyre. I am a little disappointed for Alvaro, because he wasn’t happy, but he has time to improve tomorrow.”

Source: Gresini Racing