The Hannspree Ten Kate Honda team heads for round 10 of the World Superbike championship at Brno in the Czech Republic this weekend (24-26 July) in buoyant mood following a successful test at the Italian circuit of Imola last week.
Jonathan Rea, who sits fourth in the current points table, was fastest at the Imola test as the team continued to test new suspension and other components following the switch to Ohlins last month.
The 22-year-old from Northern Ireland won last year’s World Supersport race at the 5.4km Brno circuit – a debut world championship victory that sparked a late-season charge to second place in the series.
Rea’s Spanish team-mate, Carlos Checa, was also satisfied with the progress made during the two-day Imola test, concentrating on finding a strong base setting to take to the Brno event, where he took eighth in last season’s first race. A technical issue forced Checa’s early retirement from the second outing.
Jonathan Rea Speaks… (Championship Position, 4th)
"Imola was good for us – not just the result and the progress that we were able to make, but because of the way we went about it. It showed how well everyone is working as a team now and how motivated we all are to get the kind of results that we know we can achieve. Brno was good on the Supersport bike last year and I think the track should suit the Superbike even better. We’ve got a good setting with the new package now and we’ll be pushing on as hard as we can to get some more good results this weekend."
Carlos Checa Speaks… (Championship Position, 9th)
"I am looking forward to the Brno race, even though we had some problems during qualifying and the races last year, which meant that the results weren’t so good. We made some good progress during the two days at Imola last week and, even though we have some more work to do to get some more stability in the rear, I think we have a good base to start from to find a better performance."
Ronald ten Kate Speaks… (Team Manager)
"Although last year was not so good, we have enjoyed good results at Brno before and the circuit’s fast and flowing nature should suit the characteristics of the bike. However, in spite of our good performance at the Imola test last week, we know that it will represent a new set of challenges. We gathered a lot of data from the test and I know that we can improve further, so we are really looking forward to the weekend and the challenges it will bring."
World Superbike Schedule – Brno
Friday, 24 July
12.45-13.45 – free practice
16.15-17.15 – qualifying practice
Saturday, 25 July
10.45-11.30 – qualifying practice
14.00-14.45 – free practice
15.00-15.12 – Superpole 1
15.19-15.31 – Superpole 2
15.38-15.50 – Superpole 3
Sunday, 26 July
09.20-09.40 – warm-up
12.00 – race 1 (20 laps, 108.06km)
15.30 – race 2 (20 laps, 108.06km)