Regis Laconi is hopeful that there is more pace to come from the PSG-1 Kawasaki after clutch problems prevented him from getting any meaningful running at Magny-Cours under his belt.
The Frenchman, competing on home soil this weekend, gave his team a much needed boost by going second fastest in the wet practice session, but he could only manage 21st in provisional qualifying as he sat in the pit garage with a problematic clutch.
Solved just as the weather turned again, Laconi is nonetheless quietly confident of more points this weekend, claiming the ZX-10R performs well at the French circuit.
“This morning I preferred to not participate in the free practice session as I didn't want to risk any crash. I know this circuit very well so it was not necessary to take the risk. During the qualifying session of the afternoon I had a problem with the clutch and I had to return to the pit garage.
“Unfortunately when the technicians solved it, it started to rain a lot and we decided to conclude the session along with a lot of other riders. Anyway the ZX-10R behaves quite well on this track and I hope that the weather will be more clement tomorrow in order to reach good performances.”
Team-mate
Makoto Tamada fared little better as he struggled to find his way around Magny-Cours for the first time. Like Laconi though, the Japanese rider is confident there is a lot more to come.
“This is another track that I face for the first time and unfortunately the weather didn't give me the chance to take full advantage of the time at my disposal today to study the track in a proper way. Tomorrow I'll continue to focus on the study and the dynamics of the circuit and my team will continue to develop an adequate set-up of the bike for this circuit and my guide style.”
