While his Suzuki Alstare team-mate
Fonsi Nieto was pleased with his efforts at Magny-Cours, Max Neukirchner was rather more disappointed with the outcome of his weekend.
Having starred on his debut with the factory team in France last season when he scored a fourth place finish and the fastest lap, Neukirchner had high hopes of a good result this year.
However, despite showing well in free practice and in Superpole, save for the ‘out-of-the-seat' moment at the hairpin, Neukirchner's race pace ultimately flattered to deceive.
Struggling for rear grip, Neukirchner battled hard in the first race to finish fifth after a number of riders faded in the closing stages, but a disappointing ninth in the second event means he has slipped away in the battle for second place in the standings.
“I don't want to say this weekend has been bad, but that's how it is. In the first race, I lost grip very soon and the rear was spinning a lot. I rode the bike as hard as I could and managed to finish the race, so perhaps ninth is not that bad. We changed to a softer rear spring for race two, but the bike felt the same!
“The rear was spinning a bit more and it was difficult getting the bike to change direction. If we had not lost day one of practice because of the bad conditions, maybe we would've found a better set-up for the bike for today. But that's the way it is sometimes and it's better I forget about today and start thinking positively about Portimao.”
