The Dutch GP is a home round for Red Bull KTM Ajo rider Bo Bendsneyder, and the fans were out in force at the TT Circuit Assen from Friday. The Dutchman didn’t let down his compatriots, and set a strong time in FP1. At the end of the day he was eleventh overall, with teammate Niccolo Antonelli in 22nd position -still experiencing difficulty with his left shoulder that he dislocated last week. The first Free Practice session was very interesting for Bo Bendsneyder, who announced his presence with fast times from the off. He continued to set a solid pace with constant improvement, lap after lap, and eventually placed fifth with a 1:43.798 time. Teammate Niccolo Antonelli was 23rd, with a 1:44.707. The afternoon session started in similar fashion to FP1, with Bendsneyder in second position. He was able to lower his previous times, but rain with 3 minutes remaining prevented him from climbing further up the timesheets and he was tenth -1:43.282- in FP2. Antonelli cut his previous best time by eight tenths, to go 22nd -1:43.943.
64 BO BENDSNEYDER
“Even though it may seem like the other way round, I felt better in FP2. I improved my lap time and I was much quicker, even though it was windy and I did not feel as comfortable as I would have wished. We’re in a good position, so we have had a positive first day and are prepared for the qualifying session. Tomorrow there is rain forecast but I expect it to be dry, and so we can continue working like today to get into the Top 10 again.”
Results FP2:
| POS | Rider | TEAM | Fastest lap |
| 1 | Jorge MARTIN | Del Conca Gresini Moto3 | 1’42.414 |
| 2 | Aron CANET | Estrella Galicia 0,0 | 1’42.593 |
| 3 | Joan MIR | Leopard Racing | 1’42.919 |
| 4 | Fabio DI GIANNANTONIO | Del Conca Gresini Moto3 | 1’42.961 |
| 5 | Marcos RAMIREZ | Platinum Bay Real Estate | 1’42.977 |
| 6 | Enea BASTIANINI | Estrella Galicia 0,0 | 1’43.009 |
| 7 | Ayumu SASAKI | SIC Racing Team | 1’43.023 |
| 8 | Romano FENATI | Marinelli Rivacold Snipers | 1’43.075 |
| 9 | Jules DANILO | Marinelli Rivacold Snipers | 1’43.253 |
| 10 | Bo BENDSNEYDER | Red Bull KTM Ajo | 1’43.282 |
| 11 | Gabriel RODRIGO | RBA BOE Racing Team | 1’43.297 |
| 12 | Adam NORRODIN | SIC Racing Team | 1’43.533 |
| 13 | Tatsuki SUZUKI | SIC58 Squadra Corse | 1’43.556 |
| 14 | Livio LOI | Leopard Racing | 1’43.615 |
| 15 | Kaito TOBA | Honda Team Asia | 1’43.620 |
| 16 | Tony ARBOLINO | SIC58 Squadra Corse | 1’43.721 |
| 17 | Darryn BINDER | Platinum Bay Real Estate | 1’43.729 |
| 18 | Philipp OETTL | Südmetall Schedl GP Racing | 1’43.763 |
| 19 | Maria HERRERA | AGR Team | 1’43.874 |
| 20 | John MCPHEE | British Talent Team | 1’43.896 |
| 21 | Nicolo BULEGA | SKY Racing Team VR46 | 1’43.914 |
| 22 | Niccolò ANTONELLI | Red Bull KTM Ajo | 1’43.943 |
| 23 | Juanfran GUEVARA | RBA BOE Racing Team | 1’44.067 |
| 24 | Andrea MIGNO | SKY Racing Team VR46 | 1’44.214 |
| 25 | Manuel PAGLIANI | CIP | 1’44.231 |
| 26 | Jakub KORNFEIL | Peugeot MC Saxoprint | 1’44.245 |
| 27 | Lorenzo DALLA PORTA | Mahindra Gaviota Aspar | 1’44.330 |
| 28 | Marco BEZZECCHI | CIP | 1’44.752 |
| 29 | Raul FERNANDEZ | Mahindra Gaviota Aspar | 1’44.757 |
| 30 | Patrik PULKKINEN | Peugeot MC Saxoprint | 1’45.448 |
| 31 | Nakarin ATIRATPHUVAPAT | Honda Team Asia | 1’46.034 |
| 32 | Ryan VAN DE LAGEMAAT | Lamotec Lagemaat Racing | 1’48.156 |
Source: motogp.com, ajo.fi
