Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 duo place 18th and 27th.

The first day of the Dutch TT was a difficult one for the Red Bull KTM Ajo riders. Celestino Vietti was unable to reach the Q2 spots and was eighteenth, while Marcel Schrötter worked with the team for the first time and was 27th.

The Free Practice was made more difficult by high winds. Vietti faced the start of this Grand Prix looking to be consistent and improve lap after lap. He occupied the Top 10 and closed the gap to his rivals, achieving eighth position and a time of 1:36.997. Schrötter had his first experience with the Red Bull KTM Ajo, and focused on adapting to both the team and his return to the intermediate class. He would manage to improve his times, although his 1:38.716 put him 26th.

The afternoon session allowed the Moto2 riders to continue working on their setups. Vietti was not able to find the feeling that he had hoped for in a tight Practice for the intermediate class. The Red Bull KTM Ajo rider fought to continue lowering his times ahead of qualifying, but placed 18th on the timesheets. Schrötter continued to adapt and work in search of the best feeling for the race. After 17 laps, the German lowered his best time, but his 1:37.918 only allowed him to be 27th. He will keep working to avoid Q1.

Moto2 qualifying takes place on Saturday from 1:45pm local time.

Results Practice 1
1. Fermin Aldeguer (Boscoscuro) 1:35.698
2. Ai Ogura (Boscoscuro) 1:35.984 +0.286
3. Joe Roberts (Kalex) 1:36.183 +0.485
4. Sergio Garcia (Boscoscuro) 1:36.195 +0.497
5. Tony Arbolino (Kalex) 1:36.282 +0.588
18. Celestino Vietti (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:36.936 +1.024
27. Marcel Schrötter (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:37.918 +2.006

#13 CELESTINO VIETTI

“It has been a difficult day for us. I found it difficult to set a fast lap and be more consistent. I hope to improve my riding and be faster, to be able to go directly into Q2 and get a good position for the race. This afternoon we will analyse everything to improve, so tomorrow we will give our all to keep learning.”

#32 MARCEL SCHRÖTTER

“The first day is done and everything went okay. Results-wise it’s not the best, but we came here without any expectations. I struggled to get a good feeling with the bike, but I am sure that it will improve session by session. Assen is a tricky track, very fast and windy as well. I am still adapting to Moto2, because there are lots of things that are completely different from the Supersport bike.”