Yamaha VR46 Master Camp Team’s Manuel Gonzalez put in 100% effort to get a good result on the first day of his home GP at the Circuito de Jerez - Ángel Nieto. He worked relentlessly and secured P15 in the combined FP results. Keminth Kubo experienced pain on his right side during FP1 and was unable to continue riding on the Friday.
Gonzalez is determined to make this his best weekend so far, as Jerez is his home race. He is familiar with this circuit from his WorldSSP300 and WorldSSP years and had a positive test here in February. However, the youngster didn’t quite find the feeling he was looking for in the much higher temperatures. He finished the session in 21st place with a best time of 1’43.238s, set on lap 18/18.
The number-18 rider is known to be able to adapt fast, however. He and his crew put their heads together and found a solution that suited him. The hard work paid off in a super close session that saw 16 riders finish within 1s. The Spaniard set a 1’42.545s on lap 17/18, that put him in 14th place in the FP2 timesheets and in 15th position in the combined results, 0.899s from first.
FP1 was a bit of an uphill battle for Kubo. The Thai talent had fully recovered from the crash in Portimão last Sunday. Declared fit, he was fully intending on giving it his 100%, during the Spanish GP weekend. However, the number-81 rider wasn’t able to ride to his best abilities due to intense pain in his chest. Still, he gradually improved his pace and put in a best effort of 1’44.403s on lap 10/10, that put him in 29th place.
However, more or less 20 minutes into the FP1 session the pain became too severe.
Kubo had a second check at the Medical Centre and was diagnosed with costochondritis. The pain in his chest was ruled unrelated to his previous injuries sustained in Portimão, but he was unable to continue riding on the Friday.
Yamaha, VR46, and the Yamaha VR46 Master Camp Team wish Kubo a speedy recovery and hope to see him back on the bike as soon as possible.
