Tough time for Toseland at Assen - The Official Website of James Toseland

24.04.10 | Tough time for Toseland at Assen

Brit James Toseland was once again struck by disappointment during the second Superpole session for round four of the Superbike World Championship at Assen in the Netherlands today. The Yorkshireman ran off track at more than 130mph while putting in a flying lap to secure a place in the final Superpole session for a position on the front two rows of the grid.

The Yamaha rider, who has been struggling with stability at high speeds throughout the weekend, battled to keep the bike upright as he grass tracked on the outside of the circuit. He re-joined the track uninjured, but had lost out on the chance to make it into the top eight. Toseland was sitting in ninth position when he re-joined the circuit but was bumped to tenth place on the grid at the chequered flag by other riders putting in flying laps.

Team-mate Cal Crutchlow who had followed Toselands bike settings after struggling with set-up during the practice sessions sits beside him on row three of the grid in ninth position. Isle of Man resident Toseland is once again left with a lot of work to do in the race, but he will continue to work with the factory Sterilgada Yamaha team overnight to improve the set-up of the bike and achieve the best package for the race.

Its been a difficult weekend so far, says Toseland but we have made good progress and I hope that its enough for a good race. My race pace isnt too bad and I intend to make another step forward in warm up tomorrow morning. At Assen its really important to get a good start and have a strong first lap, especially when Im starting from the third row, so that will be my focus.