Alt: “Sorry to my Fireblade for pushing it so hard”

Following a mixed weekend at Assen, Euro Moto Superbike rider Florian Alt must have had a inkling of what lay in store for him and his Holzhauer crew at the Nürburgring. After all, both circuits are areas where the Honda Fireblade struggles to find grip. Things went accordingly tough for Alt at his home race. “6th and 8th place,” was the meagre haul for the former champion. “The result isn’t what we’d hoped for. Nevertheless, using the same equipment, we shaved over 13 seconds off last year’s time and were 0.6 seconds faster in qualifying. We really squeezed every last bit of performance out of our Fireblade.”

“Of course, it hurts us all – the whole team,” said Florian Alt shortly before the start of the second race, describing his state of mind and that of his team led by team boss Jens Holzhauer. “We hadn’t quite expected it to turn out like this. The Nürburgring is always a tough one for us; we’ve had next to no grip on the rear tyre this weekend. But that’s all part of racing. We hope we’ll have a bit more grip at Hockenheim and be able to give the competition a bit more of a run for their money.”

Hopes for Hockenheim

“I’m proud that my team gave it their all late into the night to squeeze out even more performance,” said Alt. “Now it’s a case of keeping our heads up, carrying on and looking ahead. We’ll take the lessons learnt with us, keep working and go on the attack again at Hockenheim. We know what we’re capable of and what our Fireblade is capable of, and that’s exactly what we want to show in the final race. Thanks to all the fans at my home race for your support, the many photos and the great moments.”

“Hockenheim is definitely easier for us,” said Alt. “Because there’s more stop-and-go and the tarmac is a bit rougher. And wherever the tarmac isn’t as rough as it is here at the Nürburgring, we find it incredibly difficult. And apologies to my Fireblade for putting it through its paces so hard this weekend.”