Jonathan Rea was thrilled to have enjoyed a full day of testing with Repsol Honda, having ridden alongside Dani Pedrosa in Monday’s post-race session at Brno. The Northern Irishman, currently fifth in the Superbike World Championship, is favourite to replace injured reigning Champion Casey Stoner over the next handful of races.
“It's an opportunity of a lifetime and I'm thankful to Honda for asking me to be here, although I'm gutted for the guys in the team and obviously for Casey as he’s the guy that should be here and I wish him a fast recovery,” said the 25-year-old from Larne.
"The bike isn't that difficult - it's the tyres and the way they work that I'm finding hard. I'm struggling to finish off the corner, which is definitely a confidence issue as I just need to load the front and find that confidence, but it's my first day and I don't want to find that limit or risk overstepping it just yet.
“It's great to be able to see Dani's data and learn where to go fast, that's a big help. I don't underestimate how tough a job it is, I just need some time and I don't feel pressure to perform; it's a learning process with the team and people around me. It's been a great day, one of the best days of my life. I've been a Honda rider all my career and now to ride the best Honda machine in the world has been a dream come true.”
Rea ended the day ninth fastest, with Cal Crutchlow P1 for Tech 3 Yamaha.
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| Pos. | Time | Laps | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. |  C. Crutchlow | 01:56.461 | 47 |
| 2. | A. Dovizioso | 01:56.578 | 31 |
| 3. | J. Lorenzo | 01:56.699 | 54 |
| 4. | D. Pedrosa | 01:56.703 | 45 |
| 5. | S. Bradl | 01:57.156 | 53 |
| 6. | A. Bautista | 01:57.161 | 49 |
| 7. | B. Spies | 01:57.474 | 15 |
| 8. | Y. Hernandez | 01:59.743 | 40 |
| 9. | J. Rea | 02:00.275 | 55 |
| 10. | I. Silva | 02:00.667 | 68 |
| Full results | |||
| Jonathan Rea | |||
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