Press Release From Q.M.M.F 7th July
Anthony West and Elena Rosell: No luck in tyre gamble but confidence for tomorrow
In strange and ever-changing weather conditions at the second free practice session for the German Grand Prix on Friday afternoon, Anthony West and Elena Rosell lost their tyre and set-up gamble: When the track dried up, both QMMF Racing Team riders were on rain tyres and a rain set-up, but when they pulled in for a pit stop to change for slick tyres and a dry set-up, it started to pour again. But despite their bad luck in timing for the unpredictable conditions, both riders are confident for the official qualifying session on Saturday: Anthony West found the right base settings for the twisty Sachsenring almost immediately and is confident to be able to fight for a strong result, whereas Elena Rosell made quick progress in learning another new circuit and also got more experience in the wet.
Anthony West – 18th in 1.26,325
“This afternoon, we first went out on rain tyres because the track was still damp. I made a good time, but then the track started to dry up, so I came in and waited because we all thought it was going to rain again. I then went out for another lap on rain tyres but as soon as I came in to change for slicks it started to rain. I am a bit upset that I missed my chance to ride with slicks this way, but the good thing is that the set-up of the bike is feeling okay for this track. We have a good setting compared to the last races and it felt closer to what I like with the bike. We just have to wait and see what the weather will do tomorrow. If it’s like this again, we have to be a bit more on time putting the slicks in!”
Elena Rosell – 34th in 1.30,772
“Sachsenring is another new circuit for me and my first task this morning was to find my way around. It’s an interesting track, but it isn’t easy to find the right lines with all the up- and downhill sections. I did a few initial laps before we ran into a problem with the rear tyre that started to lose pressure, but when I went out again after this pit-stop, I started to improve. Unfortunately, the weather conditions this afternoon made it difficult to make further progress. We started on a track that was a bit damp, more dry than wet, but we went out with a rain-set-up and on rain tyres, which was not the best choice. And when I came in to make the change for a dry set-up and slicks, it started to rain! We only got things right at the very end when it rained again and I managed to do three flying laps on rain tyres. This was very valuable because I used to be quite fast in the wet in the Spanish Championship, but the Moriwaki bike is much stiffer and I need to get more experience in the rain in order to find the right feeling!”
