New spec Suzuki engine for Iannone, Rins

Andrea Iannone and Alex Rins will run a new spec Suzuki engine at Assen in their factory GSX-RRs.

The motor was tested by Sylvain Guintoli in the last round of the MotoGP World Championship at Catalunya and offers an improvement in overall top speed.

Team manager Davide Brivio said: “At the GP of Catalunya Sylvain Guintoli debuted a new engine spec and his feedback was positive; also from our side we saw that it can give us better performances in terms of top speed.

“Our plan is to equip the two factory GSX-RRs of Andrea and Alex with the same evolution engine, hopefully giving them improved performances.”

Iannone, who finished 10th in Barcelona, said that while he has been competitive in all practice sessions, he has not always been able to sustain the same level of performance when it comes to the race.

“The last race and test in Barcelona gave me a positive feeling that I hope I will continue and confirm also in Assen, although I would like to get a better result in the race,” he said.

“This is one of the things we have to face in this moment: we are very competitive in all practice sessions but then we struggle in the race distance, we cannot rely on a consistent performance over more than 20 laps.

“We will focus more on this, also on the preparation of the race, to try to get good position and good points. I think the layout of ‘The Cathedral’ is very nice, pleasant to ride, and can suit the characteristics of our machine,” Iannone added.

“We have big potential, we have to keep on working and stay focused on the things that make us struggle more.”

Rins is racing at a circuit where he has prior experience on a MotoGP machine after the Spaniard made his return from injury at Assen last year.

He said: “Assen has always been a special place for me, especially from last year when it represented my comeback to MotoGP races after the arm injury. I like the track because it has fast corners and it’s very technical, they call it ‘The Cathedral’ with good reason.”