After securing nineteenth place on the grid in Thailand and posting very competitive times in the warm up Kyle was determined to take the race by the scruff of the neck.
A team effort
After good work done by the team during Saturday’s qualifying and also in the warm up we were expecting a strong performance in Sundays feature race, despite the eventual starting position. During Sundays race warm-up, Kyle had been able to break through the ‘1’40” per lap barrier while riding with a full tank of fuel and on worn tyres, proving that the race pace would have been excellent.
Soon after the start we were even more convinced. Kyle pounced immediately, stealing into fifteenth place, then fourteenth before battling his way up to a hard fought twelfth position after only three laps. Unfortunately, whilst fighting with another rider on the fourth lap, Kyle and his rival came together with such force that the handlebars left grip was completely torn from the bike.
Better safe than sorry
Kyle bravely battled with his machine and tried to stay on track but it was apparent that the damage sustained in the clash with the other rider had made Kyles bike virtually un-ridable. When you are already pushing at the limit of what the bike can handle and approaching speeds of 180mph on the fastest parts of the circuit, the safety of the rider is paramount. With this in mind it was decided that the best course of action would be to bring Kyle in and go again in Spain in 3 weeks time
KYLE RYDE-
“I was very happy with the bike and I started great, but as we battled for places I had contact with another rider, our bikes touched and it caused a violent slap at the front end. I tried to ride it out but I had lost the left grip from the bars.
I really loved my time in Thailand, everyone’s been so good to us and so kind it’s been amazing but the weather there is completely different to anything I’ve raced in before, at least we know what to expect when we come back next year. We know it won’t be as hot in Spain for the next round so hopefully we can push on and get some better luck when we get back onto the European circuits.