Laverty makes setup progress ahead of Le Mans

Eugene Laverty has shown plenty of progress in his rookie campaign with the Aspar squad but circumstances have held him back in races. Last time out arm pump left him feeling that “the bike was better than me during the race and that’s not a nice feeling” but progress made in the post Jerez GP test have left him in high spirits for next weekend’s French Grand Prix.

A high speed crash in the test left Laverty with a sore neck but the progress made with setup has left him with more rear grip and a more balanced bike.

“We’ve worked hard and focused on improving the rear setup,” said Laverty. In the race at Jerez the Irish rider used an experimental setup that was a big departure from what he had used before that. While the solution offered plenty of stability in the rear end it also hurt the Open Honda in other areas. Having completed a full day of testing however Laverty was able to make progress and find a better balance.

“We worked to find a more balanced bike and it’s been fantastic. We’ve discovered how to get more grip with the rear and how to find a balance for the bike. We solved the problem and now we know which way to go.”

Apart from improving rear grip Laverty has started to make progress with the electronics which has been a constant bugbear for the Open Honda. Laverty has had to ride “almost with the Traction Control switched off” such is his lack of confidence in the system. At Jerez however he started to see some progress with that too and he feels that “the work done should be useful for Le Mans.”