Rea out to enhance fine Assen record

Rea, who leads the championship standings after three wins so far in 2016, is the second most successful rider ever at the iconic ‘Cathedral’ in the Netherlands and has an excellent chance of extending his advantage at the top at a venue where he clearly excels.

“Assen is a good circuit for me and our bike works quite well there. We learned many things in Motorland Aragon during round three, mostly that the base set-up we found with the previous bike worked quite well with the new bike,” Rea said.

“Hopefully the weather can be consistent throughout the weekend at Assen so we can build a rhythm and some consistency in our package - and with my riding as well.

“We did a good job in Motorland but we need to start getting back to winning ways again.

“We could be in for a great season especially as we are entering Assen, a track I enjoy racing at.”

Rea is at a loss to explain exactly why he is such a formidable rider at the Dutch circuit but labels the famous track as a ‘real riders circuit’.

“I have no idea why I go so well there but I really enjoy the place.

“It is a real riders track that - when your bike set-up is not working just perfectly - you can still make a difference,” he said.

“There are a lot of corners there that require different techniques than just the finding the brake point, apex and exit. There is quite a lot of technique to Assen. I also think it is just experience of the track.”

The opening race will take place tomorrow at 12pm with race two scheduled for the same time on Sunday under the new format introduced for the first time in 2016.

Rea leads the championship by 26 points from Ducati’s Chaz Davies, with his Kawasaki team-mate Tom Sykes in third place, a further three points in arrears.