Cal Crutchlow believes Castrol Honda LCR is heading in the right direction despite finishing 18th in Saturday's Sprint race at the Sachsenring, with the British rider encouraged by the progress made after experimenting with a new bike setup.
Starting from 20th on the grid, Crutchlow made a strong getaway and quickly closed the gap to the riders ahead. The team opted to take a risk by using a setup he had never raced with before, and the experienced rider felt the decision paid off despite the final result.
"Qualifying was not the best session, and then we took a gamble with the bike setup for the race, a setting I'd never ridden before, so considering everything, I'm pleased with the outcome," said Crutchlow.
Racing on one of the calendar's most physically demanding circuits, Crutchlow spent the Sprint battling with several rivals while collecting valuable information on the revised setup. He believes a few issues during the race prevented him from making further progress through the field.
"I took a step forward during the race, which is a positive. We struggled with a few things today that we can hopefully fix for tomorrow."
Although points were out of reach, Crutchlow was satisfied with the team's work and the data gathered during the Sprint. He now hopes the improvements can be carried into Sunday's German Grand Prix.
"Overall, I'm happy with today's performance. Let's see how it goes on Sunday!"
.jpg)
