Sixteenth in time practice, Ben Watson (Beta RX450) put in a good qualifying performance to finish close to the top ten, eleventh, in the Portuguese GP at Agueda. The English rider did not start in the leading group after the start of race one but managed to make a comeback to finish twelfth. A position that he repeated in the final race and which allowed him to finish the GP in eleventh position, on equal points with the tenth placed rider. In the Championship Watson still occupies twelfth position.
Ben Watson: “In Portugal I finished tied on points with tenth placed but missed out on the top ten because of the worst finish in race two. Unfortunately, I had some problems at the start and had to take a lot of risks in the first corner to recover some positions. At the start of the first heat, I didn’t have a good feeling, but I managed to make a good comeback. Although I got a good placing, in the final I felt I could have done something more. In race two the start was similar to the previous one, but in the first laps I made some good overtaking moves that allowed me to get close to the top ten. Let’s collect the positive aspects of this weekend and continue working on the negative ones to try and improve our placings in the next races.”