No chance to judge new bike - Aoyama

Aoyama - who usually rides a lesser-spec Honda for the satellite Gresini team - has been promoted to the works line-up this weekend to deputise for the injured Dani Pedrosa. Test rider Kousuke Akiyoshi has taken Aoyama's Gresini ride in his absence.

Practice one was the only session held at Assen today as a major oil spill in Moto2 practice led to the afternoon sessions being cancelled, and though Aoyama completed 19 laps and was 12th-fastest, he said it had been hard to compare his temporary new bike to his Gresini ride given the wet conditions.

"This morning I was a little nervous because it was my first time on the Honda factory bike and also in Assen on a MotoGP bike as I missed the race last year due to injury," said Aoyama.

"It was a pity because in wet conditions I couldn't compare my bike with this one, but from the beginning the feeling was not so bad, the bike seems a little bit smoother than my one, but I cannot say much at the moment, I simply need more laps on the bike."

He added that he would keep a standard set-up on the factory bike and try to adjust to it rather.

"The plan was for me to adapt to the bike more than actually making any changes on the bike to suit me, so we will stick to this plan also for tomorrow and I hope to improve the feeling and go faster," Aoyama said.