TEENAGER Max Cook took the positives from his performance at the third round of the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup in Assen, Holland.

Cook placed 15th and 11th in his two races at the historic venue, which also hosts World Championship superbike and motocross racing throughout the year.

Blue skies and high temperatures made for ideal racing conditions as Swindon rider Cook focussed most of his energy on getting the set-up right throughout his two free practice sessions.

Benefitting from bike and rider telemetry, Cook placed 10th and sixth in the two practice sessions, setting him up nicely for the weekend.

There was disappointment for the Swindon racer in qualifying though as he struggled to put a clean lap together, ending the session in P19 with a time of 1:46.7.

Starting at the back of the grid, Cook made a strong start to his first race and was quickly promoted to 16th.

By the sixth lap, Cook was involved in a scrap for 11th as the race split into two groups.

While Cook led the chasing group, a mistake on the last lap dropped him back to 17th before he claimed 15th before the chequered flag fell.

There was more frustration when Cook was restricted to P11 in the second race, despite holding a top 10 spot when a crash ahead of him impended his momentum.

Cook spotted double waved yellow flags entering the final turn before managing to slot back into his position.

However the race leader slowed down significantly, bunching the pack up. It caught Cook by surprise, who subsequently lost places on the final stretch.

Reflecting on his mixed fortunes, Cook insists he will continue to push himself as he bids to secure his first top 10 finish of the season.

He said: “The weekend was a bit of a roller coaster, but overall I’m happy with the results and I have taken loads of positives from my three days at Assen.

“The thing I’m most pleased about is I’ve definitely taken a step forward in my racing and riding the KTM how it’s supposed to be as I had telemetry on my bike for the weekend.

“With the help of the data and coaches I learnt so much.

“The two races were really good because I was battling with riders all the way through the race. But for the future I need to improve my qualifying.”