Jonathan Rea described his crash in Race Two at Sunday's World Superbike championship as the "most graceful I have ever had!".
Rea was challenging for a podium finish at Assen when he slid off at turn nine on the fifth lap.
It was a mixed day for the Co Antrim rider who had finished second to Alvaro Bautista in the earlier Superpole race which was held over a reduced eight-lap distance.
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Reigning world champion Bautista completed the weekend with a hat-trick of victories at the Dutch circuit.
Rea said afterwards: “It was one of those days, unfortunately, but I have got to take some positives from this weekend.
"The bike was really comfortable to ride, and I did some things at Assen that I have not been able to do for a few years. The starts were great, but I missed the jump a little bit in Race Two.
"We checked the data to understand the crash and for some reason, all weekend, I have had some pressure on the gearshift. This one time in T9, as soon as I opened the gas, it engaged third gear and that was enough to crash.
"I went down in probably the most graceful crash I have ever had! I was so frustrated because I felt like we could fight for a podium again.
"I felt much more comfortable in that race, compared to Race One and also the Superpole Race earlier today. The Superpole Race was maximum attack for eight laps. Alvaro just broke me with two laps to go.”
Bautista's hat-trick means the Spaniard is 56 points clear of second-placed Razgatlioglu in the WSBK standings, while Rea drops down a spot to fifth.
Despite the latest setback, Rea says he gleaned some positives from the weekend.
“It’s been a tough start to the year but I feel like we’re competitive; we can expect to fight for podiums every weekend," he added.
"This weekend, I felt more comfortable and I didn’t feel like the mistake was because of that. It’s a long season, we need to take the small positives and sometimes; a podium can feel like a win at the moment for KRT.
"We have to absorb that feeling and be happy with the job we’ve done, but there’s a lot of work to do. We’ll roll our sleeves up ready for Barcelona."
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