Stoner dominates final QP of the season

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Casey Stoner stormed to his 12th pole position of the season with a dominating performance in the final qualifying of 2011 at the Gran Premio Gernerali de la Comunitat Valenciana. The World Champion lapped a second quicker than Dani Pedrosa and third place qualifier Ben Spies.

The last qualifying of the season for the MotoGP class saw newly crowned Champion Stoner put his Repsol Honda on pole again with a best lap of 1’31.861 to equal the record of 12 pole positions in a single season set by five-time 500cc World Champion Mick Doohan.

Dani Pedrosa was 1.014 seconds behind his team mate to take the second spot on the starting grid, with Yamaha Factory Racing’s Ben Spies lapping a tenth behind the Spaniard to claim the final spot on the front row.

Pramac Racing’s Randy de Puniet concluded his strong practice performances, just missing a front start with a time 0.061s behind Spies to c laim his second time starting from row two this season. Álvaro Bautista (Rizla Suzuki) lapped three tenth behind de Puniet to claim a second row start, with Valentino Rossi (Ducati Team) completing the row after setting a best lap of 1'33.478 on lap 25 of 27.

Nicky Hayden heads the third row with his Ducati Team Desmosedici after pacing a tenth behind his Italian team mate. Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) starts next to the American on the eighth grid position after setting a time just over a tenth behind Hayden. The Italian suffered a crash and tumble just as the checkered flag was shown but was up and walking away immediately.

Héctor Barberá (Mapfre Aspar) suffered a mechanical failure in the early part of the one hour qualifying. The Spaniard was able to get aboard his spare bike to finish the session in ninth which puts him in the final spot on row three for tomorrow’s race. Karel Abraham (Cardion AB Motoracing) completed the top ten, with Cal Crutchlow (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) and Pramac Racing’s Loris Capirossi, who sports the number 58 on his machine to honor Marco Simoncelli, joining the Czech rider on row four.

source: motogp official

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Third row for Bautista at a sweltering Sepang

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Rizla Suzuki’s Álvaro Bautista will start tomorrow’s Malaysian Grand Prix from the middle of the third row after qualifying in eighth today.

Bautista (2’02.332, 22 laps) has been consistently in the top-six all weekend and occupied a front-row grid spot with less than a quarter of the qualifying session remaining. He put in a fresh softer rear compound tyre to make an attack and consolidate, or better, his provisional position, but got held up in traffic and couldn’t find a clean lap - while other riders capitalised and produced better times. Despite being on the third row, Bautista’s race pace is very promising and a good start in tomorrow’s race could easily see the Spaniard running with the front group.

Today’s qualifying was held in very warm and humid conditions with track temperatures reaching over 50°C. Dani Pedrosa continued his good form this weekend by taking pole-position.

Tomorrow’s 20-lap race will see Bautista as the lone Rizla Suzuki representative after wild-card entry John Hopkins had to withdraw from the event due to complications from a broken finger that he suffered earlier in the season. The main event tomorrow will get underway at 16.00hrs local time (08.00hrs GMT), when Bautista will be going all out to try and secure his best finish of the season.

Álvaro Bautista:

“I'm not very happy with the position, because all weekend we have been in the top-six and that's what I expected this afternoon. We have a good rhythm compared to some of the other riders and when I put the first soft rear in the bike to make a fast lap I did it alone and I got up to third position. On the last tyre I tried to follow some riders to try and get some tenths to make sure I got at least on the second row, but I didn’t find anybody and also didn’t concentrate enough to do a lap by myself. I am happy with my race pace and the feeling from the bike, but I’m not pleased with my position on the grid. Tomorrow will be a hard race because with these conditions it’s always difficult here. During practice you can always do one fast lap and come back to the box, but in the race you have to be consistent and go for it for 20 laps. I’ll try to make a good start and stay with the group like I did in Phillip Island and see what happens. Today it was possible to be on the second row, but now I need to focus on the race and use all my energy tomorrow to get a good result.

“When you have a small problem, sometimes the problem can become big and I think that is what has happened to John. It has been a big disappointment for everyone, because in the Czech Republic and here we should have been two riders, but he has not been able to race at either event. It is very bad luck for him and I wish him a quick recovery and I feel really sorry for his situation.”

Paul Denning – Team Manager:

“We didn’t reach our potential in qualifying today and that was disappointing. Álvaro looked to get in behind one of the fastest guys on his last run, but in hindsight that worked against him. It would probably have been better for him to find some clear track and build his rhythm. That said, the middle of the third row is not a disaster and our race pace looks pretty strong. The GSV-R seems to be quick on its first timed lap, so if we can elbow past the traffic straight away tomorrow, it could be an interesting race.

“Words can’t really express the disappointment that whole team feels at John’s bad luck. It would have been special to have two Rizla Suzukis in the race tomorrow, but we can’t change the situation. John requires urgent surgery and lots of rest to get his finger properly repaired and fully operational again. He’s had some bad luck, but he should be proud of everything he has achieved in 2011.”

rizla suzuki press release

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Pedrosa storms to pole in Malaysia

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Dani Pedrosa topped a Repsol Honda shoot out and continued his domination of the MotoGP field during a searing qualifying session for the Shell Advance Malaysian Grand Prix, with Casey Stoner and Andrea Dovizioso taking second and third.

Following a crash on just his fifth lap, Dani Pedrosa, who missed the Malaysian GP last year while recovering from a collarbone injury, clawed his way back to the top of the timings after fighting off both his Repsol Honda team-mates to take pole position with a time of 2'01.462.

Pedrosa’s time was still two-tenths behind the scorching lap he set in FP2, but a margin of 0.029s put him ahead of Casey Stoner, denying the new World Champion his 12th pole of the season. Andrea Dovizioso landed a further 0.175s back to claim the final spot on the front row for the Italian’s seventh front row start of 2011.

Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) put in a lap of 2'02.010 to put him at the head of row two for Sunday’s race. The American sits in fourth by a margin of 0.095s over Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini Team) in fifth and just over a tenth ahead of the top Ducati qualifier, compatriot Nicky Hayden.

Hiroshi Aoyama heads up the third row, with Rizla Suzuki’s Álvaro Bautista beside the Japanese rider and Valentino Rossi (Ducati team) completing the row after crashing during the session. The Italian quickly made it back out on track to post a lap of 2’02.395 on his final of 22 laps.

Cal Crutchlow (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) made it into the top ten for the first time this weekend, while a recovering Héctor Barberá (Mapfre Aspar), after a bit of fairing contact with Hayden in the session, completed 17 laps to land 14th on the grid.

An already sore Ben Spies (Yamaha Factory Racing), who is still recovering from a highside crash in Australia last week, suffered a second fall of the day after retiring early from FP3 in the morning following a crash in that session. The Texan closed the session in 16th.

source: motogp official

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First pole of the season for Pedrosa

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Dani Pedrosa followed up his superb Friday display in qualifying on Saturday, as the Spaniard secured his first pole position of 2011 for Sunday’s Cardion ab Grand Prix České republiky race in Brno.

Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa took the front position on the grid with a time of 1’56.591 in qualifying on Saturday, a time fast enough to put him on pole but still not a fast as the crushing lap he dealt Friday by a margin of 0.268s.

The premier class took to a dry track after the morning wet practice session, with reigning MotoGP Champion Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha Factory Racing) taking an early provisional pole and Casey Stoner (Repsol Honda) leading in second half of qualifying. But Pedrosa retaliated, grabbing back the top spot and keeping it until the end of the outing.

Lorenzo pushed hard, bettering his previous best time by four tenths with a time of 1'56.704, giving him a front row start in the second spot, followed by Stoner with lap of 1'56.860 to put him in the final front row spot.

Ben Spies (Yamaha Factory Racing) who started from the front row least year in his MotoGP rookie season, qualified four with a 1'57.178. The Texan is joined on the second row by Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini Team), who finished just outside the top ten on his premier class debut at Brno last season, whose time of 1'57.351 placed him in fifth to start. Valentino Rossi (Ducati Team) joins the second row after posting a time of 1'57.367, giving him his best qualifying of the season so far.

Andrea Dovizioso will start from the third row, his time of 1'57.442 placing him seventh fastest. American duo Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) and Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team) take the final two spots on the third row, while Hiroshi Aoyama (San Carlo Honda Gresini), riding for the first time in the MotoGP class at Brno after missing last year’s race through injury, completed the top ten.

Cal Crutchlow (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) crashed out of eighth position with 12 minutes remaining, running back to the pits to mount his second bike, finally concluding the qualifying in eleventh.

Cardion ab Motoracing’s Karel Abraham crashed out of the qualifying session, the 21 year old from Brno will start his home race from last on the grid. John Hopkins did not participate in the qualifying session due to injuries sustained in his FP3 crash pronouncing him unfit for racing.

source: MotoGP Official Website

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Héctor Barberá steps up the pace in final practice

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A cool and cloudy morning once again gave way to classic Californian sunshine at Laguna Seca this afternoon, where hard compound tyres were the general order of the day when it came to race set-up. The action on track was just as hot, with the top six riders finishing in the 1.21s but Jorge Lorenzo and Dani Pedrosa establishing themselves as the men to beat in tomorrow's race. The Spaniards are both past winners at Laguna Seca as is Casey Stoner, who made a late charge to separate them on the front row.

Héctor Barberá is enjoying his 150th Grand Prix immensely so far, having qualified eighth today with a time that was only a second off Lorenzo's pole position. The MAPFRE Aspar rider has taken to the Laguna Seca circuit like a fish to water, just as he did last year before being denied in the race by a broken chain, and today he dropped his pace into the 1.22s to suggest he has the promise to do well over race distance. The Spaniard qualified eighth on the grid as the second highest Ducati, immediately behind Valentino Rossi, and he is determined to sign off for the summer with a top result.

Héctor Barberá:

"I am happy because I have improved my lap times a lot and we have worked well all weekend. I really enjoyed myself on the bike again today and we know exactly what we need tomorrow. We have found some really good form over the last couple of races and every day we improve a little more, which is helping me get more out of the Ducati. We are in line with the factory bikes and I think we can have a good battle tomorrow. No doubt Hayden wants a good result here, Valentino too, so my objective is to stick with them as best I can. The main thing is to finish the race because I only managed two laps here last year and I want to bury that memory. It is a case of getting a good start and staying focused to make sure nobody gets away from me over the opening laps."

MAPFRE Aspar press release.

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Third row for Hayden and Rossi at USGP

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Today the Italian posted the seventh-best time aboard the Desmosedici GP11.1, equaling his best qualifying position of the season from Catalunya, while Hayden took the ninth spot with the GP11. Despite being slightly quicker aboard the new Desmosedici version yesterday, the American decided to use the standard iteration today, as he is more familiar with it. He will also campaign his home race with that bike tomorrow.

Valentino Rossi:

“This morning we made a change to the balance that helped me to find more grip with the soft tyre, as well as a feeling that was generally better. In the afternoon though, with the warmer temperature and the hard tyre, I didn’t have the same performance and feeling. During the session we were able to change the settings again and make a small step, and when we put on the soft, we did a time that was good enough for the third row. Seventh place actually equals my best qualifying spot of the season. That was our goal, to be able to start further forward than we have lately, but for the race we must improve our pace again with the hard tyres because it’s a little too difficult now and the rear is sliding a lot. We’re focused and we’re working very hard so we’ll see tomorrow if we can take another step forward.”

Nicky Hayden:

“We went back to the standard bike today. I was a little faster on the new one yesterday, but even though it has more potential and I like the gearbox, I don’t yet have a great feel for where its limit is. For now, we prefer to go with what we know. This morning I was pretty strong and this afternoon I was consistently in the low-’22 range. I did two longer runs and came in to put in a new soft tyre and was ready to go for it. I felt good and was looking forward to going into qualifying mode. I wasn’t pushing really hard on the out-lap, but you have to push this bike to load the front, and in Rainey Curve I skipped across the bumps and went down. It’s a shame, because we had a chance to do our best qualifying of the year. I went out on the other bike, but the front tyre was 30 laps old. The team have worked like dogs switching back and forth between bikes. Now they’ll have another long night, but I’ll try to make up for it tomorrow.”

Ducati Team press release

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Stoner and Pedrosa start from front row, Dovizioso on second row at Laguna Seca

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All three riders have struggled to find the perfect set up on their RC212V to tackle the Laguna Seca circuit, which demands a lot from both bike and rider. The early part of the session saw, Stoner, Pedrosa, Spies and Lorenzo trading fastest laps, with Lorenzo finally securing pole a mere seven hundredths faster that Stoner who's first flying lap was affected by Spies' crash and subsequent yellow flags.

Pedrosa will be looking for one of his trademark fast starts and the long race on an uneven track surface will test the young Spaniard's fitness to the maximum. Dovizioso, who shares the second row with Spies and Simoncelli, will fight to stay with the front group and will be aiming for a podium finish.

Tomorrow morning's warm up session will be important for all three riders; as it is the last opportunity they will have to tweak the set up ready for the race which starts at 14h00 local time.

Casey Stoner:

"For the whole session we were trying to find the right set up. All weekend we've been struggling a little and we've not found anything I'm comfortable with, I've closed the front many times and we're still looking to find some balance on the bike to get it working on this track, where we expected it to work well. On my first soft tyre I encountered some traffic and was held up, also there was a crash and a yellow flag so I lost my chance on that tyre. Then on the next soft tyre we had one lap to find some pace and we managed front row which is important for tomorrow. I don't feel we're running with the pace of Dani and Jorge, they seem to be constantly one to two tenths quicker but we have warm up tomorrow morning to find something in time for the race so we'll see what we can do."

Dani Pedrosa:

"We couldn't improve as much as I'd like to in the final part of the practice, we tried some different settings and unfortunately we didn't find a good one, but to start from the front row is always important and here we are again. I felt more comfortable with the hard tyres, which it's positive because they will be the ones used for the race, but we still need to make another step forward tomorrow and hopefully find a little more grip in the rear. Lorenzo seems very stable and fast, so I hope to find something else with my mechanics tonight and to be able to fight for a great result tomorrow. The race will be very fast, there are many laps here, so it will be important to be focus on every lap and stay strong until the end. I know the race distance will be hard for me physically, you have to work a lot in this track, there are a lot of bumps and you need to be very focused not to make any mistakes. But I will try my best and I hope to stay strong and consistent until the end."

Andrea Dovizioso:

“My target was to start from the first two rows, so finishing sixth is not too bad, but I hoped to start at least from the 4th position because it’s external and gives more advantages from the start. Anyway, we are quite close and we need to work more to gain another two tenths in race pace. This afternoon we improved a lot thanks to some changes we made in the set up, moving the weight more to the back. This setting helps us to brake stronger and this suits more my riding style. We will continue working in the warm up tomorrow because the pace of Lorenzo and Dani is really high. I hope to make a good start and maintain contact with the front group. I will do my best to have a good race and get a good result.”

Repsol Honda press release.

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Lorenzo lands pole, Spies challenges from second row

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The high side crash at the end of the morning’s practice left some wondering if the Yamaha Factory rider would make it through the whole qualifying session. Fears proved to be unfounded as the Mallorcan took to the track like a man possessed, breaking under the 1.22 mark on his first flying lap. A string of consistent laps saw him keep the top spot for the entire session barring a challenge by his team mate Ben Spies. Lorenzo reclaimed pole and to keep it until the end of the session, breaking the lap record in the process.

Spies spent the early part of the session refining his set up, then having settled into a consistent pace put in a blistering lap to take provisional pole position from his team mate with a 1’21.578. Lorenzo was quick to take first position back but Spies was still threatening to secure a front row start until a mistake on the brakes in turn three ended his qualifying session. As a result he will start from the second row of the grid tomorrow in fourth position, just 0.376 seconds from pole.

Jorge Lorenzo:

“This pole position was unexpected for us after this morning, but thankfully I feel more pain walking than I do riding the bike. Of course I’m not in perfect condition on the bike and for sure I have to put more pressure on my arms and will get more tired. I think I was very lucky this morning that I had no big injuries. I think this pole position is for us an impressive result.”

Ben Spies:

“It wasn’t a bad qualifying session, we tried a couple of things and the race set up is not so bad. We got in qualifying mode and got some pretty good laps in. I made a mistake and locked the front up on the brakes going in to turn three trying super hard to get on the front row. The Yamaha boss said to me last night that he wanted me on the front row so I was doing everything I could. Joking aside I was trying everything and just made a small mistake. I banged my hand up quite a bit but it will be fine and ready for the race tomorrow. I think we’ll find a couple of things with the bike in the morning and hopefully it’ll be a good day.”

Yamaha Factory Racing press release

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Second row start for fifth fastest Simoncelli at Laguna Seca

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The Team San Carlo Honda Gresini rider is still hoping to make further improvements in tomorrow's warm-up before taking the podium challenge to the front row trio of Jorge Lorenzo, Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa. Hiroshi Aoyama also made improvements as his confidence with t he Honda RC121V showed signs of returning.

Marco Simoncelli:

Overall it has been a positive day. We took our biggest step this morning and then built on that this afternoon, although we still have work to do to close the gap to the top three. Lorenzo is maybe in the best shape at the moment ahead of Stoner and Pedrosa but if we can find a couple of tenths in my race pace we can challenge for the podium. I had more confidence in the front today and held my line better through the corners, as well as improving acceleration out of the final turn. We could still find more time there though.”

Hiroshi Aoyama:

”I have improved my lap times from session to session and also found more confidence with the bike and track. I am quite satisfied with my lap time considering that this is only my second ever day here at Laguna. Tomorrow we will try to take another step and make up positions in the race. Tyre choice will be important, the race will be long but if we can stay consistent we can make up positions.”

Team San Carlo Honda Gresini press release

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Mixed feelings for LCR pair after Laguna QP

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The second day of practices started with typical coastal Northern California weather (21 degrees on the ground) and the Spaniard was not able to better his times from the previous day after a crash at turn 11. He escaped unhurt from the accident and returned to the track in the afternoon for the 60-minute qualifying session which was held in warmer conditions.

Despite some geometry adjustments to his Honda machinery, Elias could not increase his pace on Q-tires, while wildcard Bostrom proceeded with learning to ride a GP at his home track.

Toni Elias:

“We are back to our “standard” situation and obviously we were expecting something better. Anyway I want to a massive thank you to the guys because they worked hard even today because we had to change the bike geometry during the session. We are struggling with the same front issue that was the cause of my crash this morning. If you crash here you lose confidence because it’s a very tricky surface. I love lapping here but in this condition it’s not fun for me. We will try to fix the bike in tomorrows warm up trying to improve front and rear grip for the race”.

Ben Bostrom:

“The two bikes couldn’t be more opposite: tires, brakes, chassis...it’s unbelievable! There’s a lot to learn and I was trying to improve every time I get on the bike step by step because I do not want crash the bike. It’s nice to have Lucio and the guys also watching so they can see the difference. The adjustments we have made this afternoon were better and our lap time improved a little bit. Probably I could have gone faster but I made race distance in the last session and I am racing two different bikes this week end so I am pretty satisfied so far”.

LCR Honda press release.

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Crash frustrates Bautista in Laguna qualifying

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Bautista (P12, 1’22.669, 30 laps) lost the front of his Rizla Suzuki GSV-R on turn three and crashed at just past the half-way point of this afternoon’s session. He was in ninth place in the standings at the time, but had yet to use a new rear tyre to get a better qualifying position. He managed to return to the pit and use his other bike to try and improve on his lap-time, but was unable to find his rhythm and will now have work to do from the fourth row of the grid tomorrow. A very positive point for the whole team is the consistency on race tyres of the Suzuki GSV-R around the 3,610m American circuit, a fact which was emphasised by Bautista making his fastest time on a tyre which had already done 27 laps of the Laguna Seca track.

Bautista will be looking to repeat his good starts from the two races leading up to Laguna in tomorrow’s main event, as he tries to make in-roads into the riders in front of him when the lights go out to signal the start of the 32-lap race at 14.00hrs local time (21.00hrs GMT).

Álvaro Bautista:

“It has been a very big disappointment for me and the whole team this afternoon. We had done well in every practice, but in the qualifying - where it is really important to make a good position for the race - I crashed and lost the opportunity to make a good lap. I think we need to be positive for tomorrow though, and take some encouragement from the fact that we did our best time on a 27-lap used tyre, so this is good for the race. The bad thing is that we are near the back of the grid tomorrow, so I will have to make a good start like I have in the last two races and try to get a good position in the first corner. Tomorrow we will be trying our hardest and I will be giving it full gas!”

source: MotoGP Official Website

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Lorenzo blazes into pole position unscathed after morning crash

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Yamaha Factory rider Lorenzo set out into the afternoon qualifying session apparently unfazed following an enormous highside at the end of the morning practice. The reigning World Champion forgot to hit a switch that overrides the launch control system and engages the traction control during a practice start, thus launching himself into the air and across the gravel when he put the throttle at full stick. He appeared unaffected however, by setting a fast lap just 15 minutes into the qualifying meet that remained the top lap for nearly the entire session. His 35th and final lap of 1'21.202, which was over half a second faster than his FP3 time, sealed his place at the head of the starting grid.

Championship leader Casey Stoner (Repsol Honda) made a final push after trailing the frontrunners, posting a time of 1'21.274 to put him in second place on the grid, with Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) landing in the final place on the front row with his quickest time of 1'21.385.

The one hour qualifying session was held under perfect conditions, with the sun shining and track temperatures of 41 Celsius which warranted the field starting out on harder compound tires. The American riders were the first to switch to softer tires, hoping for good results on at their home track, with Ben Spies (Yamaha Factory Racing) taking provisional pole with 15 minutes remaining to the delight of the crowd. However, with 5 minutes on the clock, Spies lost the front in turn 3, slid across the gravel and wedged his Factory Yamaha under the air fence, damaging it too far to remount it for the last five minutes of the session and knocking him into fourth position.

Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini) posted a time of 1'21.696 to earn him the middle position on the second row. The Italian was followed by countryman Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) whose lap of 1'21.731 put him in the final second row spot.

Ducati Team rider Valentino Rossi made some big improvements in the second half of the session to his GP 11.1 machine to make it onto the third row with the seventh fastest time, one second off of the quick lap posted by Lorenzo. The Italian was followed by Héctor Barberá who posted a lap of 1'22.238, putting him eighth on the grid.

Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team ) now has two of the same version of the Desmosedici on his side of the garage and has decided to stick with the GP11 version for the rest of the weekend after he rode both the GP11 and GP11.1 in yesterday’s sessions. He crashed in Rainey curve (turn 9) then ran all the way back to the pits after the crash truck picked up his Ducati. He swiftly reentered the session to post the ninth fastest time.

Cal Crutchlow (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) found some speed, moving up from 13th in the morning to the tenth spot on the grid ahead of his team mate Colin Edwards in eleventh.

American wildcard Ben Bostrom on the LCR Honda improved his time over half a second again, though still remains 18th in the timings, one second behind team mate Toni Elias and four seconds off the pole position time.

Other incidents in the qualifying outing were the crashes of Álvaro Bautista (Rizla Suzuki) and Randy de Puniet (Pramac Racing). Bautista lost the front end in turn 3 and had a high speed tumble across the gravel, though was unhurt and immediately up and running to his box, while De Puniet slid off slid off in turn 5 and while he was able to walk away suffered fractures to the L3 and L5 Transverse Processes in his back and a suspected crack to the iliac bone in his hip.

source : MotoGP Official website

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Lorenzo lands on front row for German Grand Prix

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The Yamaha Factory Racing rider was the fastest man on track in the morning’s final free practice, setting an impressive 1’22.112 to top the time sheets. The afternoon qualifying heat saw him again quick onto the pace, again fastest man on track mid way through the session. Unfortunately, he was not able to take any great advantage from the softer tyre compounds available and had dropped out of the top four until the last moments. As the final minutes ticked down, he broke under the 1’22 mark to beat Marco Simoncelli for the final spot on the front row by just 0.010 seconds.

Ben Spies was on much better form than the day before, a good night’s sleep had shaken off most of his head cold and the Texan was keen to attack the track. The crew made some major set up changes midway through both the morning practice and afternoon qualifying to help deliver an optimum bike package for the twisty Sachsenring circuit. Clear improvements were evident, with Spies climbing from seventh in the morning with a 1’22.772 to fifth on the grid in qualifying with 1’22.056, just 0.375 from pole.

Jorge Lorenzo: 

“It’s been a strong weekend so far. I’ve never felt great on this track, but this weekend I’m riding fast and feeling comfortable. It was a pity at the end of qualifying that the soft tyre didn’t improve anything much. In the end, I couldn’t make pole position but I think third position on the front row is a good place to start tomorrow for the race; I got it by just 0.010! Casey is very strong but I hope to be ready to fight for the victory with him. I think the fans will see a great race as there are a lot of riders who can fight for the win.”

Ben Spies: 

“Today was definitely better. I’m still not 100% but I’m feeling a lot more clear headed on the bike. We were able to make the bike a bit better and I was able to ride better today to get into the top five. I made a mistake on my last lap, totally my fault, two corners to go I lost the rear, then saved it but then lost the front as well which cost me a tenth. It might have made us a little closer to the front, but we’re still in the middle of the second row so we can put a good race together tomorrow.”

Yamaha Factory Racing press release

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Ninth place start for De Puniet

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The starting grid for the German Grand Prix at the Sachsenring was determined in this afternoon’s qualifying session. Randy De Puniet registered the ninth-best time (1:22.503), just behind Nicky Hayden, the only Ducati rider to finish the session ahead of the Frenchman, who will start from the fifth row tomorrow. Sylvain Guintoli, who prior to this morning had only ridden Capirossi’s Desmosedici here in yesterday’s afternoon session, ended qualifying in seventeenth place with a time of 1’24.707.

Randy De Puniet:

“I’m pretty pleased with the work carried out over these two days, and as I said yesterday, it’s been a long time since I last left the garage happy. At the moment, everything is going according to our plans. I’m able to go fast with both the hard and soft tyres. We’ll try some things tomorrow morning, specifically with the front. I’m pleased with my ninth place, which a good start going into the race.”

Sylvain Guintoli:

“We’re a little far from the other riders, but anyway my feeling with the bike has improved compared to this morning. My tyres were ruined when I came back to the garage, and that could present a problem for the race. I did my best, and tomorrow I’ll have to try to have a good race.”

Pramac Racing Team press release

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Stoner secures Sachsenring pole

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Repsol Honda’s Casey Stoner secured his sixth pole position for the 2011 season, 0.252s ahead of team mate and three time premier class winner at the Sachsenring circuit, Dani Pedrosa. Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha Factory Racing) lead the session at the 40 minute mark, to finally post his best lap of 1’21.933 to take the final front row spot.

Perfect conditions at the German circuit allowed the MotoGP class riders to post their best times of the weekend, with Stoner the first rider to break 1’22” with 16 minutes remaining, followed by Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini Team) then Pedrosa, and finally Lorenzo, who was the final rider to post a time inside the 1’21” times.

Simoncelli’s time of 1'21.954 put him in fourth place and is only the second time this season the Italian did not qualify on the front row. Joining 24 year old Simoncelli is Ben Spies (Yamaha Factory Racing), who finished 8th last year in Germany, with a time of 1'22.056. The American was followed by Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda), who is still looking for his first podium at Sachsenring, his best finish thus far at the circuit a fifth.

Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) heads up the third row after posting his best lap of 1'22.368. The Texan’s best finish thus far was a fourth in 2007. Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team), who finished seventh in 2010, joins Edwards in eighth position, while as Randy de Puniet (Pramac Racing) completes row three with a posted time of 1'22.503 and Álvaro Bautista (Rizla Suzuki) completes the top ten riders.

Héctor Barberá (Mapfre Aspar), who qualified sixth for the German GP last year, starts from eleventh, ahead of Cal Crutchlow (Monster Yamaha Tech 3), whose challenging first weekend at Sachsenring included crashing out of ninth place in the final minutes of the session, to finally end up 12th on the grid.

Valentino Rossi (Ducati Team) finished the session down in 16th, with Loris Capirossi’s stand in on the Pramac Racing team, Sylvain Guintoli, in 17th.

source: MotoGP Official Website

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Stoner Pole Position, Rossi 9th

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Casey Stoner continues his domination on Qatar MotoGP by take the pole position. This Australian rider took 1'54.137. His teammate Dani Pedrosa on 2nd position, and 2010 world champion Jorge Lorenzo on 3rd. 2nd row filled by Marco Simoncelli, Ben Spies and Hector Barbera. Andrea Dovizioso, Cal Crutchlow and Valentino Rossi on 3rd row.

Here's the full result of qualification session Qatar MotoGP 

1. Casey Stoner Honda 1'54.137

2. Dani Pedrosa Honda 1'54.342

3. Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha 1'54.947

4. Marco Simoncelli Gresini Honda 1'54.988

5. Ben Spies Yamaha 1'55.095

6. Hector Barbera Aspar Ducati 1'55.223

7. Andrea Dovizioso Honda 1'55.229

8. Cal Crutchlow Tech 3 Yamaha 1'55.578

9. Valentino Rossi Ducati 1'55.637

10. Colin Edwards Tech 3 Yamaha 1'55.647

11. Randy de Puniet Pramac Ducati 1'55.656

12. Hiroshi Aoyama Gresini Honda 1'55.724

13. Nicky Hayden Ducati 1'55.881

14. Loris Capirossi Pramac Ducati 1'56.323

15. Karel Abraham Cardion Ducati 1'56.665  + 2.528

16. Toni Elias LCR Honda 1'57.992s  + 3.855

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GP GENERALI DE LA COMUNITAT VALENCIANA MotoGP Qualifying Practice Classification 2010

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Pos.	Num.	Rider	Nation	Team	Bike	Km/h	Time	Gap 1st/Prev.
1	27	Casey STONER	AUS	Ducati Team	Ducati	310.3	1'31.799
2	99	Jorge LORENZO	SPA	Fiat Yamaha Team	Yamaha	305.5	1'32.130	0.331 / 0.331
3	58	Marco SIMONCELLI	ITA	San Carlo Honda Gresini	Honda	303.7	1'32.244	0.445 / 0.114
4	46	Valentino ROSSI	ITA	Fiat Yamaha Team	Yamaha	305.4	1'32.330	0.531 / 0.086
5	69	Nicky HAYDEN	USA	Ducati Team	Ducati	305.7	1'32.422	0.623 / 0.092
6	11	Ben SPIES	USA	Monster Yamaha Tech 3	Yamaha	305.1	1'32.566	0.767 / 0.144
7	5	Colin EDWARDS	USA	Monster Yamaha Tech 3	Yamaha	305.3	1'32.579	0.780 / 0.013
8	26	Dani PEDROSA	SPA	Repsol Honda Team	Honda	312.4	1'32.603	0.804 / 0.024
9	4	Andrea DOVIZIOSO	ITA	Repsol Honda Team	Honda	311.3	1'32.886	1.087 / 0.283
10	33	Marco MELANDRI	ITA	San Carlo Honda Gresini	Honda	308.7	1'32.917	1.118 / 0.031
11	14	Randy DE PUNIET	FRA	LCR Honda MotoGP	Honda	307.1	1'32.925	1.126 / 0.008
12	41	Aleix ESPARGARO	SPA	Pramac Racing Team	Ducati	303.1	1'33.085	1.286 / 0.160
13	40	Hector BARBERA	SPA	Paginas Amarillas Aspar	Ducati	311	1'33.170	1.371 / 0.085
14	65	Loris CAPIROSSI	ITA	Rizla Suzuki MotoGP	Suzuki	306.5	1'33.339	1.540 / 0.169
15	7	Hiroshi AOYAMA	JPN	Interwetten Honda MotoGP	Honda	308.3	1'33.343	1.544 / 0.004
16	71	Carlos CHECA	SPA	Pramac Racing Team	Ducati	305.3	1'33.499	1.700 / 0.156
17	19	Alvaro BAUTISTA	SPA	Rizla Suzuki MotoGP	Suzuki	305.9	1'33.515	1.716 / 0.016
		Fastest Lap:	Lap: 18	Casey STONER	1'31.799	157.1 Km/h
		Circuit Record Lap:	2008	Casey STONER	1'32.582	155.7 Km/h
		Best Lap:	2006	Valentino ROSSI	1'31.002	158.4 Km/h

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IVECO AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX MotoGP Qualifying Practice Classification 201

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Pos.	Num.	Rider	Nation	Team	Bike	Km/h	Time	Gap 1st/Prev.
1	27	Casey STONER	AUS	Ducati Team	Ducati	323.4	1'30.107
2	99	Jorge LORENZO	SPA	Fiat Yamaha Team	Yamaha	319.8	1'30.775	0.668 / 0.668
3	11	Ben SPIES	USA	Monster Yamaha Tech 3	Yamaha	319.8	1'31.386	1.279 / 0.611
4	58	Marco SIMONCELLI	ITA	San Carlo Honda Gresini	Honda	319.3	1'31.402	1.295 / 0.016
5	5	Colin EDWARDS	USA	Monster Yamaha Tech 3	Yamaha	317.9	1'31.415	1.308 / 0.013
6	69	Nicky HAYDEN	USA	Ducati Team	Ducati	319.8	1'31.530	1.423 / 0.115
7	14	Randy DE PUNIET	FRA	LCR Honda MotoGP	Honda	319.5	1'31.554	1.447 / 0.024
8	46	Valentino ROSSI	ITA	Fiat Yamaha Team	Yamaha	316	1'31.627	1.520 / 0.073
9	4	Andrea DOVIZIOSO	ITA	Repsol Honda Team	Honda	325.2	1'32.018	1.911 / 0.391
10	33	Marco MELANDRI	ITA	San Carlo Honda Gresini	Honda	322.2	1'32.367	2.260 / 0.349
11	41	Aleix ESPARGARO	SPA	Pramac Racing Team	Ducati	321.4	1'32.542	2.435 / 0.175
12	36	Mika KALLIO	FIN	Pramac Racing Team	Ducati	318.9	1'32.816	2.709 / 0.274
13	7	Hiroshi AOYAMA	JPN	Interwetten Honda MotoGP	Honda	318.3	1'33.190	3.083 / 0.374
14	19	Alvaro BAUTISTA	SPA	Rizla Suzuki MotoGP	Suzuki	317.4	1'33.224	3.117 / 0.034
15	26	Dani PEDROSA	SPA	Repsol Honda Team	Honda	305.5	1'33.384	3.277 / 0.160
16	40	Hector BARBERA	SPA	Paginas Amarillas Aspar	Ducati	324.1	1'33.390	3.283 / 0.006
17	65	Loris CAPIROSSI	ITA	Rizla Suzuki MotoGP	Suzuki	311.5	1'34.269	4.162 / 0.879
		Fastest Lap:	Lap: 22	Casey STONER	1'30.107	177.7 Km/h
		Circuit Record Lap:	2008	Nicky HAYDEN	1'30.059	177.8 Km/h
		Best Lap:	2008	Casey STONER	1'28.665	180.6 Km/h

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SHELL ADVANCE MALAYSIAN MOTORCYCLE GRAND PRIX MotoGP Qualifying Practice Classification 2010

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Pos.	Num.	Rider	Nation	Team	Bike	Km/h	Time	Gap 1st/Prev.
1	99	Jorge LORENZO	SPA	Fiat Yamaha Team	Yamaha	309.2	2'01.537
2	69	Nicky HAYDEN	USA	Ducati Team	Ducati	306.6	2'01.637	0.100 / 0.100
3	4	Andrea DOVIZIOSO	ITA	Repsol Honda Team	Honda	310.3	2'01.829	0.292 / 0.192
4	11	Ben SPIES	USA	Monster Yamaha Tech 3	Yamaha	304.5	2'01.993	0.456 / 0.164
5	27	Casey STONER	AUS	Ducati Team	Ducati	309.1	2'02.023	0.486 / 0.030
6	46	Valentino ROSSI	ITA	Fiat Yamaha Team	Yamaha	306.6	2'02.030	0.493 / 0.007
7	5	Colin EDWARDS	USA	Monster Yamaha Tech 3	Yamaha	308.8	2'02.097	0.560 / 0.067
8	19	Alvaro BAUTISTA	SPA	Rizla Suzuki MotoGP	Suzuki	308.1	2'02.394	0.857 / 0.297
9	65	Loris CAPIROSSI	ITA	Rizla Suzuki MotoGP	Suzuki	310.1	2'02.522	0.985 / 0.128
10	33	Marco MELANDRI	ITA	San Carlo Honda Gresini	Honda	309.6	2'02.624	1.087 / 0.102
11	58	Marco SIMONCELLI	ITA	San Carlo Honda Gresini	Honda	304.7	2'02.690	1.153 / 0.066
12	41	Aleix ESPARGARO	SPA	Pramac Racing Team	Ducati	306.6	2'02.723	1.186 / 0.033
13	14	Randy DE PUNIET	FRA	LCR Honda MotoGP	Honda	305.4	2'02.775	1.238 / 0.052
14	7	Hiroshi AOYAMA	JPN	Interwetten Honda MotoGP	Honda	308.8	2'02.778	1.241 / 0.003
15	40	Hector BARBERA	SPA	Paginas Amarillas Aspar	Ducati	311.1	2'02.928	1.391 / 0.150
16	36	Mika KALLIO	FIN	Pramac Racing Team	Ducati	308	2'04.167	2.630 / 1.239
		Fastest Lap:	Lap: 24	Jorge LORENZO	2'01.537	164.3 Km/h
		Circuit Record Lap:	2007	Casey STONER	2'02.108	163.6 Km/h
		Best Lap:	2009	Valentino ROSSI	2'00.518	165.7 Km/h

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GRAND PRIX OF JAPAN MotoGP Qualifying Practice Classification 2010

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Pos.	Num.	Rider	Nation	Team	Bike	Km/h	Time	Gap 1st/Prev.
1	4	Andrea DOVIZIOSO	ITA	Repsol Honda Team	Honda	289.9	1'47.001
2	46	Valentino ROSSI	ITA	Fiat Yamaha Team	Yamaha	291.7	1'47.055	0.054 / 0.054
3	27	Casey STONER	AUS	Ducati Team	Ducati	294.4	1'47.105	0.104 / 0.050
4	99	Jorge LORENZO	SPA	Fiat Yamaha Team	Yamaha	293.2	1'47.206	0.205 / 0.101
5	5	Colin EDWARDS	USA	Monster Yamaha Tech 3	Yamaha	289.8	1'47.464	0.463 / 0.258
6	11	Ben SPIES	USA	Monster Yamaha Tech 3	Yamaha	290.4	1'47.648	0.647 / 0.184
7	14	Randy DE PUNIET	FRA	LCR Honda MotoGP	Honda	290.1	1'47.752	0.751 / 0.104
8	58	Marco SIMONCELLI	ITA	San Carlo Honda Gresini	Honda	289.5	1'47.914	0.913 / 0.162
9	19	Alvaro BAUTISTA	SPA	Rizla Suzuki MotoGP	Suzuki	288.2	1'48.002	1.001 / 0.088
10	65	Loris CAPIROSSI	ITA	Rizla Suzuki MotoGP	Suzuki	289.1	1'48.068	1.067 / 0.066
11	69	Nicky HAYDEN	USA	Ducati Team	Ducati	286.5	1'48.182	1.181 / 0.114
12	33	Marco MELANDRI	ITA	San Carlo Honda Gresini	Honda	288.5	1'48.238	1.237 / 0.056
13	41	Aleix ESPARGARO	SPA	Pramac Racing Team	Ducati	279.1	1'48.371	1.370 / 0.133
14	7	Hiroshi AOYAMA	JPN	Interwetten Honda MotoGP	Honda	281.8	1'48.396	1.395 / 0.025
15	40	Hector BARBERA	SPA	Paginas Amarillas Aspar	Ducati	285.5	1'48.535	1.534 / 0.139
16	36	Mika KALLIO	FIN	Pramac Racing Team	Ducati	289.5	1'49.480	2.479 / 0.945
	26	Dani PEDROSA	SPA	Repsol Honda Team	Honda
		Fastest Lap:	Lap: 24	Andrea DOVIZIOSO	1'47.001	161.5 Km/h
		Circuit Record Lap:	2008	Casey STONER	1'47.091	161.4 Km/h
		Best Lap:	2008	Jorge LORENZO	1'45.543	163.8 Km/h

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