After joining fellow title contenders Valentino Rossi and Dani Pedrosa in sitting out the rain-interrupted opening night at the Qatar test, Casey Stoner got back on track - and back on top of the timesheets - on Monday.
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Due to cold, windy and dusty conditions, Stoner’s best Monday lap was two seconds slower than he’d managed on his way to victory in the 2008 season opener - but still a substantial 0.6sec clear of nearest rival Rossi.
“We have worked well and we’ve made progress with the set-up of the GP9 so it has been a positive day despite the difficult track conditions,” said Stoner. “Pretty much the same goes for the wrist - it’s obviously still not 100% yet but it is better than Malaysia and better than I was expecting for this test, so it’s looking hopeful from that point of view too. In general I am satisfied.”
Valentino Rossi, who briefly topped the timesheet at the midway stage of the session and eventually ended up second. Rossi undertook 51 laps in total as he tested a new electronics system, whilst Stoner only undertook five or six lap bursts - and a total of 37 laps - as he debuted a new swingarm and tested the condition of his troublesome left wrist.
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Third on the timesheet was Tech 3 Yamaha’s Colin Edwards with similar time to Rossi’s best, as he continued his good preseason performances, in contrast to his team-mate James Toseland who was last on the timesheet – three seconds off Stoner’s pace.
A late fast lap from Andrea Dovizioso with less than five minutes to go before the midnight conclusion of the test put him fourth overall, just ahead of Rizla Suzuki colleagues Chris Vermeulen (who crashed without consequence earlier in the evening) and Loris Capirossi, completing the top six.
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