Valentino Rossi secured his tenth front row start of the season in Sepang today in a tricky qualifying session which saw the track conditions changing constantly after a heavy downpour. His Fiat Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo made it two Yamahas on the front row, leaving the pair in prime position for a double-podium assault tomorrow.
Following a strong opening day yesterday, Rossi continued in the same vein in the dry this morning and was fourth fastest. Torrential rain throughout the 125cc qualifying session left the track soaking as the MotoGP qualifying got underway, but as the sun came out the track began to dry rapidly, meaning conditions were changing for the riders on every lap. The teams were faced with delicate tyre decisions as they tried to keep abreast of the rapidly drying track but Rossi, his crew and his Bridgestone tyre technician got it right each time and the Italian remained close to the top throughout the session. As the hour closed out it looked like a Fiat Yamaha one-two, with Rossi on pole, but a final effort from Dani Pedrosa was even faster and he edged the world champion off the top spot for tomorrow’s 21-lap race.
Valentino Rossi - Position: 2ndTime: 1’01.957Laps: 21
“The conditions were incredible today and this practice was as much about strategy as it was about qualifying tyres and set-up, because you had to judge the right moment to go out with the right tyre. We worked very well in our garage and managed to make the right decisions every time, so I was at the top or near to it for most of the session and able to constantly make big improvements. When I saw that I’d done a 2’01.9 I thought that I might have the pole, but Dani was even faster so congratulations to him today. Anyway it’s good to be back on the front row because we have been off it for two races, and now we’re in a good place to start our challenge tomorrow. I am really looking forward to the race because I love this track and my M1 is really flying here. However I hope the weather is ok because for sure it will be more fun in the dry!”
Davide Brivio - Team Manager
“We came out very well from a tricky situation today. It was a delicate job to correctly follow the conditions, which were changing so quickly, but we managed it very well and this front row is just reward for some good work from the team. This was an important front row because there are a lot of riders here looking very competitive, but also the information from this session might be useful tomorrow if we have the same conditions. Let’s hope not, but anyway we will be prepared.”
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