Rossi sends out warning to rivals by topping practice session
By SHAMSHUL FITRI
SEPANG: Valentino Rossi sent out an early warning of his intention in the Shell Advance Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix by topping the timesheets in yesterday’s MotoGP practice session at the Sepang International Circuit (SIC).
Championship leader and team-mate Jorge Lorenzo was third fastest.
Seven-time world champion Rossi’s favourite track is Sepang, and having won five times between 2001 and 2008, he clocked 2:02.724 yesterday.
The Fiat Yamaha rider was just 0.109 seconds quicker than second place Andrea Dovizioso, who returned the fastest time of 2:02.833, until Rossi - nicknamed ‘The Doctor’ took over with just 10 minutes to go in the session.
“It’s another good start for us and we found the right settings right away,” said Rossi, who sits fifth in the MotoGP standings on 156 points. Lorenzo leads the title race on 297 points.
“My shoulder is OK so far and we’re confident that we will be able to make some improvements tomorrow to try for the front row.”
Dovizioso, the sole rider for this week’s race for team Repsol Honda after Dani Pedrosa pulled out to recover from a broken collarbone suffered in Japan last week, was happy with yesterday’s practice although he had to cope with the extreme heat.
“It is even more than we’re used to here, so physically it was very hard,” reflected Dovizioso after the session. “I think we have found the limit of the tyres in these conditions, so I will try to change my riding style tomorrow to improve my lap times.”
Lorenzo, who could well clinch the world title this weekend with the absence of Pedrosa, meanwhile, found it difficult to find grip on the track.
“The conditions were quite difficult today, with the high temperature and the dirty track. But I’m happy though because I rode fast and was close to the first position,” he said.
Last year’s winner in Sepang Casey Stoner, suffered a crash 10 minutes into the session. But the Ducati Marlboro rider soon got back onto his bike and managed to clock 2:03.160 for the fourth fastest time.
In the Moto2 class, Alex De Angelis of JIR Moto2 emerged fastest with a best lap of 2:09.586 ahead of Scott Redding (Marc VDS Racing) on 2:09.774 and championship leader Toni Elias (Gresini Racing) on 2:09.835.
In the earlier 125cc session, three riders in the fight for the world title this season, Marc Marquez, Pol Espargaro and Nicolas Terol, gave a glimpse what to expect in tomorrow’s race proper by topping the timesheets.
Marquez was quickest on 2:14.274, followed by Espargaro (2:14.650) and Terol (2:14.784). Terol currently leads the standings on 228 points, followed by Marquez (222) and Espargaro (215).
Meanwhile, SIC will continue to host the MotoGP event for another three years after Dorna, the worldwide rights holders of MotoGP races, agreed to extend their contract yesterday.
Dorna chief excutive officer Carmelo Ezpeleta said the circuit has seen many improvements along the years and it has become one of the favourites among riders in the championships.
Pracice times
MotoGP:
1. Valentino Rossi (Ita) Yamaha 2:02.724,2. Andrea Dovizioso (Ita) Honda 0.109s behind, 3. Jorge Lorenzo (Spa) Yamaha 0.174,
4. Casey Stoner (Aus) Ducati 0.436, 5. Alvaro Bautista (Spa) Suzuki 0.614, 6. Colin Edwards (US) Yamaha 0.669, 7. Marco Melandri (Ita) Honda 0.714, 8.
Alex Espargaro (Spa) Ducati 0.747, 9. Ben Spies (US) Yamaha 0.753, 10. Randy de Puniet (Fra) Honda 0.815.
Moto2: 1. Alex de Angelis (Rsm) Motobi 2:09.586, 2. Scott Redding (Ger) Suter 0.188s behind, 3. Toni Elias (Spa) Moriwaki 0.249, 4. Julian Simon (Spa) Suter 0.390, 5. Andrea Iannone (Ita) Speed Up 0.397.
125cc: 1. Marc Marquez (Spa) Derbi 2:14.274, 2. Pol Espargaro (Spa) Derbi 0.376s behind, 3. Nicolas Terol (Spa) Aprilia 0.510, 4. Esteve Rabat (Spa) Aprilia 1.043, 5. Bradley Smith (Bri) Aprilia 1.205.
thestar.com.my
Bookmarks