Aragon GP: Bridgestone qualifying report

Stoner sets scorching pole in Aragon

Bridgestone slick compounds available: Front: Medium, Extra Hard. Rear: Soft, Medium

Ducati Team's Casey Stoner took his first pole position since the season-opening Qatar Grand Prix at Aragon today with an effort on his penultimate lap that took him 0.3seconds clear of the field and the only man to lap below the 1m49s mark.

Championship leader Jorge Lorenzo continues his perfect front-row record with second fastest, a fraction of a second ahead of compatriot and closest championship rival Dani Pedrosa.

Every rider except Hiroshi Aoyama used the softer option rear tyre for their fastest laps, but front tyre choice was mixed. Stoner used the harder option front, as did Pedrosa and fourth-placed Nicky Hayden, but Lorenzo, Ben Spies and Valentino Rossi all used the softer option.

Conditions for qualifying, reduced to 45 minutes as a result of the reinstatement of the Friday morning practice session, were fine and dry and the track was the cleanest it has been all weekend. As a result, Stoner's pole time was 1.7seconds faster than the best time set yesterday.

Tohru Ubukata - Manager, Bridgestone Motorcycle Tyre Development Department "Track conditions today were better than yesterday but the surface was still dirty and slippery so I didn't expect Casey's 1minute 48second lap which was very fast. Today riders were able to evaluate both available tyre specs ahead of tomorrow's race, and from today's results it looks like front race choice will be mixed with both working well.

"For the rear tyres, the harder option will be preferable from a degradation point of view because this circuit has some uphill corners where the riders are accelerating hard and this demands a lot in terms of traction, and because the track surface is still dusty which increases wear appearance. The key point for tomorrow's race will be managing tyre performance over race distance in these conditions."

-source: bridgestone