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Qualifying report

Malaysian MotoGP: Top 5 quotes after qualifying

Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa took a fantastic pole position for tomorrow’s Malaysian GP—his third this year, his 31st in MotoGP, and the 49th in his career

Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda Team

Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda Team

Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Pole sitter Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda Team
Pole sitter Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda Team
Johann Zarco, Monster Yamaha Tech 3
Andrea Dovizioso, Ducati Team
Andrea Dovizioso, Ducati Team
Valentino Rossi, Yamaha Factory Racing
Valentino Rossi, Yamaha Factory Racing
Maverick Viñales, Yamaha Factory Racing

Cla#RiderBikeLapsTimeGapIntervalkm/hSpeed Trap
1 26 spain Dani Pedrosa Honda 7 1'59.212     167.389 322
“I’m very happy with this pole, which is our third this year. It’s a nice feeling because I usually struggle in qualifying, but the track improved a lot with today’s sunny conditions, offering good grip. Both tyres worked very well in qualifying, so I was able to find the rhythm on my first flying lap and set a good time, and then I pushed harder and improved on my second run. I made a couple of little mistakes but it was enough for the pole, which is fantastic. I’m happy for the team, as this pole is for them. We’ll have to see what the conditions are like for the race as we’re still struggling in the wet, so we’re really hoping for the sun tomorrow.”
2 5 france Johann Zarco Yamaha 7 1'59.229 0.017 0.017 167.365 320
“It is so important to start the Grand Prix on the front row of the grid, and I even expected pole position because I was in first for a small amount of time at the end of Qualifying 2. I am happy because to be fast on a single lap is a good thing, but my pace is very competitive, so if we have dry and warm conditions tomorrow, then I think I will be able to win the race if I manage everything well. We will see what happens with regards to the weather, but I am just delighted to have this confidence which allows me to push in this way and I have high hopes for the round 17 fight.” 
3 4 italy Andrea Dovizioso Ducati 6 1'59.236 0.024 0.007 167.355 324
“The front row was our target and we achieved it today, but I’m even happier about our speed, which is fundamental this weekend. If you don’t have a good pace, it’s no good thinking about race strategies and we were fast in all the conditions, especially in the dry and with used tyres like this afternoon in FP4. In qualifying I did an almost perfect lap, and this gave me an immense satisfaction! We are ready for tomorrow, in any weather conditions: the bike is going really well, we are quick and this is the most important thing, because our aim is to fight for the win.”
4 46 italy Valentino Rossi Yamaha 7 1'59.498 0.286 0.262 166.988 318
"In general it was a good day, because already from this morning I felt good with the bike. Into qualifying we were still working, because the level of the top five or six riders was very close, it was very balanced, we‘re all the same. I tried to push, my lap was good, I rode well. The lap time was OK, I saw P1 at that moment, but after that the others improved. Starting from P4 is a good position, but we have to work on the balance of the bike because I‘m not fast enough yet in some places. Like always, the tyre decision and the weather conditions will be very important tomorrow. For me it‘s still open which tyre to use on the front and for the rear, we have to decide if we go with the medium or the hard and also the combination between the two, it depends. First of all, I hope for good weather tomorrow, so we can try to race with the slicks." 
5 25 spain Maverick Viñales Yamaha 7 1'59.538 0.326 0.040 166.932 322
"Today‘s qualifying was very close, all the riders‘ times were very close together. We are 0.3s from first and I‘m happy. In FP3 I didn‘t feel so well, but then we made some changes on the bike in FP4 and I felt good again. I think that for tomorrow we still have some room for improvement and that‘s very important. I feel really good and I think I have a clear idea on which tyre I'll use for the race. I‘m especially happy because there were many races where throughout the weekend we didn‘t make good steps forward, but here we made great progress. We have to be very intelligent about tomorrow‘s race, first of all about deciding on the tyres. We have to choose the best option for our bike. In the end I think we have the package, I‘m good on the brakes and feel strong there compared to the other riders, so let‘s see if we can get the job done tomorrow." 

 

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