MotoGP
Qatar GP: Bridgestone qualifying report
Ducati Team's Casey Stoner again topped the timesheets throughout qualifying on the second night in Qatar. Fiat Yamaha's Valentino Rossi starts tomorrow's grand prix from second, whilst teammate Jorge Lorenzo clinched third spot on his penultimate ...
Published: Jun 19, 2009, 7:50 PM
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Ducati Team's Casey Stoner again topped the timesheets throughout qualifying on the second night in Qatar. Fiat Yamaha's Valentino Rossi starts tomorrow's grand prix from second, whilst teammate Jorge Lorenzo clinched third spot on his penultimate lap. All riders recorded their fastest qualifying lap on Bridgestone's medium compound front tyre and soft compound rear tyre.
Repsol Honda's newcomer Andrea Dovizioso will start fourth tomorrow, whilst the Rizla Suzuki duo of Loris Capirossi and Chris Vermeulen will start fifth and eighth respectively.
Four satellite teams also appeared inside the top ten. Colin Edwards will start tomorrow from sixth for Monster Yamaha Tech3, followed by LCR Honda's Randy de Puniet in seventh. Alex de Angelis will start ninth for San Carlo Honda Gresini and MotoGP debutant Mika Kallio rounds out the top ten on his Pramac Racing Ducati machine.
Based on previous race and test experience at the Losail circuit, Bridgestone selected the soft and medium compounds as the two options for this grand prix. All 18 riders have now used both soft and medium compound front and rear slicks, and with track-time on both options they will now be able to make their compound decisions for the race. Many opted for medium compound fronts and medium rears for the second practice session, but for qualifying every rider chose the medium Bridgestone front tyre and the soft Bridgestone rear.
The weather was kind to the field today, with a brief rain shower falling between the second practice session and qualifying at 2100hrs, and another light shower falling as the chequered flag brought MotoGP qualifying to an end.
Tohru Ubukata - Bridgestone Motorsport - Manager, Motorcycle Race Tyre Development
"Every rider tried the medium compound front tyre today, which in the hotter conditions gave more stability on corner entry and mid-corner. For the qualifying session, everyone used the medium compound front, and chose the soft compound rear to deliver their quick laps. I would say that from the two specifications of compound, every rider will now know what their race choice will be.
"The track conditions were the samefor today's practice session as yesterday's, but by the end of the qualifying session the track was much cleaner. But I think for the race tomorrow the track conditions will have changed again. As part of the new tyre regulations, riders have used fewer tyres in the last two days than they would have done in previous years and they still have sufficient tyres for tomorrow's race so I am happy with the way these regulations are working."
Weather: Dry. Ambient 25C; Track 25C (MotoGP official timing)
-credit: bridgestone
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