|
Mega post for the qualifying session at Motegi |
|
|
|
|
Posted by Staff
|
|
Saturday, 22 September 2007 |
|
Page 2 of 6
Valentino Rossi sealed his tenth front-row start of the season ahead of
tomorrow's Japanese Grand Prix at Motegi today, the Italian taking second place
on an all-Michelin front row in between Dani Pedrosa and Nicky Hayden. Colin
Edwards also had a good session, qualifying seventh at the head of the third
row.
After making a poor start to the weekend by finishing 14th
yesterday, Rossi made a step up this morning and put in the second fastest time
in free practice. His qualifying session did not get off to plan however as he
made an off-track excursion in the opening minutes and then found himself down
in 18th place mid-way through. Edwards meanwhile, was doing little better in
17th, but both began to steadily improve as they worked on refining their race
settings and finalising their tyre choices for tomorrow
Once it came
down to qualifying tyres it was clear that Rossi especially was on top form and
his first run put him in second place, before improving again with his second
tyre and moving one place higher. Pedrosa was even faster however and, despite
Rossi's Michelin tyre working well enough to give him a second flying lap, a
small mistake on the last corner cost him a few tenths and he was unable to
better the Spaniard. Edwards also put in two good qualifying laps and looked to
have sixth in the bag before he was edged down one place by Toni Elias.
Tomorrow's 24-lap race gets underway at 1400 Japanese time. Rossi must
finish in front of Casey Stoner in order to keep his championship hopes alive
for another race; the Australian will start from ninth tomorrow, on the outside
of the third row.
Valentino Rossi - Position: 2ndTime: 1'46.255Laps:
25
"I'm in good shape and I'm very happy with this result after the
problems we had yesterday. We were struggling a lot but everyone has worked very
hard and today has been much, much better. We tried some modifications and now I
can use the throttle well and the grip from the tyres is good. In fact today the
tyre situation is really a lot better and I can use my M1 how I want to, with a
good rhythm. This morning especially was a big improvement although this
afternoon we tried some different things again and it wasn't quite so good to
start with. Pedrosa's rhythm is slightly better than mine at the moment so we
have one or two things to work on, but we're definitely in a good position and
we are starting from the front row, which is the most important factor. I was
very happy with the qualifying tyres because I was able to do two laps with the
second one. Michelin brought a new tyre and asked that I try for a second lap
and it worked well, so this is very encouraging. Now I am really looking forward
to the race; it's going to be hard in this heat but we will do our best and see
what happens."
Colin Edwards - Position: 7thTime: 1'46.997Laps: 23
"We've made some
really important steps forward today with regards to the new tyres, how we use
them and also to our base setting. We've rearranged the bike a bit and things
were a lot better today. This afternoon was really difficult at the start, I was
riding as hard as I could but I was two seconds off the pace! Then we put a
different tyre in - the one I will use in the race - and I was riding the same
but was suddenly a lot faster. This is a very sensitive track when it comes down
to tyres and setting and you really have to find the key. With my first
qualifying tyre I put in a pretty uneventful lap and with the second I was
looking faster but I caught up to some other riders and, although they didn't
slow me down, I slightly lost the edge of my concentration and that cost me a
little bit of time. Thanks a lot to my guys, they've been working as hard in the
box as I have out on track and they've done a great job today."
Davide Brivio - Team Director
"It's been a good day's work,
considering the issues we were facing yesterday. Valentino is in good shape for
the race and, most importantly, starting from the front row again. Colin has a
few more things to work on but he's improved his pace a lot as well and with a
good start he can be in the fight tomorrow. We have a few more details to check
and our engineers are working hard to make sure both riders have the best
package for tomorrow; it will be a very testing race and 24 laps here puts a lot
of stress on tyres, brakes and engine, so we need to be sure everything is
perfect. Then we will just be hoping to see another exciting race like last week
and with both of our riders able to be in the fight until the end."
from YRC press
|
