Rain Sets the Pace as Misano MotoGP Begins2014-09-12 07:20There was little fun to be had today by the Movistar Yamaha MotoGP riders in the first two practice sessions for Sunday’s 'Grand Prix di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini' at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli. Persistant rain throughout the day meant both Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi had their wet riding skills tested to the max on the treacherously slippery track. Lorenzo started slowly, finding his confidence in the wet and was able to make a big improvement over the two sessions, taking nearly four seconds off his time by the end of Free Practice 2 to finish in eighth in the combined standings. The morning practice saw Rossi as one of the many GP riders to have their session interrupted by a fall. Luckily the Italian was unhurt and ready to continue. Like his teammate Lorenzo, Rossi was able to make a big improvement in the afternoon wet session, taking just over two and a half seconds off his lap time to finish in tenth overall. Despite all the work in the wet the weather is now forecast to be dry with sunshine for the remainder of the weekend, meaning the team will start again from the beginning in the third practice tomorrow in the hunt for the best dry set up for the track. Jorge Lorenzo 99 Jorge Lorenzo 8th / 1'51.541 / 15 laps “At least we didn't crash because today almost everyone did. We have been one of the few lucky ones. The pace has been very difficult to find. I needed a lot of laps to get onto a good rhythm. The tyres didn’t give me so much confidence, that is one of the reasons, but the other is me. I needed more time than the others to build my confidence but I found it in the end to get eighth position. Obviously we need to improve the bike in the rain as our competitors are faster but I also need to improve my riding.” Profile Profile 46 Valentino Rossi 10th / 1'51.738 / 17 laps “Today was a difficult day for everybody, especially in the morning. Unfortunately we had to go on the track with a hard option tyre. It was very dangerous and very difficult, especially because the grip of the track was very low and the asphalt is a bit damaged so there were a lot of crashes. This afternoon it was coming better with a softer tyre and the feeling with the bike improved a lot. Personally speaking we are still not fast enough. We tried some different settings for the rear part of the bike mainly but I don't have enough feeling and I don't have enough grip in the corner entry, so we have to work and we have to improve.” Profile Profile Valentino Rossi Massimo Meregalli Massimo Meregalli “We’ve experienced very difficult conditions today in the wet looking for the best set up for both Vale and Jorge. It looks like we have a lot of work tonight for tomorrow but as we have already done in the last GPs, we will work hard and be ready. We are positive, the weather forecast for the weekend is getting better and better so we expect dry conditions from tomorrow morning and a dry race.” NOTES The extended imagery from today's Free Practice sessions (1st and 2nd) at the Misano World Circuit 'Marco Simoncelli" (Misano Adriatico, Italy) is available on www.yamahamotogp.com. COMBINED FREE PRACTICE Results 1. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Ducati Team 1'49.195 2. Yonny Hernandez (COL) Energy T.I. Pramac Racing 1'50.310 3. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 1'50.356 4. Marc Marquez (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 1'50.519 5. Danilo Petrucci (ITA) Octo IodaRacing Team 1'50.641 6. Pol Espargarò (SPA) Monster Yamaha Tech3 1'50.761 7. Stefan Bradl (GER) LCR Honda MotoGP 1'50.848 8. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Movistar Yamaha MotoGP 1'51.541 9. Andrea Iannone (ITA) Pramac Racing 1'51.603 10. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Movistar Yamaha MotoGP 1'51.738 11. Cal Crutchlow (GBR) Ducati Team 1'51.757 12. Aleix Espargaro (SPA) NGM Forward Racing 1'52.164 13. Scott Redding (GBR) Go&Fun Honda Gresini 1'52.213 14. Alvaro Bautista (SPA) Go&Fun Honda Gresini 1'52.298 15. Hiroshi Aoyama (JPN) Drive M7 Aspar 1'52.584 16. Karel Abraham (CZE) Cardion AB Motoracing 1'52.814 17. Michael Laverty (GBR) Paul Bird Motorsport 1'53.326 18. Bradley Smith (GBR) Monster Yamaha Tech3 1'53.329 19. Leon Camier (GBR) Drive M7 Aspar 1'53.699 20. Alex De Angelis (RSM) NGM Forward Racing 1'54.105 21. Brok Parkes (AUS) Paul Bird Motorsport 1'56.128 22. Hector Barbera (SPA) Avintia Racing 1'56.632 23. Mike Di Meglio (FRA) Avintia Racing 1'58.788 CIRCUIT INFORMATION Technical Informations Circuit Misano Location Misano Adriatico, San Marino Length (m) 4226 Width (m) 14 Turns 16 Turns righ 10 Turns left 6 Pole position left Grand Prix of San Marino Record Lap Time 1'33.906 Rider J.Lorenzo Bike Yamaha Year 2011 Best Lap Time 1'32.915 Rider M.Marquez Bike Honda Year 2013 2013 Results 1st J.Lorenzo (Yamaha): 44'05.522 2nd M.Marquez (Honda): +3.379 3rd D.Pedrosa (Honda): +7.368 Source: Yamaha MotoGP Click here to visit our forums to discuss this story |
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