GRAND PRIX OF ITALY
Qualifying practice / MARCO MELANDRI READY FOR THE
RACE
FORTUNA HONDA rider Marco Melandri will start Sunday’s
Grand Prix of Italy on the second row. The Italian worked
hard on Saturday and was rewarded in the dying stages of an
intense second qualifying session. Melandri - who has made
the podium at Mugello on three occasions, although always
in the lower classes – performed consistently throughout
the day. He concentrated on improving his feeling with the
rear end of the bike and, after trying various different settings,
got the result he was looking for. Team-mate Toni Elias was
forced to settle for 12th position. The Spanish rider will
be hoping to make a good start in tomorrow’s race and
then try to keep up with the strong pace the Italian riders
are sure to set.
MARCO MELANDRI (1’49.343, 4th):
“I am satisfied with the result. My performance today
has allowed me to start on the second row which was what I
was aiming for. I am feeling good on the bike and my ‘feeling’
with the rear end has improved a lot today. I am pretty clear
about which tyres I will be using although we will see what
the Michelin people think tomorrow. It’s quite hard
to make use of qualifying tyres at this circuit. I am happy
to have performed well in front of my home fans and will give
everything to get on the podium tomorrow.”
TONI ELIAS (1’50.196, 12th):`
“I am not satisfied because even though we improved
from yesterday we are still not where we should be. It will
be important to get a good result and get in amongst the top
riders. It will not be an easy race as there are many quick
riders, I just hope we get good weather.”
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