GRAND PRIX OF ITALY
Second qualifying practice / JORGE LORENZO CLAIMS HIS FOURTH
POLE OF THE SEASON IN MUGELLO
Jorge Lorenzo clinched his third pole of the season at the
Italian Grand Prix which is taking place in Mugello this weekend.
The Mallorcan FORTUNA APRILIA rider was the only rider to
break the 1’54 mark and finished some four tenths clear
of Japanese rider Yukio Takahasi in second. It is good news
for Lorenzo who has won the two races in which he has started
from pole this season, in Spain and Qatar. Hector Barbera,
who went quickest in the morning session, had to settle for
seventh position and will start from the second row. The Valencian
rider had problems with the front end of his Aprilia and was
some six tenths down on his team-mate. The two Fortuna Aprilia
riders will now be hoping to fine-tune their set-ups in the
warm-up and will then be hoping for good weather in the race.
JORGE LORENZO 1’53.787 - POLE POSITION
“I am happy because I am competitive again, although
I must focus on the race tomorrow which is the important thing.
I was anxious to get back to the top and pushed really hard
to achieve that and get in the 1’53s. Tomorrow in the
warm-up I will look to maintain my rhythm but there is not
much time to prepare. I needed a performance like this to
break my bad run which has lasted since Turkey. I want to
thank the team as they have worked hard to help me and I hope
I can give them a reason to start smiling again tomorrow.”
HECTOR BARBERA 1’54.451 - 7th
“I am having the same problems as I did in Le Mans
as I don’t have the necessary confidence in the front
end to go fast. It has cost me lowering the suspension as
the circuit is a bit uneven and that has made me lose some
confidence on the bike. I have spent all weekend trying different
things but have not found the right set-up. We will try something
else in the warm-up tomorrow but it’s obvious we are
going to need a miracle to be up at the front. The race will
be very hard but I am hoping to score some good points.”
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