CRUCIAL HOME POLE FOR SETE GIBERNAU
CATALUNYA GP - MOTOGP OFFICIAL QUALIFYING
Sete clinches the ninth pole position of his career as Marco
Melandri takes second place in a hot qualifying session
The Telefónica Movistar Honda MotoGP team will start
tomorrow’s Catalunya Grand Prix from the front of the
grid, with Sete Gibernau on pole position and Marco Melandri
immediately to his right as the pair aim to excel in a race
where the high temperatures and tyre choice could be the key.
In the free practice this morning last year’s MotoGP
World Championship runner-up was already on the pace, finding
a good set-up for his bike and gathering the confidence to
ride on the limit in the afternoon. With 15 minutes remaining,
Sete moved to the top of the time sheets with a lap some two
tenths of a second inside his 2004 pole record and 2.3 seconds
inside his own circuit record.
Marco Melandri was also on top form once again at a circuit
he feels comfortable with after positive winter tests here.
In the afternoon he was the only rider capable of getting
close to his team-mate, with the pair separated by jus! t
0.053 seconds at the end of the session.
Fausto Gresini’s team hope to celebrate their 150th
Grand prix in style tomorrow as they look to add to an impressive
total of 26 victories and 72 podiums.
SETE GIBERNAU (1st, 1’42”337):
“We’ve done a good job today, especially in the
morning – the pace was very good. But we can’t
get carried away at this stage because the race will be very
tough tomorrow if the temperatures stay like they were during
qualifying today. We haven’t tested too much in warm
conditions and with a few extra degrees on the track this
afternoon the grip levels were much lower and the performance
of the bike was very different. We have to take a good look
at the data and prepare ourselves as well as possible for
the race.”
MARCO MELANDRI (2nd, 1’42”390):
“Today was a very positive day. Yesterday we found the
right path to work along and we continued to! make improvements
today. The track conditions changed a lot from the morning
to the afternoon and the heat made the bike slide around quite
a lot. Michelin helped us to find more grip on the qualifying
tyre and we also set a good time on race tyres. I made a small
mistake in turn one on my fast lap but I’m very happy
with this second place.”
LAP TIMES AND GRID POSITIONS
1. Sete Gibernau (Esp/Honda) 1’42”337
2. Marco Melandri (Ita/Honda) + 0”053
3. Valentino Rossi (Ita/Yamaha) + 0”386
4. Max Biaggi (Ia/Honda) + 0”419
5. Nicky Hayden (USA/Honda) + 0”510
6. Loris Capirossi (Ita/Ducati) + 0”655
7. Colin Edwards (USA/Yamaha) + 0”772
8. Carlos Checa (Esp/Ducati) + 0”792
9. Alex Barros (Bra/Honda) + 0”822
10. Makoto Tamada (Jap/Honda) + 0”870
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