TONI ELIAS TO START FROM SECOND ROW AT HOME GRAND PRIX
The Team Fortuna Honda seals an excellent sixth place today
as Melandri continues to work on his setting and secures seventh
spot.
Toni Elias' adaptation to the Honda RC211V continued in fine
style today as the Team Fortuna Honda rider began to reap
the fruit of his hard work during the winter tests. Tomorrow
he will celebrate his 23rd birthday by starting from the second
row of the grid in the Grand Prix of Spain.
After working well in the morning free practice, the afternoon
qualifying was an exciting affair. Oil left on track by Ducati
rider Alex Hofmann caused several riders to crash, including
Toni Elias. Fortunately there were no serious consequences
for the Manresa youngster and he was able to return to the
track on his second bike. It was a positive session for Elias,
who improved his pace and enjoyed himself on the qualifying
tyre with the sixth fastest time.
It was an intense day for his team-mate Marco Melandri, who
continued to work on finding the best set-up for his RC211V.
After setting the fastest time in the morning free practice,
Marco worked mainly on his rear tyres in the afternoon before
setting the seventh fastest time - enough for the third row.
TONI ELIAS (1'39"875, 6th fastest): "I'm
really satisfied with the result. After the good job we did
this morning I have to say that I set my sights on a front
row start. I'm in the right shape to have a really good race.
Tomorrow it will be important to get a good start. I'm highly
motivated - the support from the Spanish fans will be like
an extra gear. The bike is working well and I have improved
my pace. It is a shame about the crash at the start of qualifying,
which was a bit of a setback because I had to continue with
my second bike."
MARCO MELANDRI (1'39"932, 7th fastest): "It
was an intense day. Qualifying started with a multiple crash
which delayed things. It also made me ride a little cautiously
because there was oil in the Nieto corner which got in the
way of the normal racing line. My priority today was the set-up
of the bike. We tried a few different settings as well as
testing the tyres. Tomorrow will be a really nice race, very
combative, with a lot of riders in the fight for the podium."
QUALIFYING PRACTICE TIMES
1. L.Capirossi (Ita/Ducati) 1'39"064
2. S.Gibernau (Sp/Ducati) 1'39"285
3. S.Nakano (Jap/Kawasaki) 1'39"526
4. N.Hayden (Usa/Honda) 1'39"666
5. D.Pedrosa (Sp/Honda) 1'39"734
6. T.ELIAS (Sp/Honda) 1'39"875
7. M.MELANDRI (Ita/Honda) 1'39"932
8. R.De Puniet (FR/Kawasaki) 1'40"146
9. V.Rossi (Ita/Yamaha) 1'40"160
10. C.Edwards (Usa/Yamaha) 1'40"181
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