2011 MotoGP
In Free Practice 3 at Mugello, Jorge Lorenzo was the MotoGP rider dominating the grid, the Yamaha Factory Racing rider posting a new lap record.
But during qualifying, Repsol Honda’s Casey Stoner topped Lorenzo’s time. En route to his 27th pole position, the fifth of the 2011 MotoGP Championship, the Australian set the new lap record of 1:48.034.
This was blistering fast, considering the man starting from second – the American Ben Spies – posted a 1:48.479. Spies, who took his maiden MotoGP victory at Assen last weekend, was followed by San Carlo Honda Gresini’s Marco Simoncelli. The Italian was a mere 0.006 of a second slower than Spies as he took the final spot on the front row.
Taking the top spot on the second row was Stoner’s Italian counterpart, Andrea Dovizioso. He posted a 1:48.694, and will be joined by Lorenzo, who was 0.062 of a second behind, and Monster Tech 3 Yamaha’s Colin Edwards; the Texan was 0.218 of a second slower than Lorenzo.
On the third row will be Edwards’ teammate Cal Crutchow, the final rider to post within a second of Stoner, Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa and Ducati Team’s Nicky Hayden.
As for Valentino Rossi, the nine-time World Champion will start 12th aboard the GP.11.1.
2011 Mugello MotoGP: Qualifying Results
| Pos. | Num. | Rider | Nation | Team | Bike | Km/h | Time | Gap 1st/Prev. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 27 | Casey STONER | AUS | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 322.3 | 1’48.034 | |
| 2. | 11 | Ben SPIES | USA | Yamaha Factory Racing | Yamaha | 319.2 | 1’48.479 | 0.445 / 0.445 |
| 3. | 58 | Marco SIMONCELLI | ITA | San Carlo Honda Gresini | Honda | 321.0 | 1’48.485 | 0.451 / 0.006 |
| 4. | 4 | Andrea DOVIZIOSO | ITA | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 324.8 | 1’48.694 | 0.660 / 0.209 |
| 5. | 1 | Jorge LORENZO | SPA | Yamaha Factory Racing | Yamaha | 323.1 | 1’48.756 | 0.722 / 0.062 |
| 6. | 5 | Colin EDWARDS | USA | Monster Yamaha Tech 3 | Yamaha | 314.9 | 1’48.974 | 0.940 / 0.218 |
| 7. | 35 | Cal CRUTCHLOW | GBR | Monster Yamaha Tech 3 | Yamaha | 318.9 | 1’49.021 | 0.987 / 0.047 |
| 8. | 26 | Dani PEDROSA | SPA | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 317.9 | 1’49.398 | 1.364 / 0.377 |
| 9. | 69 | Nicky HAYDEN | USA | Ducati Team | Ducati | 320.5 | 1’49.509 | 1.475 / 0.111 |
| 10. | 8 | Hector BARBERA | SPA | Mapfre Aspar Team MotoGP | Ducati | 327.2 | 1’49.663 | 1.629 / 0.154 |
| 11. | 17 | Karel ABRAHAM | CZE | Cardion AB Motoracing | Ducati | 323.8 | 1’49.678 | 1.644 / 0.015 |
| 12. | 46 | Valentino ROSSI | ITA | Ducati Team | Ducati | 320.7 | 1’49.902 | 1.868 / 0.224 |
| 13. | 7 | Hiroshi AOYAMA | JPN | San Carlo Honda Gresini | Honda | 322.7 | 1’50.156 | 2.122 / 0.254 |
| 14. | 19 | Alvaro BAUTISTA | SPA | Rizla Suzuki MotoGP | Suzuki | 322.1 | 1’50.460 | 2.426 / 0.304 |
| 15. | 14 | Randy DE PUNIET | FRA | Pramac Racing Team | Ducati | 320.0 | 1’50.651 | 2.617 / 0.191 |
| 16. | 24 | Toni ELIAS | SPA | LCR Honda MotoGP | Honda | 324.2 | 1’50.742 | 2.708 / 0.091 |
