Sachsenring MotoGP: Pedrosa Tops FP1

2012 Germany Grand Prix Free Practice 1 Results

Round eight of the 2012 MotoGP Championship at Sachsenring, Germany, got underway Friday with the first of three free practice sessions.

And the man who finished on the podium in all but one round so far this season was the leader – Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa.

The Spaniard posted a 1:22.357, finishing just 0.087 of a second ahead of his teammate Casey Stoner. The factory RC213Vs were once again in dominate form in FP1, finishing almost three-tenths of a second ahead of a few Yamaha YZR-M1 machines.

In third was the man who is tied with Stoner heading into round eight at Sachsenring – Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jorge Lorenzo. The 2010 MotoGP Champion, who’s nursing a sore ankle from the controversial first-lap crash at Assen, finished 0.290 of a second behind Pedrosa.

Two satellite Yamahas followed; Monster Tech 3 Yamaha’s Andrea Dovizioso took fourth quickest, 0.565 of a second behind Pedrosa, followed by his teammate Cal Crutchlow, who nurses a fractured left ankle he injured at Silverstone.

The top Ducati time went to Pramac Racing’s Hector Barbera, 0.734 of a second behind Pedrosa, with Ducati Team’s Nicky Hayden in seventh only a hundredth of a second behind Barbera. As for Hayden’s teammate, nine-time World Champion Valentino Rossi, he finished 11th quickest.

Rounding out the top 10 during the first free practice were San Carlo Honda Gresini’s Álvaro Bautista in eighth, followed by LCR Honda’s Stefan Bradl and Yamaha Factory Racing’s Ben Spies.

MotoGP says Speed Master’s Mattia Pasini suffered an unusual crash in pit lane, as he fell awkwardly on his head avoiding a mechanic in pit-lane. He was declared fit at the track, but headed to the local hospital in Chemnitz for further checks. The only other crash in the session was De Puniet’s teammate Aleix Espargaró in turn 10, while Bautista’s teammate Michele Pirro, and Cardion AB Racing’s replacement rider Franco Battaini, both narrowly avoided falls as they took fast excursions into the gravel trap.

2012 Sachsenring MotoGP Free Practice 1 Results: