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Sunday October 25, 2009

Yamaha ace Rossi pips rival Lorenzo to pole with record lap

STORIES by LIM TEIK HUAT

VALENTINO Rossi will bid to secure a seventh world title in premier class from pole position after a stunning ride in the MotoGP qualifying session at the Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix at Sepang Circuit yesterday.

The reigning world champion from Italy clocked a best lap of 2:00.518 to smash the pole record at Sepang. Fellow Yamaha Racing team-mate Jorge Lorenzo and Honda rider Dani Pedrosa complete the front row.

The Italian broke his own previous pole record at the circuit recorded on a 990cc machine in 2006 by 0.087s and was 0.569s faster than his Spanish team-mate.

Pedrosa was fastest in morning practice but was unable to match the blistering pace set by Rossi, finishing a further 0.167s behind Lorenzo.

Earful: Valentino Rossi listening to his mechanic during the qualifying session yesterday. Rossi earned pole position with a 2:00.518 lap.

The temperature during qualifying reached a sweltering 34°C but even that could not slow down Rossi.

The 30-year-old championship leader topped the timesheets early on and made way for Ducati rider Casey Stoner of Australia halfway into the one-hour session.

However, Rossi regained the lead soon and continued to improve his time before a stunning last lap saw him erasing his previous record.

Rossi showed his delight at earning his seventh pole position of the season by doing a wheelie and pumping his left fist as he crossed the finish line.

“I am so happy about the final lap. I could not believe it when I saw it on my dashboard. I thought it was possible to go faster but not by that much,” said Rossi, who has a 34-point lead in the championship and will seal the world title with one round to spare if he finishes fourth or better today.

“My team and I worked very well here and we had a good strategy with Bridgestone (tyres), which left us with plenty of time at the end to try for the pole.

“It’s very important to be on the front row here, so we have done our job well ... plus I am confident about the setting and race pace.

“It’s incredibly hot and tomorrow (today) will be hard for everyone but we have a good advantage and I am looking forward to the battle.”

Lorenzo, who crashed at the Australian Grand Prix last Sunday and is currently second in the championship standings, said it was not his best day.

“I found things quite hard. The conditions were the same as yesterday so I can’t blame them ... but we just do not have the same levels of grip and confidence that we had before. I will try my best to be in better shape before the race,” said the Spaniard.

Pedrosa, who has won the 125cc and 250cc races at Sepang before, will aim to complete his collection by winning the 21-lap MotoGP race today.

“I’m happy to be on the front row again because, as always, this gives you a clear getaway when the start lights go out,” said Pedrosa.

“I think we have a good machine setting for the race tomorrow (today) and we just need to adjust it a little bit during the warm-up. I’m very motivated for this race.”

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