After a wet practice and two mixed ones, for the first time this MotoGP weekend the Ricardo Tormo circuit at Valencia was dry, but windy for final qualifying session of the 2012 season – it’s also the final time that we’ll be seeing this 60-minute format because in 2013 the procedure will be changed.
It was a highly intense and entertaining battle for the pole position (qualifying has become more spectacular than the races in itself) in the final ten minutes of the session, between Casey Stoner, Dani Pedrosa and Jorge Lorenzo, with the three riders banging out fast laps and exchanging the top spot, but it was Pedrosa who smoked both them -with an extraordinary final sector and a final flying lap that stopped the clock in 1.
30.
844 and breaking after six years Valentino Rossi’s lap record (and when there was still the special qualifying tires).
Jorge Lorenzo finished in second and was 0.
351s adrift from Pedrosa.
A disappointed Casey Stoner – in his last qualifying before retiring took third and complained of problems with the electronics on his Honda and the lack of grip of the new Valencia asphalt.
Following this superb front row will be Cal Crutchlow in fourth.
The British rider menaced the three riders for the pole position only to lose all his advantage always in the last sector of the circuit.
Lining up next to the satellite Yamaha rider will be Stefan Bradl and Andrea Dovizioso in his last qualifying with the Yamaha M1.
Nicky Hayden took sixth and was the best Ducati rider of the day and of the weekend so far, while his soon-to-be ex team mate Valentino Rossi qualified in a terrible 11th spot and 2.
033s off pace and sandwiched between the two Aspar CRT riders Aleix Espargaro (10th) and Randy de Puniet (12th).
Alvaro Bautista qualified 7th and he’ll be debuting a special livery on his RC213V for tomorrow’s race, while Hector Barbera finished in 9th.
MotoGP Valencia Qualfifying results:01- Dani Pedrosa – Repsol Honda Team – Honda RC213V – 1’30.
844 02- Jorge Lorenzo – Yamaha Factory Racing – Yamaha YZR M1 – + 0.
351 03- Casey Stoner – Repsol Honda Team – Honda RC213V – + 0.
584 04- Cal Crutchlow – Monster Yamaha Tech 3 – Yamaha YZR M1 – + 0.
668 05- Stefan Bradl – LCR Honda MotoGP – Honda RC213V – + 0.
913 06- Andrea Dovizioso – Monster Yamaha Tech 3 – Yamaha YZR M1 – + 0.
951 07- Nicky Hayden – Ducati Team – Ducati Desmosedici GP12 – + 1.
659 08- Alvaro Bautista – San Carlo Honda Gresini – Honda RC213V – + 1.
741 09- Hector Barbera – Pramac Racing Team – Ducati Desmosedici GP12 – + 1.
761 10- Aleix Espargaro – Power Electronics Aspar – ART GP12 – + 1.
990 11- Valentino Rossi – Ducati Team – Ducati Desmosedici GP12 – + 2.
033 12- Randy De Puniet – Power Electronics Aspar – ART GP12 – + 2.
502 13- Karel Abraham – Cardion AB Motoracing – Ducati Desmosedici GP12 – + 2.
598 14- Colin Edwards – NGM Mobile Forward Racing – Suter BMW – + 2.
609 15- Michele Pirro – San Carlo Honda Gresini – FTR Honda MGP12 – + 3.
127 16- Katsuyuki Nakasuga – Yamaha Factory Racing – Yamaha YZR M1 – + 3.
135 17- Danilo Petrucci – CAME Iodaracing Project – Ioda Suter BMW – + 3.
136 18- Ivan Silva – Avintia Blusens – BQR FTR – + 3.
563 19- Roberto Rolfo – Speed Master Team – ART GP12 – + 4.
022 20- James Ellison – Paul Bird Motorsport – ART GP12 – + 4.
074 21- Hiroshi Aoyama – Avintia Blusens – BQR FTR – + 4.
519 22- Claudio Corti – Avintia Blusens – Inmotec – + 5.
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