1st Pole Position for Lorenzo
Moto GP 2014
www.motorcycle-usa.com Byron Wilson
Movistar Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo grabbed his first pole position of the 2014 season at Misano with a 1’33.238 lap time. Pramac Ducati’s Andrea Iannone will start from second on the grid followed by Lorenzo’s teammate, Valentino Rossi, in third.
Lorenzo enjoyed a clear track ahead of him in the opening minutes of the session, but had Ducati’s Andrea Dovizioso hounding him from behind. The Mallorcan proved quick on his first rotation, but the Ducati ace benefitted from the tow and moved to the top of the timesheet. Lorenzo picked up the pace on his second flying lap and bumped Dovi down the ranks. Meanwhile, Repsol Honda’s Marc Marquez had gotten up to speed and soon after got the better of Lorenzo, taking provisional pole mid-way through the session.
When riders returned to track after the tire swap, Iannone showed his cards with his quickest lap of the day which put him atop the timesheet briefly. Lorenzo was also on the charge and soon after dropped the Ducati rider to second. Marquez, Rossi, Dovi and Marquez’s teammate, Dani Pedorsa, all pushed to the limit in the final stages but none were able to out-pace Lorenzo.
“Finally after a long, long time, we make a pole position so I’m very proud,” said Lorenzo. “From the beginning we’ve been competitive, not like in Silverstone where we had some issues. It seems like the Yamaha is working very well as Valentino is also very fast. I pushed hard in the beginning but maybe didn't know the perfect lines for the perfect lap. Then in the second tire I made a very good lap time but just in the first section I lost one or two tenths because I made some mistakes and went wide. From section two I made an unbelievable lap so I’m very proud.”
Marquez grabbed fourth, marking the first time this year he’s been off the front row. The points leader is still looking for the optimal set-up at the Italian circuit, hoping that more progress can be made during the warm-up prior to Sunday’s race. Pedrosa wil start from fifth followed by Dovi in sixth.
Tech 3 Yamaha’s Pol Espargaro finished seventh-fastest followed by his brother, NGM Mobile Forward Racing’s Aleix Espargaro, in eighth. Pol Espargaro’s teammate, Bradley Smith, qualified ninth ahead of LCR Honda MotoGP’s Stefan Bradl. Iannone’s teammate, Yonny Hernandez, finished 11th with Go & Fun Honda Gresnini’s Alvaro Bautista trailing in 12th.
MotoGP Misano Qualifying Results 2014
1. Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) 1’33.238
2. Andrea Iannone (Ducati) 1’33.289
3. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 1’33. 302
4. Marc Marquez (Honda) 1’33.360
5. Dani Pedrosa (Honda) 1’33.418
6. Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati) 1’33.439
7. Pol Espargaro (Yamaha) 1’33.557
8. Aleix Espargaro (Forward Yamaha) 1’33.713
9. Bradley Smith (Yamaha) 1’33.761
10. Stefan Bradl (Honda) 1’33.995
11. Yonny Hernandez (Ducati) 1’34.283
12. Alvaro Bautista (Honda) 1’34.640
13. Cal Crutchlow (Ducati) 1’34.495
14. Scott Redding (Honda) 1’34.919
15. Hiroshi Aoyama (Honda) 1’34.966
16. Leon Camier (Honda) 1’35.275
17. Karel Abraham (Honda) 1’35.292
18. Michael Laverty (PBM) 1’35.589
19. Alex De Angelis (Forward Yamaha) 1’35.679
20. Broc Parkes (PBM) 1’36.317
21. Hector Barbera (Avintia) 1’36.689
22. Mike Di Meglio (Avintia) 1’42.497
23. Danilo Petrucci (ART) 1’37.417