Stoner back on front row

From Marlboro Ducati

Casey Stoner and Marco Melandri played leading roles in qualifying practice for the Grand Prix of China Saturday afternoon.

The Australian returned his Ducati to the front row of the grid with the third fastest time of 1:58.591 while the Italian managed to find a good race pace and was as high as fourth place with race tires before the push for grid positions on qualifying tires.

Stoner found a good setting for his GP8 in race trim and on the Bridgestone qualifying tires.

"First of all I want to say a big thank you to the team," Stoner said. "We had a great result in Qatar and we knew Jerez and Estoril would be tough but we didn't realize how tough. Despite that nobody lost their head, everybody has stayed calm and together and this is the sign of a great team.

"We found a good base setting for this track yesterday, with much improved front feeling, and today we were able to work on finding better grip on the rear. It's still not perfect but the lap times are good and it feels great to know we're competitive again.

"Also, I want to say thanks to Bridgestone because they came up with a really competitive qualifying tire and it allowed us to get on the front row for the first time this season."

Melandri, meanwhile, finally enjoyed a session without any setbacks and was able to work on weight distribution, electronics and tires he was able to find a much improved set-up for Sunday's race. He wound up 12th with a time of 1:59.678.