Stoner takes MotoGP pole

From motogp.com

A first pole position since the season-opening race in Qatar was the result of hard work and progressive changes to his bike for Casey Stoner and his Ducati Team crew at Aragón on Saturday, as the Australian qualified in pole position for Round 13.

Stoner has struggled with front end problems this season on his Desmosedici GP10 but in qualifying he set a blistering pace. The 24-year-old was the only rider under 1:49 at 0.309 secs. quicker than closest rival Jorge Lorenzo, and explained that the modifications made to his machine had enabled him to feel more comfortable when pushing for faster lap times.

“We've been trying different things for the last few weekends to try and get the bike more competitive without making really big progress but it looks like we might have found something here,” said Stoner. “We've changed the weight distribution a little bit and it has given me more grip and confidence.

"Maybe it's just the fact the bike suits this place but either way we've got to be happy to be back on pole for the first time since Qatar. I also like riding at new circuits – when you haven't already done a million laps around a place it's always refreshing.”

A change in riding style for Lorenzo paid dividends as the Spaniard qualified in second position for the Gran Premio A-Style de Aragón. The Championship leader has qualified on the front row for every round this season and his presence in the top three on the starting grid now stretches back 15 races to the Malaysian round last season.

After a first day that was affected by poor weather conditions as Lorenzo also familiarized himself with the circuit on his M1 on Friday, Saturday proved very productive and the 23-year-old Fiat Yamaha rider was consistently fast throughout the morning practice and afternoon qualifying.

There is still room for improvement Lorenzo said, adding: “We are losing some time on the straight at the end of the lap so we have to be very strong in all the other parts to try to make up for it. We can't do anything about this so it's important that I know how to ride the rest of the track perfectly.”

Third position on the starting grid and 0.401 secs. off pole position does not tell the full story of Dani Pedrosa’s qualifying session on Saturday. The Repsol Honda battled for first place throughout the session and looked on course to pip Stoner to top spot on his final lap before a mistake cost him a fifth pole of the season.

Pedrosa was 0.215 secs. up on Stoner’s pole time when he went through the second split on his final lap of the session, but pushing hard the Repsol Honda rider ran wide and eventually placed third in the session. Starting from the front row at Aragón was Pedrosa’s aim before the session and he was pleased with how things went.

“I’m happy to be on the front row as this was our main target for this afternoon’s session. I just made a little mistake and ran wide on my last fast lap when I was going well and was 0.2 secs. ahead, so I think pole position could have been possible, but the front row is the important thing,” said Pedrosa.

MotoGP Qualifying Results
1. Casey STONER (AUS) Ducati 1:48.942
2. Jorge LORENZO (SPA) Fiat Yamaha 1:49.251
3. Dani PEDROSA (SPA) Repsol Honda 1:49.343
4. Nicky HAYDEN (USA) Ducati 1:49.506
5. Ben SPIES (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha 1:49.565
6. Randy DE PUNIET (FRA) LCR Honda 1:49.952
7. Valentino ROSSI (ITA) Fiat Yamaha 1:50.017
8. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (ITA) Repsol Honda 1:50.046
9. Marco SIMONCELLI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda 1:50.088
10. Hector BARBERA (SPA) Paginas Amarillas Aspar Ducati 1:50.323
11. Colin EDWARDS (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha 1:50.440
12. Alvaro BAUTISTA (SPA) Rizla Suzuki 1:50.523
13. Aleix ESPARGARO (SPA) Pramac Ducati 1:50.537
14. Marco MELANDRI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda 1:50.580
15. Hiroshi AOYAMA (JPN) Interwetten Honda 1:50.836
16. Mika KALLIO (FIN) Pramac Ducati 1:51.490