Dani Pedrosa Wins MotoGP Pole Position In Barcelona

Participation in a private test held in late May at Circuit of Catalunya-Barcelona has thus far played a crucial role in the outcome of this weekend's Grand Prix of Catalunya, Round 7 of the MotoGP World Championship.

On Saturday afternoon, Dani Pedrosa posted the quickest time of the weekend, a 1:43.870, to earn pole position for Sunday's 25-lap race. Ducati-mounted Jorge Lorenzo (1:44.201) and Danilo Petrucci (1:44.220) will join the Repsol Honda rider on the front row of the grid.

Neither current points leader Maverick Vinales nor last year’s race winner, Valentino Rossi, took part in the aforementioned test. On Saturday in qualifying, the factory Yamaha duo were only able to manage ninth and 13th, respectively.

In fact, Tech 3’s Jonas Folger, eighth quickest, one spot ahead of Movistar rider Vinales, was the top Yamaha qualifier. Both Folger and Vinales were forced to claw their way through the first of two 15-minute qualifying sessions.

“It’s really a big advantage when you do a test beforehand,” said Michelin’s Nicolas Goubert. “In Le Mans, for example, Yamaha went before the race to do some testing and they won. At Mugello, Ducati went 10 days before and they won the race.

“The first session [on Friday] was difficult because we had a little bit of rain so it wasn’t very useful to set up the bike. Then, a little bit different layout the second day, which made the time to set up the bikes very short. That’s why I think the Yamahas are struggling.”

The “different layout” to which Goubert referred is the Turns 14 and 15 chicane, which had previously been altered to the Formula 1 spec following the death last year of Moto2 rider Luis Salom. Crews labored overnight to restore the changes.

“The riders said the work wasn’t done in the right way and there were a lot of bumps,” said Dorna representative Loris Capirossi. “We saw during practice a lot of crashes, where the bike remained on the track and at the exit of the corner, and that’s very dangerous.”

That modification didn’t stop riders from crashing in other sections of the racetrack. Marc Marquez led the way with four falls, none of which resulted in injury. His third slip came with less than 10 minutes remaining in Qualifying 2.

Marquez’s second machine was already under cover in the team garage, too beat up to fix in time for Q2. With a new footpeg and a fresh rear tire, however, the 24-year-old Spaniard was actually able to improve his time and finish fourth. He fell again with seconds remaining in the session.

“When the temperature gets so high, the front tire moves a lot,” Marquez said. “But I was at my home GP, so I gave it my all and tried 100 percent. I crashed, but we’ll start from fourth, which isn’t that bad. If I’m able to keep calm and ride more smoothly, we’ll be okay.”

“Barcelona is always quite a challenge because of the layout first of all and then the track surface is getting old,” Goubert said. “It’s very abrasive on the tires, and the grip level is very low. Plus, track temperature was over 50 degrees.”

Lorenzo was one of four Ducati riders to qualify in the top seven spots. The five-time world champion could be seen braking hard and late entering corners, rear end of the factory GP17 wagging in the air, quite unlike his traditional high corner-speed style.

“We had the pace in some races but in qualifying we couldn’t stay in the first row,” Lorenzo said. “We did something in Jerez and made the podium. At Mugello, we led the race and here, first time on the first row.”

Petrucci is likewise on a roll, the OCTO Pramac rider earning a podium finish last week at Mugello and in Barcelona, his first premier-class front-row start. “It’s very, very hot,” he said. “Tomorrow will be difficult, especially because tire consumption will be high.

“I made two or three mistakes—not really mistakes, but I go wide in some corners. I lose the tire three times, and I say, ‘Okay, I finish the job.’ We will see tomorrow. Hopefully, a top five will be possible. The podium will be very difficult.”

Pedrosa qualified on pole earlier this season at Jerez and won that race. “We were trying a lot of things today—settings and tires,” he said. “Tire life is very important, so we are focused on it. This is a track that is difficult to control, but we will try to manage.”

Conditions on Sunday are expected to be worse. As Marquez said on Thursday, choosing the best tire will be crucial. “The weather forecast is very hot,” Goubert said. “Some guys will go with the hard, some will go with the medium—maybe a mixed choice between front and rear.”

Vinales will surely toss and turn in his bed tonight. “I tried many setups today and nothing is working—not even our basic setup,” he said. “I will try my best.” Translation: This is a disaster. If I can score points on Sunday, I’ll be happy.