Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

1. Loris CAPIROSSI, Ducati, 1:38.412
2. Max BIAGGI, Honda, 1:38.718
3. Valentino ROSSI, Honda, 1:38.744
4. Sete GIBERNAU, Honda, 1:38.920
5. Olivier JACQUE, Yamaha, 1:39.042
6. Shinya NAKANO, Yamaha, 1:39.159
7. Carlos CHECA, Yamaha, 1:39.225
8. Troy BAYLISS, Ducati, 1:39.344
9. Makoto TAMADA, Honda, 1:39.368
10. Tohru UKAWA, Honda, 1:39.541
11. Marco MELANDRI, Yamaha, 1:39.557
12. Alex BARROS, Yamaha, 1:39.571
13. Colin EDWARDS, Arilia, 1:39.837
14. Kenny ROBERTS, Suzuki, 1:39.839
15. Nicky HAYDEN, Honda, 1:40.069
16. John HOPKINS, Suzuki, 1:40.766
17. Noriyuki HAGA, Aprilia, 1:40.779
18. Jeremy McWILLIAMS, Proton, 1:40.794
19. Ryuichi KIYONARI, Honda, 1:40.883
20. Andrew PITT, Kawasaki, 1:41.020
21. David DE GEA, Harris WCM, 1:41.105
22. Garry McCOY, Kawasaki, 1:41.485
23. Nobuatsu AOKI, Proton, 1:41.656
24. Chris BURNS, Harris WCM, 1:42.199



Final 250cc Grand Prix Qualifying Results
1. Toni ELIAS, Aprilia, 1:42.255
2. Randy DE PUNIET, Aprilia, 1:42.458
3. S.GUINTOLI, Aprilia, 1:42.554
4. Manuel POGGIALI, Aprilia, 1:42.675
5. Sebastian PORTO, Honda, 1:42.682
6. Franco BATTAINI, Aprilia, 1:42.892
7. Roberto ROLFO, Honda, 1:42.902
8. Fonsi NIETO, Aprilia, 1:43.009
9. N. MATSUDO, Yamaha, 1:43.149
10. Alex DEBON, Honda, 1:43.340
11. Anthony West, Aprilia, 1:44.001
12. E. BATAILLE, Honda, 1:44.272
13. H. MARCHAND, Aprilia, 1:44.401
14. C. DAVIES, Aprilia, 1:44.835
15. C. GEMMEL, Honda, 1:44.890
16. A. BALDOLINI, Aprilia, 1:44.924
17. J. OLIVE, Aprilia, 1:44.939
18. D. HEIDOLF, Aprilia, 1:45.016
19. J. STIGEFELT, Aprilia, 1:45.171
20. E. NIGON, Aprilia, 1:45.227
29. Katja Poensgen, Honda, 1:48.181



Final 125cc Grand Prix Qualifying Results:

1. Alex De Angelis, Aprilia, 1:45.580
2. Daniel Pedrosa, Honda, 1:46.106
3. Jorge Lorenzo, Derbi, 1:46.278
4. Stefano Perugini, Aprilia, 1:46.323
5. Pablo Nieto, Aprilia, 1:46.330
6. Marco Simoncelli, Aprilia, 1:46.414
7. Gino Borsoi, Aprilia, 1:46.449
8. Andrea Dovizioso, Honda, 1:46.479
9. Steve Jenkner, Aprilia, 1:46.739
10. Gabor Talmacsi, Aprilia, 1:46.793
11. Lucio Cecchinello, Aprilia, 1:46.800
12. Youichi Ui, Gilera, 1:46.901
13. Arnaud Vincent, Aprilia, 1:46.913
14. Thomas Luthi, Honda, 1:46.967
15. Masao Azuma, Honda, 1:47.009
16. Mirko Giansanti, 1:47.055
17. Stefano Bianco, Gilera, 1:47.165
18. Simone Corsi, Honda, 1:47.186
19. Mika Kallio, KTM, 1:47.246
20. J. Simon, Malaguti, 1:47.303

22. Hector Barbera, Aprilia, 1:47.392
23. Roberto Locatellli, KTM, 1:47.456

26. Casey Stoner, Aprilia, 1:47.805



More, from a press release issued by Harris WCM:

PORTUGESE GP- ESTORIL
HARRIS – WCM
Final Qualifying – Saturday 6th September

David de Gea – 21st 1:41.105
“A very good day for me, my mechanics and the whole team. I am very happy, the bike is working well and my lap times are very consistent.

“Tomorrow we are aiming for fast, consistent lap times, somewhere in the 43s.

“I am so happy also, to finish in front of the factory Kawasaki of McCoy and up to the final lap, I was in 20th position, in front of Pitt also.”


Chris Burns ­ 24th 1:42.199
“I am disappointed to be where I am at the rear of the grid, but hopefully I will not be finishing the race in that position tomorrow. It’s my first time here, so I am getting to know my way around now, after not having an opportunity yesterday to put in many laps at all. I’ve done 42 laps today,

“I’m struggling a bit with some front chatter and the engine braking is very sensitive, so we have a few things to work on overnight, but basically the bike feels strong.

“I guess my laps times aren’t too bad and I have made a significant improvement on my times from yesterday. Tomorrow I finally get to race the four stroke, I really look forward to that.”


Peter Clifford ­ Team Manager
“I’m absolutely thrilled. Everyone’s done a brilliant job. We only came here with two engines for the two riders and we’ve qualified in front of people with more money, backing and track time.

“We all know that it is race day that counts, but I certainly wasn’t sure that we’d get this far on our first attempt.”


More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

Marlboro Portuguese GP, Estoril
Final Qualifying
Saturday, September 6 2003

DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM TAKES THIRD POLE OF 2003


Ducati Marlboro Team rider Loris Capirossi stormed to pole position at windswept Estoril this afternoon, team-mate Troy Bayliss securing a second-row start for his first race at this challenging circuit. Capirossi’s third pole of the year highlights recent detail improvements to the team’s awesomely fast Desmosedici MotoGP bike. These upgrades include a new Ohlins front fork, a new chassis and new bodywork which improve the bike’s rideability.

“We are always improving our motorcycles,” said Ducati Corse CEO Claudio Domenicali. “These latest upgrades are not huge improvements, but Ducati’s philosophy is always this – that many tiny steps forward give you a big step forward. We already knew that the basic concept of the Desmosedici is good, so now we are building on that concept, using our racing experience to keep moving forward. And we like to stay loyal to what we know – like our desmodromic engine and trellis chassis – which is why we don’t experiment with totally new technology all the time. We prefer steady improvements.

“Tomorrow’s race will be difficult. Maybe we didn’t have the fastest overall pace this afternoon but we made some tiny improvements to our set-up today and maybe we can make some more for the race.”

CAPIROSSI’S POLE TIME 1.38s INSIDE 2002 POLE

Loris Capirossi rode the fastest-ever lap of Estoril in this afternoon’s final qualifying session to secure pole position for tomorrow’s Marlboro Portuguese GP for the Ducati Marlboro Team. This is the third pole of
the year for the Italian rider and his crew; previously Capirossi had qualified fastest for May’s Spanish GP and June’s Dutch TT. He also won Ducati’s first MotoGP victory at Catalunya in June.

“I’m very happy,” grinned Capirossi, whose pole time was a phenomenal 1.38 seconds inside last year’s Estoril pole. “We’ve done a great job here over the past two days, and this pole position is like a present for everyone in the team. The bike was perfect this afternoon. This morning I was joking with (Sete) Gibernau that I’d do a 1:38.5, but I went even faster than that, which is great. The race will be very difficult but after today I’m confident that I can be part of the fight for victory.”


ESTORIL ROOKIE BAYLISS EIGHTH FASTEST

Ducati Marlboro Team rider Troy Bayliss was happy enough with his qualifying performance that puts him on the second row for his first race at Estoril. The Australian continued to make progress with set-up throughout today and completed all of this morning’s session with the same Michelin rear, making him confident that he’s got a good tyre choice for tomorrow’s race.

“I’ve not got a lot of experience here – we only got one dry day of testing here pre-season – so I’m happy with eighth, it’s about normal,” said Bayliss, who rode his best MotoGP race so far at Brno three weeks ago, finishing third, just 0.6 seconds behind the winner.

“We made some progress on a few things today, especially fixing some instability we’d been having on the brakes, and I’ve got a few more ideas for tomorrow. But like every GP it’s during the race that we really learn stuff, which will hopefully pay off next year. The plan is to make some more progress in morning warm-up, then get a good start in the race.”


More, from a press release issued by John Hopkins’ publicist:

HOPKINS REPORTS PROGRESS AT MOTO GRAND PRIX OF PORTUGAL

ESTORIL, Portugal – Suzuki MotoGP rider John Hopkins improved on his times from Friday to Saturday’s sessions and qualified 17th for Sunday’s Grand Prix of Portugal with a time of 1:40.766 on the 4.2-kilometer Estoril Circuit. Hopkins noted steady improvement in the Suzuki GSV Grand Prix bike during the weekend. He cited lack of time on the Estoril track as the main reason he didn’t qualify higher.

“This track is super tight and pretty bumpy in places,” Hopkins explained. “I’m still trying to come to terms with the last section of the track. Today I think I finally found some lines by following some of the others around. Last year we had a lot of wet sessions, plus I was on a two-stroke and the lines were totally different. Bottom line is I’m still coming up to speed with this track. I’d say it’s one of the more difficult tracks to learn.”

Ducati’s Loris Capirossi took the pole position, the Italian lapping at 1:38.412.

Hopkins said his team found a suspension link that worked well in the morning session, but less so in the warmer temperatures of the qualifying session.

“The Ohlins (suspension) guys helped us with a spring that made a little improvement,” Hopkins said. “It really doesn’t show that much in the lap times, but it makes the bike more predictable and comfortable to ride.”

Hopkins said he hopes to put some finishing touches on getting his lines dialed in during the morning warm-up session tomorrow and hopes to turn in a solid race.

“In the morning I’ll try to perfect that last section of track and find a good rhythm through there. Hopefully in the race I’ll be able to get into a groove and hook up with a group and turn in some good laps.”

Hopkins finished eighth at Estoril last season after qualifying 15th.


More, from a press release issued by Fortuna Yamaha:

Portuguese Grand Prix
Saturday, 6 September 2003
Estoril, Portugal

CHECA AND MELANDRI IMPROVE TIMES IN GUSTY FINAL QUALIFIER

Fortuna Yamaha Team riders Carlos Checa and Marco Melandri and their MotoGP competitors, battled against brutally windy conditions and each other in today’s final qualifying session of the Portuguese Grand Prix. The offshore winds, which gusted up to 28kmh, prevented any significant improvement from yesterday’s first qualifying times until the final ten minutes of today’s session. It was at this stage that the leader board became rather active, and Fortuna Yamaha Team riders Checa and Melandri both improved on their times from yesterday, eventually finishing the session seventh and eleventh fastest respectively.

Checa produced a lap time of 1:39.225 during the qualifier to feature on the front row but unfortunately that result did not stick, and he was relegated back to seventh as the chequered flag brought the session to a close. He entered the session confident that he could improve on his provisional qualifying time and did just that, by 0.680 seconds. Unfortunately it was not enough to hold onto his provisional sixth place on the grid, despite being only 0.813 seconds off pole.

The Spaniard felt that although progress had been made with the base set-up of his Yamaha YZR-M1 machine, he was still losing time in stages of the twisty circuit. “I’ve been trying as hard as I can but I couldn’t get past the same limitations that we had yesterday,” said the thirty-year-old. “We tried new tyres this afternoon, which offered some improvement, but I still need more side grip in some areas, especially on the front. I was feeling quite slow in all parts of the circuit today, but especially the last part. It’s most difficult in the areas where the bike is on its side for a long time. Anyway seventh is not the worse qualifying position – hopefully I can get a good start. I will discuss it again with my crew and see if there are any more changes we can make to solve my difficulties.”

Marco Melandri had a similar story to that of his team-mate Checa in today’s session. After an impressive and consistent run this afternoon where he featured well in the top ten throughout, the young Italian posted the third fastest time with only three minutes remaining. However in the final moments of the session he was pushed back to the third row of the starting grid, ending the session in eleventh position with a time of 1:39.557.

The twenty-one-year-old is still confident that he will be able to put in a competitive performance in tomorrow’s race. “This morning was not so bad,” said the current 250cc World Champion. “Then we had some problems this afternoon with the tyres that we’re considering for the race. It was windier this afternoon than this morning as well, and the tyres felt a bit too hard for me in these conditions. In the end I was quite fast in the first three sections of the track but slow in the last section – I think it was the same for the other Yamahas. On the last corner I couldn’t get on the power well enough and I don’t know why. Anyway I felt better than yesterday and better than in Brno. The qualifying is so fast and tight now, it’s unbelievable. Hopefully I will be able to follow some of the faster riders and then stay with them!”

Setting the benchmark in today’s session was Ducati rider Loris Capirossi, who bettered Checa’s 2002 pole position time by 1.381 seconds. He secured the number one slot with a time of 1:38.412 ahead of Max Biaggi (Honda, 1:38.718), Valentino Rossi (Honda, 1:38.774) and Sete Gibernau (Honda, 1:38.920). Leading the second row was Olivier Jacque (Gauloises Yamaha Team, 1:39.042) – the Frenchman was unable to hold onto his provisional number two grid position after a small mistake on his flying lap.

Fortuna Yamaha Team Director Davide Brivio said, “Despite not finding the perfect set-up I think Carlos can run at a good pace, and his starting position is okay. I hope to see him stay in the top group again. At the end of the session Marco improved a lot but he has difficulty in the last part of the track, so we need to work to see if we can solve that. Normally he is a good starter so he could do well. He went out just for one fast lap and didn’t really have the chance to improve further, so I think he’s got more to give. It was very windy out there, so I hope for everyone’s sake that it calms down a bit by tomorrow.”


More, from a press release issued by Fuchs Kawasaki:

MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2003
ROUND 11 – GRANDE PREMIO MARLBORO DE PORTUGAL
6TH SEPTEMBER 2003 – QUALIFYING PRACTICE 2

SICK PITT FLIES FOR FUCHS KAWASAKI AT ESTORIL

Despite suffering from an energy-sapping heavy cold Fuchs Kawasaki rider Andrew Pitt produced a dramatic improvement in lap times to qualify on the fifth row of the grid for tomorrow’s Portuguese Grand Prix.

Pitt cut 1.3s from his Friday time to hold 20th on grid from the opening qualifying session. A MotoGP rookie, Pitt worked solidly to fine tune his knowledge of the Estoril circuit using the base set-up from the recent Brno race where he finished as the first Kawasaki rider in 16th.

However it was a frustrating day for Pitt’s team-mate Garry McCoy, who went just two tenths faster and dropped four places down the grid to 22nd on the final time sheet.

McCoy is considered a master of the always windy Estoril, but today he struggled to find a comfortable set-up for the long sequence of tight, slow corners.

This section contrasts dramatically with the fast main straight where Pitt’s Ninja ZX-RR today posted an impressive 316 kph in the radar speed trap just before the braking zone into turn one.

Having been restricted to one bike during Friday’s practice and qualifying because of an electrical problem McCoy spent today playing catch-up in a bid to evaluate new front end settings developed from the recent Brno tests. The results were inconclusive and McCoy will revert to a base set-up on both of his race machines for tomorrow’s 28 lap race.

Importantly today’s warmer final qualifying session allowed the riders to confirm that Dunlop have some excellent race tyre options, backing up the data that was collected with yesterday’s slightly cooler track temperatures.

Andrew Pitt – 20th – 1:41.020
“I’m feeling slightly better than yesterday but I still went on a drip at the clinic before the session and I didn’t do a lot of long runs today in order to save some energy for the race. Overall I’m pretty happy to have gone more than a second faster today and I’m sticking with the base set-up from Brno, which allows me to ride the bike to my strengths; brake hard and turn-in hard and not fiddle around changing too much. It was warmer today and we were able to confirm that Dunlop have some good race tyre options here and I found a front tyre that worked well in the heat. Hopefully I can get a good nights sleep to be ready for the race.”

Garry McCoy – 22nd – 1:41.485
“Today I tried the new front end set-up that showed some promise at the Brno test but it didn’t feel as good here; I need more time to get comfortable on it which wasn’t possible today. The main problem is I’m struggling into the slow corners and running wide, the engine feels like it’s running-on with the throttle closed; and there are eight slow corners and only four fast ones so I’m losing time. For the warm-up we are going to set-up both bikes the same and try to get the race package right and just go for it. Starting at the back is not easy here.”

Harald Eckl – Team Manager
“We knew that the Estoril circuit would be a stiff challenge for us, but it is unfortunate that the improvements we saw in the last two races have not translated to this track. Of course, Andrew’s cold and the problems with Garry’s bike yesterday have had an effect, but it is still disappointing that neither managed to qualify higher up the grid. Starting from the fifth row at such a tight circuit is always going to be difficult, but I’m confident that both Andrew and Garry will improve on their qualifying positions in tomorrow’s race.”


More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki News Service:

SUZUKI RIDERS CUT TIME FOR ESTORIL GP

Team Suzuki rider Kenny Roberts Jr. will start tomorrow’s Portuguese GP from the fourth row of the grid, after slashing more than seven tenths of a second off his previous best lap time to qualify in 14th position.

Team-mate John Hopkins also found a significant improvement, in the second and final day of qualifying at the 4.182km circuit outside Lisbon, to retain his 17th position, one row behind Roberts.

The gradually improving overall performance of the Suzuki GSV-R MotoGP racer was an important factor – so also was the nature of the Portuguese circuit, which combines a long and fast straight with some of the slowest corners of the year. It is very technically challenging for all riders, which plays in favour of 2000 World Champion Roberts. Kenny ended up more than a full second faster than his qualifying time last year on the previous-generation Suzuki GSV-R.

Hopkins is less familiar with the track, but showed his mettle with a fast learning curve, improving on his last year’s qualifying time as he cut almost eight tenths of a second from yesterday to today.

The overall time improvement show how the hitherto difficult 2003 machine is picking up speed later in the season, with a shift in race department management bringing a new focus to solving the teething problems of the very radical and technically adventurous 990cc V4 racer. More improvements are expected as the season wears on, while the factory racing department is also concentrating on incorporating all of this season’s lessons into next year’s machine.

Estoril’s notorious high winds were blowing again today, though not as fiercely as yesterday, with the final practice session taking place in warm and sunny conditions.

KENNY ROBERTS Jr. – 14th Position, 1:39.839
This track is a lot like Suzuka, where the rider can make a lot of difference. The lines are real important here, and you have to be aggressive and do the right things to go fast. Essentially today we made a few changes from yesterday to try compensate for some engine characteristics with suspension changes, but it didn’t feel as good as our base setting. It may sound far fetched to a normal person, but it’s to do with controlling the attitude of the bike. It didn’t seem too bad, but when we went back to the base settings from yesterday just to check, they were still better, so from there we worked on getting the bike ready for the full race distance. Like I said yesterday, we’re going to try to get into the points which could be quite difficult, because there are some bikes behind me that should be a little faster over raced distance than us.

JOHN HOPKINS – 17th Position, 1:40.766
We’re just trying to keep improving the bike, and we tried a new suspension link this morning that worked better than yesterday’s settings. Then in the afternoon we ran into difficulties with it. What worked in the morning didn’t work in the afternoon, but it wasn’t something we could change quickly so I had to run with it, get the best possible time and choose what we think will be the right race tyre for tomorrow. As for the final settings, we’re going to have to try to work out why the bike was different in the afternoon, then make a judgement call as to what will work best for tomorrow. It’ll be a long race, but I’m pretty confident of finishing in the points, provided I can get a decent start.

GARRY TAYLOR – Team Manager
We’re still looking for a good base setting for this bike, but Kenny went more than a second faster than last year on the previous-generation GSV-R, so we’re going in the right direction. John ran into a puzzling problem, but he kept his concentration and took eight tenths off his time.


More, from a press release issued by Pramac Honda:

Ninth best time makes Makoto Tamada first on third row

Ninth best time in qualifying and a good starting position on tomorrow’s grid. This was how the first two days at Estoril came to an end, with Makoto Tamada constantly giving the impression of feeling at home on a track he saw for the first time only yesterday. With technicians constantly satisfying his every request, the Japanese rider of the Pramac Honda Team sliced almost three seconds off the best lap time he posted yesterday.

Today’s endurance tests on the tyres also made it possible to make the final choice of tyres for tomorrow’s race: these are new models that were used in the Brno tests in mid-August and with which both the rider and technicians are satisfied. This is evolution material that shows that Bridgestone’s development work is moving in the right direction. The final details will be worked out tomorrow during the warm-up, when Makoto will be trying out the race configuration with a full tank.

Then the hope is that Tamada will be able to take advantage of his good starting position to go up among the leaders and ride with the determination for which he has made a name.

Makoto Tamada (Pramac Honda Team): 9th – 1:39.368
“I’d really need to try out a few more details on the settings, but I must say I’m already very pleased with the work we’ve done so far. We’ll just be doing the last race-configuration test in the warm-up tomorrow morning. I’m feeling assured and I’m confident about the race. I’m starting off from a good place and I’d like to get up towards the front. The first corner at the end of their home straight isn’t easy but I’ll be trying to get off to a good start and I feel I should be able to be competitive for all twenty-eight laps, maintaining a constant pace. There are plenty of places where one can overtake, especially when braking, so I’m really hoping I can ride a good race on a track that’s just right for my style of riding.”


More, from a press release issued by Alice Aprilia Racing Information:

CHATTERING AGAIN

Estoril – More than 15 riders faster than last year record lap for the second qualifying session at Estoril but both riders of Alice Aprilia Racing Team have the same problem since the beginning of the season: chattering. Especially in the last corner before the straight where the bikes remain inclined for a long time creating the chattering.

COLIN EDWARDS: “I did all the best as I got my fastest lap time taking many risk and pushing very hard. The bike is jumping all the time and it’s difficult to ride in these conditions. It will be difficult to maintain that pace during the race but we have all the same problem because of the wind”.

NORIYUKI HAGA: “It’s very difficult to get a better result, especially in the last corner. I loose to much time and I am not able to push as I like in the final part of the track. We are going to make some changes in the rear suspension in the warm up session in order to improve the situation”.

GIGI DALL’IGNA (Project Leader): “The chattering is back but I think it’s normal with these lap times. This is not a new problem for us but now it’s becoming worse. We found a good solution but it’s not definitive”.


More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing Information:

THREE FRONT ROW HONDA MEN READY TO RUMBLE

In typically blustery coastal conditions at Estoril near Lisbon, the four main men in the tightly-fought 2003 World Championship all qualified on the front row of the grid. Loris Capirossi (Ducati) secured the pole with a 1m 38.412s lap of the 4.182km track with four minutes of the hour-long session to go.

Try as they might, and the effort was palpable, neither Max Biaggi (Camel Pramac Pons RC211V), Valentino Rossi (Repsol Honda RC211V), nor Sete Gibernau (Telefonica Movistar Honda RC211V) could topple the Italian rider. Biaggi qualified second, Rossi third and Gibernau fourth.

Wind conditions dropped slightly for today’s final qualifying session, but there were still enough gusts to make the stiff breeze a factor for all riders in the tortuous back section of the track, although it also meant riders’ progress along the start/finish straight was wind-assisted.

With riders opting to spend at least three-quarters of the session working on race set-up and trying various tyres for race endurance, there wasn’t much action until the final ten minutes – with the exception of Sete Gibernau’s antics halfway through the stint.

He pitted after 30 minutes to try his number two bike which had been fitted with super-sticky qualifying tyres. He crashed within minutes of leaving the pitlane, but remounted and returned to the garage to venture out once again on his number one machine fitted with race tyres.

This episode in no way upset the robust Spaniard and he was soon back into his rhythm and posting times in the 1m 38s bracket before running out of road at the end of the rapid start/finish straight and visiting the gravel trap.

An overnight surprise had been Olivier Jacque (Yamaha) who’d put in the second fastest time of yesterday’s provisional session. The Frenchman improved his time today, but it was only enough to secure him fifth place at the front of row two for the race. Shinya Nakano and Carlos Checa (both Yamaha) qualified sixth and seventh while Troy Bayliss put the other Ducati on row two in eighth.

Max Biaggi was on flying form after a trying time at Brno two weeks ago and the Roman is eager to get to the grid tomorrow. “What we planned to do yesterday worked out right,” he said. “We’re still not quite getting 100% from the bike, it has even more potential. That doesn’t mean I’m not happy with the job we’ve done. Over the two days I’ve always been among the fastest riders.”

Rossi’s bid for a pole attempt was hampered by the clock running down when he was ready to put in his best efforts. “We made a little mistake at the end,” he said. “I should have stopped and come in for a softer tyre but we didn’t have enough time. But it’s no big problem, I’m happy with third on the front row.”

Like the rest of the front row residents Gibernau is race ready. “I’ve found a good tyre,” he said. “I have a consistent rhythm and I feel good despite my crash. Most importantly I’ll start form the front row and I feel calm. Even after my crash I was still able to lap at 1m 38s, which is not a bad time at all.”

Makoto Tamada (Pramac Honda RC211V) qualified ninth and was happier with himself today after what the Japanese rookie regards as a two disappointing finishes at the last two races. “I’m pleased with the work we’ve done so far,” he said. “The first corner at the end of the straight isn’t easy but I feel I can be competitive for all 28 laps tomorrow at a good pace. There are plenty of places to overtake and that’s just right for my style of riding.”

After a subdued first half of the season Tohru Ukawa (Camel Pramac Pons RC211V) is coming back to form and although he could only manage to qualify tenth, he is race ready. “The grid position isn’t so good,” he said. “But I’m really comfortable on the bike. I just couldn’t get my fast laps in at the right time because of traffic. I need to get a start and then I’ll be all-out for a podium finish, which I feel I can do here.”

Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC211V) is less happy in 15th, but the American remains optimistic the race will be when he will shine. “I’m struggling a bit here,” he admitted. “I don’t have the feel I want and I don’t have any consistency. The bike’s working well and the team’s working hard. Hopefully we’ll save the best for the race.”

Things are tough for Ryuichi Kiyonari (Telefonica Movistar Honda RC211V) too in 19th, but the rookie Japanese is upbeat. “I’m happy because today’s objective was to lower my times,” he said. “I’ve achieved that and I’m really looking forward to the race and hoping for something that I’m not used to – a good start.”

Aprilia dominated 250 qualifying with four riders on the front row. Tony Elias is on pole, despite not riding in this afternoon’s session after crashing heavily in the free practice this morning. His time from yesterday’s provisional session, a 1m 42.255s lap proving sufficient to keep him at the head of the grid.

Randy de Puniet starts second, Sylvain Guintoli third and Manuel Poggiali fourth. Sebastian Porto (Telefonica Movistar Junior Team RS250RW) heads the second row in fifth place and the Argentine is confident he has the equipment to get the better of the Aprilias. “That wasn’t too bad today,” he said. “I’m happy enough with qualifying. The main thing is the bike has got good acceleration out of the turns and that’s exactly what you need here.”

Roberto Rolfo (Fortuna Honda RS250RW) who qualified seventh on the second row of the grid, couldn’t find a clear track when he wanted it, but the Championship contender is sure he will be in with a chance of a win tomorrow. “Circumstance prevented me from improving my grid position,” he said. “But we’ve really improved the machine and I can feel this in my riding. And I don’t think starting from the second row of the grid will be that much of an inconvenience.”

Alex de Angelis (Aprilia) qualified on pole in the 125cc class with a 1m 45.580s lap, but Daniel Pedrosa (Telefonica Movistar Junior Team RS125R) is right next to him in second spot on the front row. Jorge Lorenzo (Derbi) is third and Pedrosa’s sparring partner Stefano Perugini (Aprilia) took fourth completing the front row.

“Things are more or less okay,” said Ped