MotoReview

Casey Stoner

"I expected it to take a couple of years to be up here on pole position, not in just my second race. But the LCR team have worked perfectly and I have a very strong set-up since first practice and this afternoon it was just a matter of bolting on the qualifying tyres and doing the lap. When I saw the gap closing and the other riders challenging I thought I couldn't keep pole and I would have been happy with a place in the top six. I'm still tired and weak from the flu and all the travel problems so this is a big relief - it's an amazing feeling to be on pole."

Loris Capirossi

"I missed pole by only 38 thousandths of a second. On my final fast lap I tried too hard in last part of the track and the bike slid a couple of times. I lost a few tenths and missed my second pole of 2006. It doesn't matter so much, because last year I was on pole at Qatar but not so competitive in the race. This year we have a very good race tyres. This morning things were a little difficult as the track was dirty and we made some modifications to the set-up, which did not work the way we expected. So we went back to our existing settings on the front of the bike and that allowed me to be fast, on both qualifiers and race rubber. The championship has just started but it is important to be competitive all the time. The track is proving to be less difficult for us than expected and we made a nearly perfect job this weekend. Bridgestone has done a great job in these months! I think we can be an important part of the game tomorrow."

Sete Gibernau

"The race lap times are not too bad so it's a pity to be so close to the second row and not get there. Normally that's as far as you want to be back from pole. We have some work to do in the morning warm up to get more feeling on the front because we are still playing catch-up a little. We need to find two or three tenths to be able to fight for a good race finish and the start will be crucial. Before I have to think about the start I want to make the bike a little bit easier to ride, because now we are pushing the front a bit too much."

Nicky Hayden

"Man, it's close! It's kinda frustrating to be that close but still be so far away because actually a tenth in qualifying is a lot. But I'm looking forward to the race - it should be fun. The Michelin qualifying tyres definitely help my bike. Right now my issues are with grip, but when we put the qualifying tyre in we're one tenth off pole. In race trim it's been a little frustrating. We can make the bike better in one area, like getting into the corner, and then it's not so good coming out. Luckily I've got a lot of sharp people around here working hard, so it's not for a lack of effort - or a lack of brains!

"Tomorrow's race day, we'll try and sweeten it up overnight, arrive in the morning with the race face on and be ready to go for it when the lights go out. On the practice starts I had some problems with the clutch and the bike reared up. I thought it was me so I tried to do another one and I felt like a goon when it did the same thing! The team will get it sorted
though!"

Dani Pedrosa

"My grid position here is the same as Jerez which is not too bad because that was a track I know well and we tested there for three days before the race. But this track is new to me on this bike, so I think 5th is ok. I feel quite good for the race. The most important thing now is to try to get a good start and get a good position into the first corner - this is very important. The qualifying session was difficult for me again. We improved a little, but I still have to learn many things about qualifying: the timing, how to take the most profit from the qualifying tyre and to learn which front tyre I prefer for the track. I had crash this morning when I went on the white line and it was very dusty, I touched the brake a little bit and went down. It was my mistake, but now I know about this for the future!"