Italy GP. 1st qualifying practice

Rossi, Ukawa and Fonsi Nieto getting ready to go for the pole
The charismatic circuit of Mugello has been host to the first battle between the local riders of the MotoGP category. The much longed-for duel of the season between Max Biaggi, Valentino Rossi and Loris Capirossi finished today with and advantage for Biaggi, second, followed by Rossi and Capirossi. The fastest time has been for the other rider of the official Yamaha team, Carlos Checa. Valentino Rossi’s teammate in the Repsol Honda MotoGP Team, Tohru Ukawa, set the fifth fastest time. The 250cc have had a very similar session to that of the MotoGP, with the Italian riders fighting intensely to set the fastest time: Melandri, Locatelli and Battaini finally got a place on the front row of the grid, waiting for tomorrow’s second qualifying session. Fonsi Nieto, fifth, focussed on working on his bike’s settings, choosing not to take part in today’s fight for the pole. His teammate Elias, who shows himself faster every day on his 250cc, has set the seventh fastest time. In the 125cc Alberto Puig’s pupils have had a difficult first practice session today. Twenty-second place for Daniel Pedrosa and twenty-ninth place for Joan Olivé in the morning session; and things didn’t work out much better for them in the afternoon: Pedrosa finished fifteenth and Olivé twenty-fifth. Both will have to improve their times tomorrow if they want to have chances for a good result on Sunday.