Japan GP. 1st qualifying practice. Driver´s comments.

Rossi: ‘It was quite a fast crash in a place you don’t want to fall’
Repsol driver´s comments after 1st Japan GP qualifyng pratice.Valentino Rossi, 2nd MotoGP: ‘Everything was going very well this morning. It was windy and the track was a little slippery as the wind blew some dust onto it in places. The bike felt good and I was happy. All the testing we have done at Suzuka over the recent weeks is paying off. The bike was quick and I made a few consistent fast laps. However on lap 13 in the morning the front slipped and I fell. It was quite a fast crash in a place you don’t want to fall. I’m OK and was a little more cautious in the afternoon. The wind had dropped a little and everything felt good again’.Tohru Ukawa, 3rd MotoGP: ‘Over the last few weeks we have made several test sessions here at Suzuka and the bike feel is getting better all the time. Small changes to the set up but all in the right direction. The conditions today were a little difficult with the wind but generally everything felt good. Overall I am happy with the position of where we are. We have a few more adjustments to make tomorrow to make a good grid position for Sunday. I am looking forward to end the testing and practice and getting on the race’.Fonsi Nieto, 2nd 250: ‘The 15 minutes that they have cut off our qualifying session made a big difference -we really noticed it. I am satisfied with the times I made. Although I haven’t got the pole, we are only one tenth of a second away, and my rhythm is constant, which is very important for the race. We already have a good setting and I think tomorrow we can improve it again. Today we basically focused on finding the correct tyres combination for race distance’.Toni Elías 8th 250 : ‘For my first session in the 250 class, I’m happy with the result. We have worked on the machine setting -suspensions and tyres-, and I’ve notice a general improvement. I think I could have gone faster, but I waited until the end of the session to set my time. Finally I’ve done my last lap behind a Japanese rider who slowed my pace. I hope it doesn’t rain tomorrow, so I will be able to improve my best lap time’.Daniel Pedrosa 2nd 125: ‘The weather predictions for tomorrow are not very good, so we decided to try and set a good time today to make sure of a good grid position. We were still able to test some different solutions, and try and set up the bike for Sunday’s race. I’ve been looking for my best place and I had only small problems -more from my own mistakes than the machine. Our philosophy is still the same as last year: go step by step, race by race, without predetermined objectives’.Joan Olivé 22º 125: ‘This morning I didn’t find the right rhythm, but this afternoon I was a little better, so I was able to cut almost three seconds off my time. Lap by lap I’ve been feeling happier, but in the end I had some gear-shift problems, which stopped me from improving. Although I am 22nd at this moment, I feel optimistic for tomorrow. I only hope that the weather doesn’t get worse, because I’m sure I can achieve a time that puts me much further forward on the grid’.