Barbera finishes Qatar quali in 16th

The first MotoGP grid of the 2010 season took shape tonight, with qualifying practice for the Grand Prix of Qatar taking place in warm conditions that saw track conditions deteriorate from yesterday. After an impressive early showing from the rookies yesterday it was experience that won over today, with Casey Stoner confirming the pole position he has threatened ever since arriving in Qatar.

Héctor Barberá continued his education around the Losail circuit on board the Ducati, although a crash just eight minutes from the end of the qualifying session in turn six meant the Páginas Amarillas Aspar was unable to make any late improvements. Adapting to the change in conditions from yesterday proved to be the rookie’s biggest obstacle today although Héctor remains hugely excited about taking his MotoGP bow tomorrow.

16th Héctor Barberá 1.57.130 (23 laps): “I’m not happy because I didn’t ride to the best of my ability today and I didn’t feel comfortable on the Ducati. We tried a few things with the geometry that didn’t work out and there wasn’t enough time to go back to what we had yesterday. The main problem for me today was the humidity, which affected rear grip, especially in mid corner. Anyway, this is only my first MotoGP race so the idea is to enjoy it and give my best. I had a good session yesterday and I was confident I could set some fast times today, but maybe I got carried away and made a mistake. The team is doing an incredible job and helping me a lot. We went in the wrong direction with the changes we made today but we know what we need to change to make up positions in the race.”