Alvaro Bautista qualifies 23rd in difficult conditions

The unpredictable weather conditions, with cold and a less than perfect track, after the rain late this morning and the resulting poor grip, did not help the work Alvaro Bautista and teammate Marco Melandri were trying to accomplish, still looking for the right direction to go in development of the Aprilia RS-GP bikes.

After the morning free practice session where the good time Bautista put on the sheets (16th in 1’34.341) was a sign that the work being done in the Aprilia Racing Team Gresini garage was headed in the right direction, a light rain decidedly worsened the condition of the French asphalt.

Although the track had dried off when the qualifiers started, the poor grip definitely hindered the performance of the Italian bikes and ended the session – which decided the order on the starting grid for the race tomorrow – with Bautista in 23rd place (1’35.458) and Melandri in 25th (1’37.522), positions which respectively place them on the eighth and ninth row for the start of tomorrow’s GP.

ALVARO BAUTISTA
“After the free practice sessions we had to face rather unfavourable conditions in the qualifiers. Poor grip, despite the fact that the asphalt had dried off, put us at a distinct disadvantage, especially in terms of traction. I’m disappointed because in the morning I had put in a good time and I thought I could improve even more. For the race everything is hinging on the weather: if it’s dry let’s hope for some heat as well, which would eliminate some of the disadvantages that hindered us today.”

Source: Gresini