Jorge Lorenzo takes stunning Valencia pole

Movistar Yamaha MotoGP‘s Jorge Lorenzo left no confusion this afternoon about his intentions of winning this years‘ MotoGP World Championship, setting a magnificent lap for pole position at the last qualifying session of the year. With no pressure to get a front start in qualifying, team-mate Valentino Rossi was steadily improving his pace throughout the session, but suffered a small crash at the final stages and ended the day having set the twelfth fastest time.

Fully focused on the task ahead, Lorenzo was calm and collected as he emerged from pit lane as the last rider to head out in the last 15-minute Q2 of the season. Once out on the relatively empty track, he stayed true to usual form and immediately dropped under the 1‘31s mark with a 1‘30.996s for provisional third position.

With a little less than nine minutes of the session remaining, he hurried back to the pits to start his second time attack a minute later. His next flying lap was a sensational 1‘30,011s for pole position, enough to break the circuit best lap record, creating nearly half a second margin to his closest rival.

Lorenzo quickly headed back to box for a second stop, but neither he nor any of his competitors were able to come close to his superb lap time.

JORGE LORENZO
Today‘s goal was to qualify on first row, but there was a lot of tension. I expected that Andrea Iannone‘s bike with the soft tyre could steal the first row, so I put in the maximum effort at the track with the three tyres and that is what I did. I wasn‘t very satisfied with the first one, 1‘30.9s wasn‘t the lap time I expected, but with the second one the bike worked perfectly with the grip, the braking, the corner speed and the acceleration. I rode better than on the previous lap and I got pole. It probably was my best lap in all my life and I‘m very proud, but the important thing is to start from front row, make a good start tomorrow, don‘t make any mistakes and avoid problems on the first laps and try to get the World Title. Today they didn‘t give out points, the contest is tomorrow and it‘s going to be a difficult, long and stressful race.