Lorenzo quickest in Estoril practice
Added on Friday, October 2nd, 2009 by Carole Nash Editor
Lorenzo quickest in Estoril practice
Jorge Lorenzo drew first blood at Estoril by blitzing the time sheets to beat Dani Pedrosa and Valentino Rossi in free practice at Estoril.
The Mallorcan, looking to close a 30-point gap on Rossi in the MotoGP championship, posted a time of 1:37.185 in ideal conditions in Portugal.
The time, which smashed the circuit record of 1:37.404 set by Lorenzo last year, was 0.359 seconds ahead of nearest rival Dani Pedrosa and 0.421 seconds ahead of the third placed Rossi.
Casey Stoner, on his return to action after a three-round lay-off, was fourth fastest but still someway of the pace with a time of 1:37.966.
A late surge from British rider James Toseland finished a commendable eighth, just 24 hours after being told that he would not be riding in MotoGP in 2010 whilst his teammate Colin Edwards was fifth fastest.
| Pos | Rider | Nat | Team | Time |
| 1 | Jorge Lorenzo | SPA | Fiat Yamaha | 1:37.185 |
| 2 | Dani Pedrosa | SPA | Repsol Honda |
+ 0.359 |
| 3 | Valentino Rossi | ITA | Fiat Yamaha |
+ 0.421 |
| 4 | Casey Stoner | AUS | Ducati Marlboro |
+ 0.781 |
| 5 | Colin Edwards | USA | Monster Tech 3 Yamaha |
+ 0.918 |
| 6 | Andrea Dovizioso | ITA | Repsol Honda |
+ 1.059 |
| 7 | Randy de Puniet | FRA | LCR Honda |
+ 1.200 |
| 8 | James Toseland | GBR | Monster Tech 3 Yamaha |
+ 1.406 |
| 9 | Alex de Angelis | RSM | San Carlo Honda Gresini |
+ 1.444 |
| 10 | Mika Kallio | FIN | Pramac Ducati |
+ 1.476 |
| 11 | Nicky Hayden | USA | Ducati Marlboro |
+ 1.665 |
| 12 | Loris Capirossi | ITA | Rizla Suzuki |
+ 1.793 |
| 13 | Niccolo Canepa | ITA | Pramac Ducati |
+ 1.848 |
| 14 | Gabor Talmacsi | HUN | Scot Honda |
+ 2.208 |
| 15 | Toni Elias | SPA | San Carlo Honda Gresini |
+ 2.382 |
| 16 | Chris Vermeulen | AUS | Rizla Suzuki |
+ 2.501 |
| 17 | Marco Melandri | ITA | Hayate Kawasaki |
+ 2.572 |
