Andrea Dovizioso put in yet another good performance today in French GP qualifying at Le Mans. The Italian powered to the second-quickest time in the 15-minute qualifying session and will start from the front row of the grid for Sunday’s 28-lap race. In the morning’s third free practice session, Dovizioso had been fourth quickest in the dry conditions, but in the early afternoon it started to rain at the French circuit and FP4 took place in the wet, even though it dried out towards the end of the session. In Q2 all the riders fitted slicks and Dovizioso set his quickest time using an extra-soft rear tyre.
Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team #04)- 1’32.749 (2nd)
“I am not completely satisfied with my qualifying lap, because after the rain I was not able to prepare myself mentally and even physically I was feeling pretty tense. In any case the front row is fine and it is also very important because in MotoGP it’s always essential to start as far up the grid as possible. I could probably have been a bit closer to Marquez and try and go for pole, but in any case I set a good lap time, and this is the result of the good work me and the team have been doing throughout the weekend. For the race I’m starting with a good set-up and I am happy with my pace, but it’s not easy to interpret how our rivals are going and so I don’t know what to expect from them. In any case we are quick, and so tomorrow we’ll see who goes better over 28 laps.”