Dani Pedrosa yesterday snatched pole position in the dying seconds of a thrilling qualifying session for the Malaysian MotoGP, as world title hopeful Marc Marquez recovered from a crash to finish seventh.
Marquez looked on course to set the fastest pace of the weekend in a real fast lap when he fell off his Honda.
Pedrosa, the Spanish Honda rider, came out on top after a furious finale which saw five successive pole laps set in the last two minutes — leaving the top seven riders covered by less than half a second.
Photo: EPA
Pedrosa’s time of one minute, 59.212 seconds was 17-thousandths quicker than Yamaha’s Johann Zarco, with Andrea Dovizioso of Ducati another seven-thousandths behind to complete the front row.
Pedrosa at the trackside later said he was happy with his machine, adding that starting in the front was important to get a podium finish.
“We hope Sunday’s race will be dry. We hope to focus on the race and hopefully we will do our best,” he said.
“Starting from the front is very important,” he added.
It is Pedrosa’s third pole position of the season and he is fifth in the championship standing.
Pedrosa will aim for his second win of the season and first since Jerez in May.
“I made a couple of mistakes... but I am happy because it is my third pole of the season,” he said.
However, the Spaniard admitted that the sweltering heat would be the biggest challenge in today’s race.
“You will have to drink a lot. The sun is heating the helmet and the bike,” he said.
Dovizioso’s hopes of stopping Marquez clinching a second straight world title were buoyed when the Honda rider, who crashed at the end of one flying lap, finished outside the top six.
Dovizioso, riding a Ducati, said he was glad to start the race from the front ahead of Marquez, who sits in the third row.
“I set a fast lap and it seems the bike is competitive in both wet and dry track,” he said.
Dovizioso later told reporters that while he will be happy to win the second position in the world championship, he was determined to snatch the world title crown.
The Italian declined to reveal his strategy for the race, saying he did not know as weather conditions in Sepang are unpredictable.
“But we are happy to race. The bike has allowed me to push it. I riding in a good way. We are ready to fight,” he said.
Last year, Dovizioso won the race at Sepang International Circuit on a wet track.
If Marquez comes first or second, regardless of the result that Dovizioso achieves in Malaysia, he will win his fourth MotoGP title.
Spain’s Marquez leads Dovizioso by 33 points going into the year’s penultimate race, meaning he will be crowned world champion if he finishes first or second today.
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