Casey Stoner will be starting from the pole position during the final race of the 2010 MotoGP season. Stoner had a fantastic qualifying session, beating out Jorge Loenzo and Marco Simoncelli for the top spot on the grid.
Stoner was the only rider to post a lap below 1'32 so far this weekend. The Ducati riders 1'31.799 lap time gave him his four pole position of the season. 2010 MotoGP champ Jorge Lorenzo led for most of the session, but couldn't come close to Stoners best lap, and finished .3 seconds behind.
Marco Simoncelli, who had been toward the top during the free practice sessions, claimed his first ever front row start in the premier class. Simoncelli beat out Valentino Rossi for the final spot on the grid, finishing behind Lorenzo by .1 seconds.
Rossi will be followed by three American riders. Nicky Hayden and Ben Spies will join the Fiat Yamaha rider on the second row, while Colin Edwards will lead the third row, followed by the Repsol Honda duo of Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso.
MotoGP - Qualifying - Valencia
| Rider | Nation | Bike | Time | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Casey STONER | AUS | Ducati | 1'31.799 | |||||
| Jorge LORENZO | SPA | Yamaha | 1'32.130 | |||||
| Marco SIMONCELLI | ITA | Honda | 1'32.244 | |||||
| Valentino ROSSI | ITA | Yamaha | 1'32.330 | |||||
| Nicky HAYDEN | USA | Ducati | 1'32.422 | |||||
| Ben SPIES | USA | Yamaha | 1'32.566 | |||||
| Colin EDWARDS | USA | Yamaha | 1'32.579 | |||||
| Dani PEDROSA | SPA | Honda | 1'32.603 | |||||
| Andrea DOVIZIOSO | ITA | Honda | 1'32.886 | |||||
| Marco MELANDRI | ITA | Honda | 1'32.917 |
