Rossi happy with second on Jerez grid

Valentino Rossi has declared himself happy despite missing out on pole position in Jerez this afternoon in what was the closest MotoGP qualifying top ten in history.

Just 0.325s split pole setter Dani Pedrosa and American Kenny Roberts Junior in 10th at the end of a thrilling qualifying session for tomorrow’s 27-lap Spanish GP.

Rossi was second behind Pedrosa, shrugging off problems with race tyres to claim a critical front row slot using Michelin’s soft qualifying tyre.

Bidding to end a five-race streak without a victory, the seven times world champion said: “I am happy because we had a lot of problems this morning and yesterday with the tyres. Now with the new tyre rule, testing tyres for the race is not good in the morning with less temperature. Here we have 10 degrees difference in temperature so you have to make another work.

“I have found a quite good tyre for the race but the tyres are the big issue for the race. For me after half the race the bike moves quite a lot, and it is difficult to keep a good rhythm but I hope it’s the same for everybody else.

“The target was to start on the front row and when I saw the lap time on my dashboard I thought some rider can beat me and Dani arrived a little bit faster. I think it will be a great battle for tomorrow.”

Commenting on the close top ten, Rossi said it was apparent that the new generation 800s were much easier to ride on soft tyres, with the extra grip helping with increased corner speeds. “It’s very good for the show but a little bit worse for the riders because these type of bikes become a little bit easier to ride at the limit. Especially with the qualifying tyre but with the race tyre is another world. The bike moves a lot after some laps so tomorrow we will see the difference.”

Rossi has won four times in the premier class in Spain. Victory tomorrow would see him become the most successful MotoGP rider ever at Jerez, surpassing Mick Doohan, who also won four times at the Spanish circuit.