Confident Lorenzo sets the pace

With the MotoGP title fight coming to a thrilling climax Jorge Lorenzo was able to set the pace on the opening day of the weekend at Sepang. Lorenzo looked comfortable all day and afterwards his confidence was clear for the weekend.

“The temperature went up in the afternoon compared to the morning,” said Lorenzo. “We started with old tyres from the morning so everything was so difficult for the heat and for the tyres. Anyway, with these tyres we’ve been very competitive with both bikes.

“It’s a very good time knowing the circumstances and when we put the new tyre we’ve been very fast. Similar to the Honda riders. It was a positive day because always Sepang is not so simple for the Yamaha and we are there with a good bike, good riding and good work in the team.”

There has been some concerns for Lorenzo of late, chief among them a lack of top speed on the Yamaha that was brutally exposed in Australia.

“It’s a little bit less top speed in Sepang than Phillip Island, that’s a good thing, but Honda have two or three kph and Ducati five or six on us.”