MotoGP
News
Date: 20/July/2013
It is supposed to be his toughest weekend of the season, but
rookie Marc Marquez finished day one of the US MotoGP on top of the timesheets
at Laguna Seca.
Unlike the other 17 events on the calendar, Marquez had
never ridden a lap of the Californian circuit before Friday morning.
But the Repsol Honda rider finished a foggy opening practice
in a close third place, then ruled the roost by 0.229s over LCR Honda’s Stefan
Bradl in the sunny afternoon session.
Marquez, 20, who retook the title lead with his second win
of the year last Sunday in Germany, said:
"In the first free practice the most important thing
was to remain calm and take it slowly, and that is what we did. Also, the track
conditions and the mist made things tricky.
“During the first few minutes I was a little stressed on the
bike, because I had a lot of work to do. It's a brand new track for me, but it
is fun. It is very narrow and short, with many bumps so it took a bit of
adapting on my behalf.
“In the second session I found things much more comfortable,
I started to enjoy myself and found a pace that was not bad at all. We were
fastest, but the time we clocked is still a little off the track record.
“I'm happy with this first day, so we'll see if tomorrow we
can continue in the same way and continue to learn the circuit.”
Andrea Dovizioso was a surprise third fastest for Ducati,
with Valentino Rossi leading the session before dropping to fourth for Yamaha.
Lap times were close, with fifth place Cal Crutchlow just 0.417s from Marquez.
Marquez’s nearest title challengers - team-mate Dani Pedrosa
and Yamaha’s reigning champion Jorge Lorenzo - are both returning from collarbone
injuries this weekend.
Lorenzo was a sore sixth fastest, less than a week after
undergoing his second shoulder surgery. Pedrosa chose to sit out the morning
session before claiming eleventh in the afternoon.
Nicky Hayden was the top home rider in ninth, just one day
after confirming he will leave Ducati - and possibly MotoGP - at the end of
this season.
Laguna Seca marks the midway point of the season and is the
final event before the summer break.
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