Afer changing to a new softer spec tire, Ducati's Noriyuki Haga put down the fastest time during qualifying at Brno.
Although Max Biaggi and his factory Alitalia
Aprilia were expected to be the pace setter in Brno, the day belonged to
Ducati who occupied three out of the top-four places on the provisional grid thanks to Noriyuki Haga, Michael Fabrizio and Carlos Checa.
It was a particularly impressive performance from Haga who is not renowned as a qualifier. His Ducati team put his impressive pace down to the new softer spec rear tire from Pirelli. Haga used the new tire to good effect in last week’s Imola test and found even more grip after lowering the pressure slightly for the hot conditions.
In stark contrast to Haga’s success,
BMW Motorrad rider Troy Corser was airlifted out of the circuit to Brno hospital after crashing at the end of the session. Corser high sided and sustained a concussion and was complaining of chest pains. He underwent further X-rays and a CT scan and it remains unclear if he will be fit enough to ride tomorrow.
Hannspree Ten Kate
Honda’s Jonathan Rea was the first rider to pass the scene of Corser’s crash. He said: “It was a long way out of the corner so it would have been a pretty big and fast high side. Troy’s bike was upside down and he was lying on his back with his arms across his chest. He was moving but he wasn’t about to get up.”
Aprilia's Max Biaggi took fifth during qualifying, and put in a four-lap run in the low 2m 00s bracket at the end of the session.
Rea himself had a positive day following his disastrous weekends at Miller and Misano. The 23—year-old finished eighth-fastest and was reasonably content with his bike’s performance with only minimal chatter around the fast flowing circuit.
Max Biaggi set the fifth-fastest time but gave a taste of what his rivals can expect tomorrow with a four-lap run all in the low 2m 00s bracket at the very end of the one hour session. Biaggi has an unrivalled record around the Brno circuit, having won in 250GP, 500GP,
MotoGP and
WSB. It was also the venue of the Aprilia’s RSV4’s first win when Biaggi claimed victory in Race 1 12 months ago.
Biaggi was backed up by new Aprilia rider Jacob Smrz, who traded his Ducati 1198 for the RSV4 after chronic reliability issues with the Ducati in recent races. Riding the RSV4 for the first time in this morning’s Free Practice, Smrz showed just how quickly top level riders can adjust to new machinery. Throughout the day he posted a total of 36 laps and finished the first qualifying session in an impressive 7th-place and just 1.0 71 seconds off Haga’s pole time.
Smrz said: “It was a positive day, but there is still a lot of work to be done in order to get a better feeling with the bike. The machine is completely different from the Ducati 1198, but I don't think it's going to be very hard to adapt. However, we have to improve and get comfortable because it's not easy to learn it in only a couple of hours."
Alstare Suzuki's Leon Haslam had a difficult first day at Brno where he took 17th during qualifying after struggling with grip and braking.
The shock of the day was the slow pace of championship contender Leon Haslam, who slumped to 17th on the grid. The Alstare
Suzuki rider is struggling to get the softer compound Pirelli tires working when the initial grip level is high and also suffered the same engine braking inconsistency he experienced at Misano two weeks ago. Haslam spent hours with his technicians this evening and is confident that a new electronics setting and higher spec engine will see home closer to the front of the leader board tomorrow.
James Toseland is another rider that needs to make a return to form after a tough Misano race. Toseland is suffering the effects of a chest infection and is on antibiotics but still posted the ninth-fastest time.
“I’ve had the infection for about a week but I just couldn’t shake it. During the sessions I actually lose my voice, but once it’s over and I relax I feel better. I’m hoping that I’m going to feel better tomorrow.”
