Hector Barbera set provisional pole position with a fastest lap of 2'08"266

Barberas time is still some distance off the pole position record held by the Argentinean Sebastián Porto (2.06.940). © Fortuna Aprilia. Fortuna Aprilias two riders were in dominant form on the opening day of the 250cc Malaysian Grand Prix. Hector Barbera set provisional pole position with a fastest lap of 2.08.266, just 0.138 seconds faster than his team-mate and closest rival Jorge Lorenzo. The Fortuna Aprilia pair were also quickest in the morning free practice as they stole a march on their rivals on a day of intense heat and humidity. In the first session Hector and Jorge were unable to break the 2.09 barrier but they shaved off almost a second in the afternoon to close in on the circuit record, although still some distance off the pole position record held by the Argentinean Sebastián Porto (2.06.940). Both riders are confident of reproducing their good form tomorrow and in Sunday's race.

Hector Barbera: ”I'm really happy because we seem to have started on the right foot and that always gives you a confidence boost. We've solved a few problems we've had with the rear end of the bike in recent weeks and I'm grateful to the technical staff for that. The conditions are tough but it's the same for everybody. We've got a good pace so I hope we can improve it tomorrow and be competitive in the race. It looks like we've put some problems behind us but I don't want to get too excited and just take things step by step”.

Jorge Lorenzo: ”The conditions were really difficult today, with a lot of heat and humidity. We went from strength to strength though, improving quite a lot in the afternoon, although a slight gearbox problem prevented me from going faster. We've got a day to work on it and there is plenty of room for improvement. I think I can lap a second faster and that's the target for tomorrow. To achieve that we'll have to study the telemetry and find out where I am not at 100%. I'd like to get my ninth pole position but I'm not obsessed with it. The most important thing tomorrow is to keep working well and get the best race pace possible for Sunday.”
(Fortuna Aprilia)

---