Following an eventful Saturday at Laguna Seca that saw some horrible crashes and a new track record, the starting field is now set for Sunday’s third running of the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix. Ducati’s Casey Stoner continued his domination of the speed charts with a blazing 1:22.292 sec. timed lap in the last minute of qualifying to bump Honda’s Dani Pedrosa off the pole position by .209 sec. No rider has won a MotoGP race from pole position this season, so Stoner may have mixed feelings about the day’s results.
All bunched up on the time charts behind Stoner and Pedrosa are 2006 pole winner Chris Vermeulen (3rd at 1:22.590 sec.) and two-time defending Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix champion Nicky Hayden (4th at 1:22.624 sec.).
"I really wanted to get a little higher in qualifying today and I think we had the bike and the tires to do it - I just didn't get the most out of the package,” said Hayden afterwards. “I'm a little worried about the race because I seem to be struggling in the afternoons."
Yamaha’s Valentino Rossi recovered from an earlier practice session crash that left him with hand and shoulder injuries to qualify in fifth position at 1:22.683 sec. Americans John Hopkins and Colin Edwards fell down the charts from practice to claim the seventh and eighth spots, while Marco Melandri rounded out the top 10 following his horrific crash that halted the qualifying session early on.
Official Qualifying Results
| Rider | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Casey Stoner | Ducati Marlboro Team | 1:22.292 |
| Dani Pedrosa | Repsol Honda Team | 1:22.501 |
| Chris Vermeulen | Rizla Suzuki MotoGP | 1:22.590 |
| Nicky Hayden | Repsol Honda Team | 1:22.624 |
| Valentino Rossi | Fiat Yamaha Team | 1:22.683 |
| Loris Capirossi | Ducati Marlboro Team | 1:22.914 |
| John Hopkins | Rizla Suzuki MotoGP | 1:22.933 |
| Colin Edwards | Fiat Yamaha Team | 1:22.943 |
| Shinya Nakano | Konica Minolta Honda | 1:23.006 |
| Marco Melandri | Honda Gresini | 1:23.018 |
