Dovizioso quickest in Thai practice, Lorenzo crashes

Andrea Dovizioso sped to the fastest lap in practice for the inaugural Thailand MotoGP yesterday as his Ducati team-mate Jorge Lorenzo was passed fit for the weekend despite a heavy crash. Dovizioso led the second session with a lap of 1min 31.090sec, 0.031 ahead of Movistar Yamaha rider Maverick Vinales who had topped the morning timesheets. Still, he said he was not totally comfortable with the track, which is new to the season. “The first part of the track for sure is good for our bike, but the second part we are struggling a lot,” Dovizioso said. Repsol Honda’s Marc Marquez, who leads Dovizioso by 72 points as he closes in on a fifth MotoGP world title, was fourth quickest in the afternoon session. But much attention focused on the nasty spill by Lorenzo, who was already dealing with a foot injury sustained in Aragon last month.

He was cleared to race Thursday but told reporters he was still in pain and could be seen limping. About halfway through the second practice Lorenzo crashed, tumbling across the track as his bike broke into pieces, temporarily stopping the session. MotoGP tweeted afterwards that Lorenzo was undergoing further medical examinations but “has been declared fit” to race following his accident. However he told reporters late yesterday that he was scared during the crash, which he blamed on a mechanical problem.

He also said he was still not certain he would be able to compete because of ongoing pain. “If you ask me now I would say no,” he said. “But I don’t want to say something too quickly so I will wait tonight (to see) how I feel tomorrow morning.” Thailand is hosting its first MotoGP in Buriram, a sleepy town several hours’ drive fromthe Thai capital Bangkok. The Chang International Circuit in Buriram is about 4.4 kilometres long and was first tested by riders in February, but many worried about weather conditions, particularly the heat.