Jorge Lorenzo tops fog-hit Laguna Seca MotoGP practice
Jorge Lorenzo went fastest as both works Honda riders opted not to go out in what was a severely truncated final MotoGP practice session at Laguna Seca
Heavy fog not only restricted visibility but also affected track conditions, meaning the first half hour was an effective write-off.
Only three men ventured out during that time, with wildcard entrant Steve Rapp at least providing the fans with some cheer as his Kawasaki-powered Attack Performance CRT bike vied with Aleix Espargaro (Aspar) and James Ellison (Paul Bird) for top spot.
When Rapp got down to a 1m27.486s, faster than he went on Friday, it finally served notice to the rest of the pitlane that track conditions were good enough to interest them.
Breaking away from impromptu pitlane interviews and meetings, they slowly filtered out, with Yamaha's Ben Spies leading the way. The American eventually wound up second, behind Lorenzo.
He could not really hold a candle to the Spaniard however, with Lorenzo underlining his dominance by setting a 1m21.445s as the chequered flag waved.
Ducati took third and fifth in the hands of Nicky Hayden and Valentino Rossi, although such form was tempered by Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa's decision not to go out at all. The Spaniard in particular has been in fine form, topping both Friday sessions.
Tech 3 Yamaha's Andrea Dovizioso shared a similar sentiment until the final minutes, when he escaped to set the 20th fastest time.
Team-mate Cal Cruthclow meanwhile ended fourth, ahead of Rossi, LCR Honda's Stefan Bradl and Gresini's Alvaro Bautista.
With caution prevailing there was only one accident, Ivan Silva losing the front of his bike at the Corkscrew in the final minute.
Pos Rider Team/Bike Time Gap 1. Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha 1m21.445s 2. Ben Spies Yamaha 1m22.268s + 0.823s 3. Nicky Hayden Ducati 1m22.688s + 1.243s 4. Cal Crutchlow Tech 3 Yamaha 1m23.021s + 1.576s 5. Valentino Rossi Ducati 1m23.294s + 1.849s 6. Stefan Bradl LCR Honda 1m23.832s + 2.387s 7. Alvaro Bautista Gresini Honda 1m24.189s + 2.744s 8. Randy de Puniet Aspar Aprilia 1m24.398s + 2.953s 9. Aleix Espargaro Aspar Aprilia 1m24.506s + 3.061s 10. Karel Abraham Cardion Ducati 1m24.572s + 3.127s 11. Yonny Hernandez Avintia FTR-Kawasaki 1m24.749s + 3.304s 12. Mattia Pasini Speed Master Aprilia 1m25.244s + 3.799s 13. Toni Elias Pramac Ducati 1m25.438s + 3.993s 14. Danilo Petrucci Ioda-Aprilia 1m26.283s + 4.838s 15. Colin Edwards Forward Suter-BMW 1m26.315s + 4.870s 16. James Ellison Paul Bird Aprilia 1m26.488s + 5.043s 17. Ivan Silva Avintia Inmotec-Kawasaki 1m27.067s + 5.622s 18. Steve Rapp Attack-Kawasaki 1m27.486s + 6.041s 19. Michele Pirro Gresini FTR-Honda 1m27.778s + 6.333s 20. Andrea Dovizioso Tech 3 Yamaha 1m33.726s + 12.281s 21. Casey Stoner Honda 22. Dani Pedrosa Honda
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