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Ducati's Andrea Iannone tops third MotoGP practice at Le Mans

Ducati's Andrea Iannone set the pace in third practice for the French Grand Prix at Le Mans, displacing MotoGP champion Jorge Lorenzo at the top after the chequered flag

After setting the pace on Friday, Lorenzo did not improve until late in Saturday morning's session.

The Yamaha rider was sixth in the order with five minutes remaining, before setting a time of 1m32.533s, 0.475 seconds clear of the field.

That margin narrowed but Lorenzo was still ahead as the chequered flag flew.

However, Iannone - following Lorenzo on the road - found 0.144s on his final lap to move into top spot with a time of 1m32.528s, just 0.005s ahead of Lorenzo.

Tech3 Yamaha rider Pol Espargaro was a strong third, ahead of Honda's Marc Marquez, Suzuki's Maverick Vinales and Dani Pedrosa.

Valentino Rossi was seventh, having been the big mover of the first 40 minutes of the session.

The Italian didn't try Michelin's new softer-construction rear tyre on Friday, but did on Saturday morning, and found eighth tenths to move from 10th to third in the combined order.

Rossi improved late again in the session to a 1m33.012s, finishing 0.484s behind Iannone.

Andrea Dovizioso was eighth, while British satellite riders Cal Crutchlow and Bradley Smith booked the final two guaranteed places in the second phase of qualifying - the first time Smith has done so this year.

Pramac Ducati pair Danilo Petrucci and Scott Redding were 11th and 12th, while Aleix Espargaro fell at the final corner early in the session and having been sixth on Friday, dropped to 13th in the combined order.

PRACTICE THREE TIMES:

Pos Rider Team Bike Time Gap Laps
1 Andrea Iannone Ducati Ducati 1m32.528s - 20
2 Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha Yamaha 1m32.533s 0.005s 20
3 Pol Espargaro Tech3 Yamaha Yamaha 1m32.662s 0.134s 20
4 Marc Marquez Honda Honda 1m32.718s 0.190s 20
5 Maverick Vinales Suzuki Suzuki 1m32.839s 0.311s 20
6 Dani Pedrosa Honda Honda 1m32.915s 0.387s 22
7 Valentino Rossi Yamaha Yamaha 1m33.012s 0.484s 21
8 Andrea Dovizioso Ducati Ducati 1m33.013s 0.485s 20
9 Bradley Smith Tech3 Yamaha Yamaha 1m33.182s 0.654s 21
10 Cal Crutchlow LCR Honda Honda 1m33.242s 0.714s 20
11 Danilo Petrucci Pramac Ducati Ducati 1m33.413s 0.885s 21
12 Scott Redding Pramac Ducati Ducati 1m33.522s 0.994s 19
13 Hector Barbera Avintia Ducati Ducati 1m33.619s 1.091s 19
14 Aleix Espargaro Suzuki Suzuki 1m33.682s 1.154s 11
15 Yonny Hernandez Aspar Ducati Ducati 1m33.878s 1.350s 17
16 Jack Miller Marc VDS Honda Honda 1m33.984s 1.456s 19
17 Eugene Laverty Aspar Ducati Ducati 1m34.067s 1.539s 19
18 Loris Baz Avintia Ducati Ducati 1m34.146s 1.618s 19
19 Stefan Bradl Aprilia Aprilia 1m34.485s 1.957s 17
20 Alvaro Bautista Aprilia Aprilia 1m34.716s 2.188s 19
21 Tito Rabat Marc VDS Honda Honda 1m34.898s 2.370s 20


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