Melandri hopes for wet race

The Italian jumped up the order with his final lap in the wet qualifying session, but he does not feel that he will be able to compete at the front if the race is dry.

"I think I need it to rain. We need to work on our dry set-up, because it's difficult for me to work with the bike," Melandri told Eurosport after qualifying.

"It's things like engine braking and traction, and some other little things. It's just making the chassis difficult for me to use in the dry."

Melandri's lap initially put him on the front row, and he was still happy despite being bumped down to fourth by Randy de Puniet.

"It was almost the front row, so it's good for me," he added. "Randy made a good lap at the end and he passed me, but it's still my best qualifying of the year."

Melandri is currently sixth in the MotoGP standings, and his best result of the year came in the wet race at Le Mans, where he finished second.