VOL. 53 ISSUE 4 FEBRUARY 2, 2016 P81
have so far been disappointed.
Marquez was faster and fifth
over the three days, a shade
behind Rossi; but admitted he
had not been able to push hard.
"We are far from where we want
to be. The problem for me is with
the electronics," he said.
Pedrosa was close on time
but placed eleventh in the thick
of the pack and is also full of
doubts.
It was Cal Crutchlow who
ended up next-best Honda, sixth
overall and only five hundredths
slower than Marquez. The sole
LCR rider was using an interim
engine, one stage short of the
latest version. Class learner Tito
Rabat was a respectable-enough
17th; Estrella Galicia-VDS team-
mate Jack Miller was absent, still
recuperating from a broken leg
suffered in a training crash.
DUCATI
With eight to Honda's five and
Yamaha's four, Desmosedicis of
various ages are now the most
numerous bikes on the grid.
The new GP16 is changed
only in detail from last year, with
revised geometry to suit the new
tires. But it was last year's GP15
setting the pace – with beam-
ingly delighted satellite riders
Petrucci and Barbera, with day-
two soft-tire times that kept them
second and third overall.
Top Duke on day three was of
course Casey Stoner. Teaching
everyone a lesson: and not least
the factory Andreas, Iannone
and Dovizioso. Marque new
boy Scott Redding (Petrucci's
Pramac teammate) also finished
ahead of the factory pair with
a strong day-two time, seventh
overall ahead of Iannone and in
Test rider Stoner leads Iannone. Lucky for Dovizioso Stoner isn't racing this year…
