Top-6 Start for Movistar Yamaha's Lorenzo & Rossi at MotoGP Round 4 Day 1 Practice in Jerez

	Grand Prix of Spain Scorching Temperatures Signal the Start in Jerez for MotoGP 14:00 Local time GMT+2 Sunny Air 31°C Track 49°C Humidity 26%
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	Jerez de la Frontera (Spain), 2nd May 2014 The first European round of the 2014 MotoGP World Championship got underway on track today with two free practice sessions ahead of Sunday’s Gran Premio de España. Movistar Yamaha MotoGP riders Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi were both quick to find a very competitive pace. The pair made progress despite a scorching track temperature of just under 50 degrees making a lack of grip an increasing issue into the second session. Lorenzo ended the day in second in the combined times with a best lap of 1’39.714, 0.357 seconds from first. Teammate Rossi ended in sixth with a 1’40.125 second lap, less than four tenths from Lorenzo. The major challenge for both riders proved to be a lack of rear grip so the team will now work to make improvements for both set ups ahead of tomorrow morning’s third free practice session. Lorenzo and Rossi also tested a new chassis for their YZR-M1 to improve the bike’s stability under braking. Positive results were obtained, giving Yamaha’s Japanese engineers a clear direction to continue development.
	Jorge Lorenzo 2nd / 1'39.714 / 18 laps “The track changed so much from the morning to the afternoon, it was much more slippery and we had to try the different rear tyre. Like in Qatar it gave us the same problems with less grip and the bike then feels nervous. We are much closer than before though and I think we can close the gap.” Profile
	Valentino Rossi 6th / 1'40.125 / 20 laps “We tried a different chassis today especially for the braking stability and the first impression is not so bad, it’s just a small step to understand the way to go. The track is very greasy so it’s difficult with the front and rear tyres with the high temperatures. It's difficult to control the bike and it slides a lot. Compared to the other top guys the pace is not so bad so it looks like we have worked well so far and now have to continue." Profile
	Massimo Meregalli “It’s definitely a positive start to the weekend. For sure we were able to take advantage of all our experience at this track. The bike is working well but of course we have some things to change to improve. Compared to the previous races this is a very different start. The only real issue we have is rear grip. We are focused now on several steps to improve it and then we have to work on a long distance run. We are strong under braking so we are satisfied for the first sessions. Both Jorge and Vale are reasonably happy overall and have good pace but are also keen to make the next steps and improve even further.”
	NOTES
	The extended imagery from today's Free Practice sessions (1 and 2) at the Jerez de la Frontera circuit (Spain) is available on www.yamahamotogp.com.
	FREE PRACTICE 1-2 - COMBINED RESULTS
	1. Aleix Espargaro (SPA) NGM Mobile Forward Racing 1'39.357 2. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Movistar Yamaha MotoGP 1'39.714 3. Marc Marquez (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 1'39.757 4. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 1'39.860 5. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Ducati Team 1'40.028 6. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Movistar Yamaha MotoGP 1'40.125 7. Alvaro Bautista (SPA) Go&Fun Honda Gresini 1'40.560 8. Stefan Bradl (GER) LCR Honda MotoGP 1'40.644 9. Yonny Hernandez (COL) Energy T.I. Pramac Racing 1'40.686 10. Andrea Iannone (ITA) Pramac Racing 1'40.742 11. Bradley Smith (GBR) Monster Yamaha Tech3 1'40.758 12. Nicky Hayden (USA) Drive M7 Aspar 1'40.788 13. Pol Espargarò (SPA) Monster Yamaha Tech3 1'40.918 14. Michele Pirro (ITA) Ducati Team 1'40.924 15. Hector Barbera (SPA) Avintia Racing 1'40.928 16. Hiroshi Aoyama (JPN) Drive M7 Aspar 1'41.183 17. Colin Edwards (USA) NGM Mobile Forward Racing 1'41.252 18. Cal Crutchlow (GBR) Ducati Team 1'41.353 19. Scott Redding (GBR) Go&Fun Honda Gresini 1'41.374 20. Karel Abraham (CZE) Cardion AB Motoracing 1'41.578 21. Danilo Petrucci (ITA) Came Iodaracing Project 1'41.589 22. Michael Laverty (GBR) Paul Bird Motorsport 1'41.914 23. Brok Parkes (AUS) Paul Bird Motorsport 1'42.171 24. Mike Di Meglio (FRA) Avintia Racing 1'42.220
	CIRCUIT INFORMATION
	Technical Informations Circuit Jerez de la Frontera Location Jerez de la Frontera, Spain Length (m) 4423 Width (m) 11 Turns 13 Turns righ 8 Turns left 5 Pole position left Record Lap Time 1'39.565 Rider J.Lorenzo Bike Yamaha Year 2013 Best Lap Time 1'38.189 Rider J.Lorenzo Bike Yamaha Year 2008 2013 Results 1st D.Pedrosa (Honda): 45'17.632 2nd M.Marquez (Honda): +2.487 3rd J.Lorenzo (Yamaha): +5.089
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