Dani Pedrosa kept command of the Sepang
MotoGP test during day two of 2013 track action.
The Repsol Honda rider, title runner-up with seven wins last season, displaced Yamaha's
Jorge Lorenzo from the top of the timesheets shortly after 1pm.
Lorenzo had undercut Pedrosa's day one time by 0.589s early on, as the RCV rider continued work on weight distribution for the extra 3kg required for 2013.
As the distribution improved so did Pedrosa's lap time and he finally moved 0.019s clear of the reigning champion on his 29th lap.
“Today I was mainly trying to get the best weight balance on the bike,” confirmed Pedrosa.
“I'm not fully focused on lap times because the bike is always different when I go out. It's not familiar enough for a maximum time push. This could happen in the next test.”
Asked about setting his best time relatively late in the day, when temperatures were higher, Pedrosa replied:
“I made my best lap when the bike felt better for me. We were moving the weight around and making improvements It's not done yet, but we are getting there.
“Once the weight balance is decided it should work everywhere, we will just need to adjust the springs etc to suit each circuit.”
Rain shortly after 4pm then brought Wednesday's dry track time to a premature end, denying Pedrosa the chance to try the new rear tyre compound from Bridgestone.
“After lunch I only got one run in before the rain. I had planned to try the new rear tyre, because after this test it will be decided which compound is best.”
Rookie team-mate Marc Marquez again impressed with the third fastest lap time, 0.254s from Pedrosa.