They fell in separate, but very similar, low-speed accidents at the Honda hairpin during the closing minutes of second free practice. Nevertheless, Stoner maintained his position at the top of the timesheets, while Davies also made a promising start to only his second
MotoGP event.
The 20-year-old missed the first third of the afternoon hour due to a mechanical problem with his d'Antin Ducati but, once out on track, quickly outpaced the likes of home hero
Chris Vermeulen and Fiat Yamaha's
Colin Edwards on his way to 13th position during a day of unpredictable weather.
Nevertheless, the 2007 AMA Supersport pole sitter and Formula Xtreme podium finisher knows he needs more speed to qualify competitively on Saturday.
"There must have been some oil on the track because both Casey and I went down without any warning," said Davies of his fall. "I also missed the early part of the afternoon session with a mechanical problem but apart from that I'm pretty happy with the first day. I finished in front of both Chris Vermeulen and Colin Edwards but I will have to up the pace tomorrow because those guys are certain to go much quicker.
"I started the day by taking it easy because the track conditions were tricky and I wanted to take things step by step," recalled Chaz. "As the day went on we introduced different modifications to the bike, and in the afternoon I was able to get a better feeling with the Ducati."
