Just one week after claiming second place in the floodlit IRTA test, the Yamaha Tech 3 rider managed to find 1.1secs between the two sessions to conclude day one of
MotoGP's first ever night event as the fastest satellite rider, having lapped 0.359secs behind factory Yamaha rookie
Jorge Lorenzo and 0.370s from reigning world champion
Casey Stoner.
"I've got to admit that I was a bit nervous before the first session and I don't know why. I've been fine in testing but all of a sudden it dawned on me that this is it - the start of my MotoGP career," revealed the double World Superbike champion. "I was thinking too much about the unfamiliar things of being in a MotoGP weekend, and after the first session I just needed half-an-hour to chill out.
"I'm happy with my times and I'm just pleased that I have done similar things to what I did in the test. There was a lot of hype coming into the first race after my testing results and it's nice to back it up when everybody is watching and its all official. It proves I can do well in this class," he declared.
"The track was dusty and dirty in the first session and I was using softer compound tyres just to get a feeling for the conditions. When I put the better tyres in I instantly had a good feeling, but I wanted to do a 1.55 on my second lap. I went into the corner too hard and should have waited a bit longer to build up my speed. I just lost the front," said Toseland of his fall.
Both Toseland team-mate
Colin Edwards spent the opening night assessing new Michelin tyres ahead of Sunday's 22-lap race, directly comparing the new rubber against the tyres they preferred at last week's two-day test.
"I've got to say hats off to Michelin and Yamaha. I don't know how much Michelin improved from last year, but I know how much they have improved since I started in November and it has been a massive step," said James. "And for Yamaha to have three bikes in the top four shows they are working very hard.”
