After a disappointing French Grand Prix, in which he was denied a place on the
MotoGP podium for the first time this year,
Dani Pedrosa bounced back with the fastest Monday test time at Le Mans as the Spaniard worked to solve front end problems experienced in the race.
With no pneumatic engine to test, Pedrosa and Repsol Honda team-mate
Nicky Hayden will not stay for day two of the test, and spent their Monday time working predominantly on Michelin tyre testing and chassis set-up.
Pedrosa, whose fourth place finish on Sunday cost him the world championship lead by three points to
Valentino Rossi, set a fastest lap of 1min 33.106secs - half a second behind his own pole position time - using a qualifying tyre at the end of a chilly day.
"I think we made some positive steps today," said Dani. "We focused on the front end, looking to improve feeling, so I tested several different front tyres and tried several different set-up solutions. I also tried some different electronics settings. I'm quite satisfied, we've learned a few things that should be useful at the next few races.
"It was difficult sometimes because the weather was quite cold, but finally it worked out okay. At the end of the day I used a qualifying tyre because we had to test something for qualifying. Now I'm looking forward to Mugello, a great track with an incredible atmosphere, where I hope we can have a better race," he added.
Nearest to Pedrosa on Monday was race winner Rossi, who took his Bridgestone-shod Fiat Yamaha around the Bugatti circuit in a time of 1min 33.661secs, on a qualifying tyre, as he began preparations for his home Italian Grand Prix on June 1.
With
Jorge Lorenzo having flown back to Spain to continue rehabilitation on his fractured ankles, Rossi was the only Fiat Yamaha rider present on Monday - and will return on Tuesday.
