Sepang test: Casey Stoner ends Malaysia test fastest

Aussie Casey Stoner made light work of the pain of his injured left wrist to set the fastest time at the end of the Sepang test in Malaysia.

The 2007 MotoGP world champion might have had to limit his track time because of his on-going wrist problem, but he was in devastatingly fast form as he clocked a best time of 2.01.043.

That secured Stoner the best time of the test with reigning world champion and chief adversary Valentino Rossi finishing just 0.094s behind with the Italian posting a best of 2.01.137.

Third place went to surprise package Loris Capirossi, who continued his brilliant form on the factory Suzuki GSV-R.

He was 0.219s slower than Stoner and with Aussie team-mate Chris Vermeulen in sixth, Suzuki left the Far East full of optimism.

Fourth quickest time was set by Colin Edwards on the Tech 3 Yamaha as he completed a short 22-lap stint before packing up early to return home to Texas for checks on a niggling neck injury.

Jorge Lorenzo finally made some progress in his quest to adapt to Bridgestone rubber as he logged a best of 2.01.907. That was still nearly a second behind Stoner.

It was another tough day for American Nicky Hayden on the factory Ducati GP9.
He had a small crash at the second corner this afternoon and his best lap of 2.02.497 was slower than rookie Mika Kallio on the Pramac Ducati.

James Toseland’s fortunes picked up slightly on the final day but the British rider still had a forgettable test.

Still badly hampered by the right arm and left leg injuries he suffered in a 125mph high-side on the first day, Toseland dropped his lap time to 2.03.953 but was still languishing at the bottom of the timesheets.

Times
1 Casey Stoner  Ducati  2:01.043
2 Valentino Rossi   Yamaha  2:01.137 
3 Loris Capirossi    Suzuki  2:01.262
4 Colin Edwards      Yamaha  2:01.413 
5 Toni Elias         Honda   2:01.560 
6 Chris Vermeulen    Suzuki  2:01.666 
7 Jorge Lorenzo      Yamaha  2:01.907 
8 Andrea Dovizioso   Honda   2:01.955 
9 Mika Kallio        Ducati  2:02.386 
10  Nicky Hayden       Ducati  2:02.497 
11  Alex De Angelis    Honda   2:02.523
12 Sete Gibernau      Ducati  2:02.727 
13  Randy De Puniet    Honda   2:03.418
14  Yuki Takahashi     Honda   2:03.474 
15  Niccolo Canepa     Ducati  2:03.901 
16.  James Toseland     Yamaha  2:03.953 

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