Yamaha World Supersport Team riders Fabien Foret and Broc Parkes had vastly differing experiences during their first day of practice at Valencia, with Parkes finishing fourth on the time sheets and Foret suffering a slight concussion after a crash.
Despite not riding in the recent FGSport tests at Valencia on 13 and 14 March, both Parkes and Foret started brightly in the opening unofficial session this morning, with Parkes fastest of all and Foret only 0.6 seconds behind.
Against expectations, the overcast afternoon session meant that it was only slightly warmer than the morning but the times of the top riders dropped significantly in any case. Andrew Pitt set a new track best of 1m 36.773 to take provisional pole, with Parkes setting a best of 1m 37.436 to go fourth fastest. Foret rode for only four laps in the official session in the afternoon before he fell. He suffered a highside when his rear end slid and then finally snapped sideways on the exit of the first right hander of the circuit, while he was trying out a new tyre at a high pace. Foret recorded a time of 1m 38.351 was ranked 14th.
Massimo Roccoli (Yamaha Team Italia Lorenzini by Leoni) was the closest YZF-R6 rider to Parkes, going 11th quickest with a 1m 38.007 lap. Roccoli had been joint fastest qualifier in the recent official test at Valencia, but was unable to replicate those kind of lap-times today.
Yamaha Spain World Supersport Team rider David De Gea only did a handful of laps before being forced to stop riding due to the effects of a previously fractured lower left leg, which had not healed up enough to allow him to put pressure on it.
De Gea's team-mate Davide Salom was a disappointed 29th after setting only 12 laps in total in the timed session.
Broc Parkes (4th - 1m 37.436 - Yamaha World Supersport Team)
"Not too bad for Friday and we knew we would be doing a little bit of catching up because we didn't test here. When we got the end of the session we found a way to go forward but we didn't have enough time left to try it. We found some good and bad things today, so tonight we will absorb it all. I know we can be a lot better."
Wilco Zeelenberg (Team Manager, Yamaha World Supersport Team)"We've started well, although we need to be a little bit faster still. We need to improve some points with the front-end feel and also the rear-end is sitting a little bit too far down right now. Nothing dramatic, but every time you speed up you have to make changes. It looked a bit better this morning, when we were right there in terms of lap times. Fabien hit his head quite hard when he fell and had a short concussion. He came back into the garage with time left in the session but we thought it would be better for him to wait until tomorrow to ride again."
Massimo Roccoli (11th - 1'38.007 seconds - Yamaha Team Italia Lorenzini by Leoni)"We are slower than we were in tests here last month but the temperatures on the track are very different, in the morning and the afternoon, and we didn't choose the best rear tyre to work with. I am confident that we can find a better way tomorrow and move up the grid."
David De Gea (Yamaha Spain World Supersport Team)"I broke my left leg in February and last week the doctor advised me not to enter this weekend. But I wanted to at least try and I tried to test this morning. Under braking it was particularly painful. I have to say that right now my leg is not ready and it does not help that here in Valencia we have a lot of left-hand corners. It´s a shame, but now we have to wait for Assen, where I hope to be ready to ride."
Circuit Length: 4005
Temp: 19
Weather: Overcast
2008 WSS Spain - Valencia Qualifying 1:1. Andrew Pitt - Honda - AUS 1'36.773
2. Craig Jones - Honda - GBR 1'37.068
3. Katsuaki Fujiwara - Kawasaki - JPN 1'37.233
4. Broc Parkes - Yamaha - AUS 1'37.436
5. Joshua Brookes - Honda - AUS 1'37.449
6. Joan Lascorz - Honda - ESP 1'37.538
7. Jonathan Rea - Honda - GBR 1'37.551
8. Chris Walker - Kawasaki - GBR 1'37.810
9. Gianluca Vizziello - Honda - ITA 1'37.899
10. Barry Veneman - Suzuki - NED 1'37.985
11. Massimo Roccoli - Yamaha - ITA 1'38.007
12. Matthieu Lagrive - Honda - FRA 1'38.042
13. Robbin Harms - Honda - DNK 1'38.108
14. Fabien Foret - Yamaha - FRA 1'38.211
15. Graeme Gowland - Honda - GBR 1'38.255
29. David Salom - Yamaha - ESP 1'39.486
