Highlights

Capirossi fastest in practice for Australian GP

(Reuters)
Updated: 2006-09-15 10:24

Italy's Loris Capirossi clocked the fastest time in opening free practice for the Australian MotoGP Grand Prix on Friday.

The Ducati rider lapped the 4.44km Phillip Island circuit in one minute 30.653 seconds with Spain's Sete Gibernau second fastest, just four hundredths of a second adrift. Home hope Casey Stoner was third quickest for Honda and Yamaha's world champion Valentino Rossi finished eighth, 0.490 behind Capirossi's time.

World championship leader Nicky Hayden of the United States was ninth quickest and Repsol Honda team mate Dani Pedrosa, second in the title race, was back in 17th, almost two seconds off the pace.

Hayden leads the world championship with four races to go by 22 points from Spaniard Pedrosa, who hobbled to his bike clearly still troubled by the leg injuries picked up during a crash in practice for last week's Malaysian GP.

Italy's Rossi lies third in the standings, 26 points behind Hayden.

Italian Marco Melandri, who along with Capirossi is the only other rider with a mathematical chance of clinching the title, finished the session in fourth place.