Like several top drivers, Vale was trapped on this first day by the tricky weather at the Sachsenring. It must be said that his mission proved complicated: he had to develop two different chassis on a track whose surface had just been resurfaced, without having carried out a single day of testing, and also test four front tires and four back.
Aware of the difficulty, the organizers had extended the duration of the two free practice sessions on Saturday, but Michelin forced each driver to complete a minimum of five laps on the hard tire (because of the new asphalt), which did not make things easier. .
In the dry morning, Rossi set the sixteenth time, almost a second behind Andrea Dovizioso's best time. He often sets a modest time during FP1, and there was therefore no danger in the matter. The first four free sessions – all categories combined – took place in the dry, but a huge downpour soaked the circuit just before the second MotoGP free practice session.
It was then impossible to improve the morning times, but we still had to ride to prepare for Sunday's race, in case it took place in the wet. This was all the more important for Valentino as he had to tune two different chassis for the wet track.
He set the fifteenth time. Direct transfer to Q2 remains possible if the weather is good on Saturday morning. Otherwise, Rossi will have to go through Q1, which he is more than capable of.
Time lost following a technical breakdown:
looks like # VR46 is trying to find his way back to the paddock!#GermanGP pic.twitter.com/8MXvR2tXG4
- MotoGP @ 🏁 (@MotoGP) June 30, 2017
For Valentino Rossi, “It was a difficult day, because I was slow in all conditions. Especially on wet tracks, we suffer a lot. I think we are not good with the balance of the bike.
“In the dry, our pace is a little better, but anyway, it's not fantastic. Unfortunately, during the last part of FP1, I had no feeling with the front tire and I couldn't put in a good lap to get into the top 10.
“As I am not in the top 10, we hope that tomorrow we can have a dry session in FP3. Otherwise it will be very difficult because going behind is a nightmare for everyone.
“We have to try to improve the balance of the bike on the wet track, because with the new asphalt it is very difficult to ride, but usually on the wet we are stronger, but today we are quite far away from the top, then we have to try to change something. »
Results of the first day:
1- Andrea Dovizioso – Ducati Team – Ducati Desmosedici GP – 1'21.599
2- Maverick Vinales – Movistar Yamaha MotoGP – Yamaha YZR M1 – + 0.038
3- Dani Pedrosa - Repsol Honda Team - Honda RC213V - + 0.190
4- Aleix Espargaro – Aprilia Gresini Racing Team – Aprilia RS-GP – + 0.233
5- Alvaro Bautista – Pull & Bear Aspar Team – Ducati Desmosedici GP – + 0.241
6- Marc Marquez – Repsol Honda Team – Honda RC213V – + 0.299
7- Johann Zarco – Monster Yamaha Tech 3 – Yamaha YZR M1 – + 0.374
8- Danilo Petrucci – OCTO Pramac Racing – Ducati Desmosedici GP – + 0.393
9- Jack Miller – Marc VDS 0.0 EG – Honda RC213V – + 0.469
10- Scott Redding – OCTO Pramac Racing – Ducati Desmosedici GP – + 0.476
11- Jonas Folger – Monster Yamaha Tech 3 – Yamaha YZR M1 – + 0.576
12- Jorge Lorenzo – Ducati Team – Ducati Desmosedici GP – + 0.610
13- Cal Crutchlow – LCR Honda – Honda RC213V – + 0.641
14- Hector Barbera – Royal Avintia Racing – Ducati Desmosedici GP – 0737 +
15- Sam Lowes – Aprilia Racing Team Gresini – Aprilia RS-GP – + 0.866
16- Valentino Rossi – Movistar Yamaha MotoGP – Yamaha YZR M1 – + 0.936
17- Pol Espargaro – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing – KTM RC16 – + 0.994
18- Karel Abraham – Pull & Bear Aspar Team – Ducati Desmosedici GP – + 1.013
19- Alex Rins – Ecstar Team Suzuki – Suzuki GSX-RR – + 1.043
20- Tito Rabat – EG 0.0 Marc VDS – Honda RC213V – + 1.146
21- Bradley Smith – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing – KTM RC16 – + 1.289
22- Loris Baz – Royal Avintia Racing – Ducati Desmosedici GP – + 1.390
23- Mika Kallio – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing – KTM RC16 – + 1,619
24- Andrea Iannone – Ecstar Team Suzuki – Suzuki GSX-RR – + 1.700
Provisional ranking of the World Championship:
1 Andrea DOVIZIOSO-Ducati 115 points
2 Maverick VIÑALES-Yamaha 111
3 Valentino ROSSI-Yamaha 108
4 Marc MARQUEZ-Honda 104
5 Dani PEDROSA-Honda 87
6 Johann ZARCO-Yamaha 77
7 Danilo PETRUCCI-Ducati 62
8 Jorge LORENZO-Ducati 60
9 Cal CRUTCHLOW-Honda 58
10 Jonas FOLGER-Yamaha 51
11 Jack MILLER-Honda 40
12 Alvaro BAUTISTA-Ducati 34
13 Scott REDDING-Ducati 33
14 Loris BAZ-Ducati 31
15 Andrea IANNONE-Suzuki 28
16 Aleix ESPARGARO-Aprilia 23
17 Tito RABAT-Honda 23
18 Hector BARBERA-Ducati 21
19 Karel ABRAHAM-Ducati 20
20 Pol ESPARGARO-KTM 11
