---
title: "Dovizioso storms to Sepang pole"
canonical: "https://readmotorsport.com/2016/10/29/dovizioso-storms-sepang-pole/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Lewis Duncan"
section: "MotoGP News"
published: "2016-10-29T07:55:34Z"
modified: "2016-10-29T07:55:55Z"
---

# Dovizioso storms to Sepang pole

Ducati Corse’s Andrea Dovizioso will start tomorrow’s 20-lap Malaysian Grand Prix from pole position after a sensational performance in wet conditions from the Italian.

Dovizioso wasted no time when qualifying got underway, immediately laying the gauntlet of a 2m11.511s. Well over a second clear of the field, the Italian could have pitted if he wanted to but opted to carry out a second run, this time switching to the harder rear wet tyre. On his final lap he cemented his second pole of the season with a 2m11.485s.

Valentino Rossi pipped his Yamaha teammate Jorge Lorenzo right at the end of the session to go second quickest, well and truly making amends for his wet weather woes of one week ago. The Italian managed a 2m11.731s with Lorenzo just a few hundredths back. Though disappointed to be beaten by his teammate, this result is a big breakthrough for Lorenzo as he has previously struggled in wet conditions this season. Undoubtedly, the warmer temperatures and the new surface will have helped him, but he heads into tomorrow not dreading the weather should it take a turn for the worse.

Marc Marquez was fastest in the wet FP4 but couldn’t quite convert that to top spot in qualifying and will start from fourth. The Honda rider has been pretty ill this week, suffering from a bad bout of gastroenteritis. Tomorrow’s race will be difficult, but starting from the second row will help his cause.

LCR Honda’s Cal Crutchlow had to come through the first part of qualifying after a crash in this morning’s FP3 left him outside of the top 10. The British rider was supreme in QP1, easing through the session by over a second. In QP2, however, things went awry for the double MotoGP race winner. A crash at Turn 11 just as he was beginning his assault on the time sheets looked to have curtailed his challenge. But, Crutchlow was able to remount and sensationally took his RC213V to fifth. Ducati’s Andrea Iannone completed the second row in his first qualifying since the British Grand Prix last month.

> Twitter: Time attacks inbound![](https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/2/svg/1f4a2.svg)
>
> ![](https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/2/svg/33-20e3.svg)mins to go as #AD04 #JL99 #VR46 lock out the front row!
>
> \#CC35 has gone down. #RiderOK https://t.co/En3tayU8bE (@MotoGP)

Aleix Espargaro looked on course for a potential front row start in QP2, but a late fall at Turn 9 denied him that chance and he’ll start from seventh. The Spaniard was still able to out-qualify teammate Maverick Vinales, who’ll be disappointed with eight having topped this morning’s FP. Alvaro Bautista and Loris Baz, the French rider enjoying his best qualifying of the season, completed the top 10.

Pol Espargaro couldn’t put a decent lap together in QP2 and will start from 11th ahead of Hector Barbera, who will be left scratching his head at the half a second gap separating himself from his teammate. Bradley Smith will be gutted in 13th as he missed out on a QP2 place by just a hundredths of a second, the Tech 3 rider unable to capitalise on a late fall in QP1 for Baz.

Jack Miller was unable to repeat his Phillip Island qualifying heroics and will start from a disappointing 14th on the grid alongside Danilo Petrucci on the first of the Pramac Ducatis. His teammate faired no better, Scott Redding starting directly behind on the back of the sixth row with Hiroshi Aoyama and Stefan Bradl ahead of him. The two Aspar bikes and Marc VDS’ Tito Rabat will line up on the last row of the grid.

![2016-10-29-2](https://media.readmotorsport.com/readmotorsport/2016/10/2016-10-29-2-904x424.png)