Yamaha MotoGP rider Jorge Lorenzo of Spain gestures before the first practice session for the British Grand Prix at the Silverstone Race Circuit. (Reuters)

AFP/London


World championship pace-setter Jorge Lorenzo continued where he left off in the Czech Republic last week when he set the fastest time Friday in practice for the British MotoGP.
The Yamaha rider, who tops the series courtesy of having more wins than teammate Valentino Rossi despite the two being locked on 211 points, clocked 2min 02.338sec. That was 0.033sec better than two-time champion Marc Marquez on a Honda while nine-time world champion Rossi was down in 10th spot, 0.989sec off the pace. Britain’s Bradley Smith, on a Yamaha Tech3, was a surprise third fastest, 0.193sec behind Lorenzo.
Lorenzo, a three-time winner at Silverstone, nipped ahead of Rossi in the world championship last weekend after winning the Czech MotoGP for his 38th career victory at the elite level.
“The feeling has been good from the beginning. I didn’t expect to improve so much in the afternoon session on my first run, but my lap time was suddenly a second quicker and was fast enough for me to stay in first position,” said Lorenzo, a five-time winner in 2015.
“We still need to improve our pace a little bit, because the track is very cold and this made the tyre go down a little bit after every run.  
“The car racing at Silverstone is making the asphalt very bumpy, especially on braking, and I think it’s a bit slower compared to last year, but the bikes seem to be faster, making the lap times similar.”
Rossi admitted his afternoon session had been compromised by a lack of rear grip on his Yamaha.
“Here in Silverstone the weather is always a big question mark and just like everybody else we would prefer all practice sessions to be dry, but that might not be possible because the weather is becoming worse,” said the Italian.
“Fortunately I’m in the top ten, so it’s not a big problem if we have a wet practice tomorrow, but we all hope for a dry session so we can improve the setting.”
Rossi has a best finish at Silverstone of third last year since the race was switched from Donington Park in 2010.
MotoGP practice times:
1. Jorge Lorenzo (ESP/Yamaha) 2:02.338 2. Marc Marquez (ESP/Honda) at 0.033 3. Bradley Smith (GBR/Yamaha Tech3) 0.193
4. Dani Pedrosa (ESP/Honda) 0.235
5. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA/Ducati) 0.423
6. Aleix Espargaro (ESP/Suzuki) 0.534
7. Pol Espargaro (ESP/Yamaha-Tech3) 0.634
8. Andrea Iannone (ITA/Ducati) 0.881
9. Scott Redding (GBR/Honda Marc VDS) 0.946
10. Valentino Rossi (ITA/Yamaha) 0.989