Casey Stoner ended the final MotoGP practise session at Silverstone with the fastest lap time, finishing just over four-hundredths of a second ahead of championship rival Jorge Lorenzo.
Repsol Honda rider Stoner carried on the form he had shown in Friday’s second practise, setting a fastest lap of the weekend so far with a 2:03.941 in the closing minutes of Saturday morning’s session.
Lorenzo, who won here two years ago, had led the way for much of Free Practise Three, showing much improvement from the previous day ahead of qualifying this afternoon. His fastest time was a 2:04.357.
The Spaniard’s Yamaha team mate Ben Spies was third quickest in the morning after a strong showing in FP2 the day before, setting a best time of 2:04.427.
However, there was some concern for Cal Crutchlow, who crashed badly on the exit of Becketts Corner. The British Tech 3 Yamaha rider was subsequently taken to the circuit’s medical centre for a check-up, complaining of a painful ankle.
Crutchlow will be hoping that the injury does not prove serious enough to rule him out of any further participation in the British Grand Prix – particularly as he missed his home race last year following a heavy crash in qualifying.
Compatriot James Ellison enjoyed his best running of the weekend so far, finishing the Saturday morning practise 13th with a quickest lap of 2:08.564 on the Paul Bird Motorsport ART.
