Pedrosa edges out Stoner for pole in Malaysia

SPAIN'S Dani Pedrosa edged world champion Australia's Casey
Stoner to clinch the MotoGP pole position for today's Malaysian
Grand Prix at the Sepang track.

The Honda rider clinched his third pole position of the season by
clocking two minutes 1.877 seconds.

The 21-year-old Pedrosa has won only one race this season and
lies in third spot with 188 points, behind five-times world
champion Valentino Rossi.

Stoner, who has not won in Malaysia, took second position with a
time of 2:01.918. "I think the race (Sunday) is looking good. The
bike is working well. I think I could have gone faster except for
some bumps on the track that affects the electronic system on
the bike," he said.

With the individual, team and constructors titles already in the
bag for Stoner and Ducati, the main interest in the MotoGP class
lies in whether the Australian can chalk up another win, and who
will take second place in the premier class.

Rossi holds a 29-point advantage over Pedrosa, who rides for
Honda, with 50 points still up for grabs. theage.com.au

1. Dani Pedrosa (Spain/Honda) 2:01.877
2. Casey Stoner (Australia/Ducati) 2:01.918
3. Marco Melandri (Italy/Honda) 2:01.944
4. Randy de Pruniet (French Republic/Kawasaki) 2:02.107
5. Anthony West (Australia/Kawasaki) 2:02.202
6. Nicky Hayden (USA/Honda) 2:02.225
7. Chris Vermeulen (Australia/Suzuki) 2:02.301
8. Toni Elias (Spain/Honda) 2:02.432
9. Valentino Rossi (Italy/Yamaha) 2:02.466
10. John Hopkins (USA/Suzuki) 2:02.697
11. Loris Capirossi (Italy/Ducati) 2:02.708
12. Alex Barros (Brazil/Ducati) 2:03.022
13. Colin Edwards (USA/Yamaha) 2:03.040
14. Shinya Nakano (Japan/Honda) 2:03.233
15. Sylvain Guintoli (French Republic/Yamaha) 2:03.408
16. Carlos Checa (Spain/Honda) 2:03.525
17. Chaz Davies (Great Britain/Ducati) 2:04.197
18. Makoto Tamada (Japan/Yamaha) 2:04.314
19. Nobuatsu Aoki (Japan/Suzuki) 2:04.604
20. Kurtis Roberts (USA/KR212v) 2:05.404

pics from roadracingworld.com & ducati.com