Pedrosa stays top in second Brno practice

Dani Pedrosa remained fastest during second Friday practice for the Cz💦ech Republic MotoGP - which saw another red-flag period and title leader Jorge Lorenzo among five fallers.
Pedrosa, winner last Sunday at Indianapolis, led four Yamahas in morning practi🍌ce at Brno, despite limping after being hit in the leg 🍸by a stone kicked up from Rossi's Ducati.
The session was later red flagged to clear the debris and this afterᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚnoon's practice was also halted, after 26 of 45-minutes, in order to repair th🌃e airfence after an accident for Yonny Hernandez. A similar interruption had occurred in Moto2.
Lorenzo, second this morning, was leading by 0.414s from Tech 3 Yamaha's Andrea Dovizioso at the time of the stop𝕴page, but then fell from his factory M1 after spinning-out through the stadium section with 20 minutes to go.
Pedrosa hit the top just moments later, with Lorenzo returning on his spare bike for the final nine minutes. Lorenzo's third lap remained his fastest and Ped𓆏rosa finished the day just 0.053s ahead.
Following t🦋he injury-induced withdraw of Casey Stoner, the championship has been reduced to a straight Lorenzo-Pedrosa battle, with Lorenzo currently leading by 18 points.
Dovizioso, who signed for𝐆 Ducati earlier this week, con🔴tinued his strong early-session pace to hold third place at the flag, just 0.197s from Pedrosa.
Tech 3 team-mate Cal Crut𝓡chlow was 0.16s behind the Italian, with rookie Stefan Bradl putting in another strong showing with fifth for Honda LCR (+0.392s).
Rossi, who put in his best 2011 qualifying performance (in terms of time difference) at Brno last season, provided hope for Duca🌟ti with sixth and 0.457s from the front.
Alvaro Bautista (Gresini Honda) and Bꦍen Spies (Factory Yamaha) both fell on their way to seventh and eighth 🌌places, as did the top CRT rider Aleix Espargaro (Aspar) in ninth.
Pramac Ducati stand in Toni Elias improved to tenth this afternoon, at a circuit where he as previously finished on the MotoGP podium, with fellow satellite Desmosedici💯 rider Karel Abraham just behind him after the first day of his home round.
Randy de Puniet (Aspar) an𝕴d Michele Pirro (Gresini) were the final riders within three-seconds of Pedrosa, around the lengthy two-minute lap, with 14th place Hernandez (Avintia) looking to start again on Saturday after falls in both Friday sessions.
Mattia Pa🌠sini and Colin Edwards, who despite rumours remain on ART and Sut🧸er-BMW machinery respectively, were 15th and 16th.
Ivan Silva ꦗ(Avintia), James Ellison (PBM) and the underpowered Danilo Petrucci (Ioda) completed the 19-rider line-up.
Friday practice (2):
1. Dani Pedrosa
2. Jorge Lorenzo
3. Andrea Dovizioso
4. Cal Crutchlow
5. Stefan Bradl
6. Valentino Rossi
7. Alvaro Bautista
8. Ben Spies
9. Aleix Espargaro
10. Toni Elias
11. Karel Abraham
12. Randy De Puniet
13. Michele Pirro
14. Yonny Hernandez
15. Mattia Pasini
16. Colin Edwards
17. Ivan Silva
18. James Ellison
19. Danilo Petrucci

Peter has been in the paddock for 20 years and has seen Valentino Rossi come and go📖. He is at the forefront of the Suzuki exit story and Marc 🙈Marquez’s injury issues.