Movistar Yamaha MotoGP's Jorge Lorenzo showed sensational speed at Automotodrom Brno today and secured second place on the grid for the Grand Prix Ceské Republiky. Teammate Valentino Rossi also put maximum effort into this afternoon's qualifying session and will start tomorrow's race from sixth place.

Lorenzo underlined how comfortable he is feeling with his YZR-M1 in FP3 and FP4, topping both time sheets, and entered the Q2 session feeling confident that he would be able to put in a hot lap.

The reigning World Champion was the last rider out of the pits in the 15-minute qualifying session to ensure a free track for his first stint. His initial flying lap of 1'54.959s, 0.667s quicker than the rest of the field, took him to provisional pole.

With more than seven minutes to go he came into the pits. Just a minute later Lorenzo was back on the track and had three laps to show his pace. Still three-tenths ahead of his closest competitor, the Mallorcan rode against his own time and found another tenth, setting a 1'54.849s to further extend his lead. However, he was unable to improve on his last laps and ultimately secured second place, 0.253s from pole, when his rivals made a late charge just before the flag went out.

Rossi took his time to leave pit lane as qualifying got underway, allowing the majority of the pack to depart before heading out. He put in a 1'56.093s to slot into fourth place before being pushed back to seventh place when the pace quickened. His second flying lap shaved a little off of his previous best time, delivering a 1'55.509s to hold provisional fourth on the second row.

The Doctor returned to the pits to switch from a hard front tyre to a soft option and with six minutes on the clock hit the track again to put the pressure on. However, the nine-time World Champion soon got stuck in traffic and was unable to better his time. He finished in sixth place, 0.913s from first.

Massimo Meregalli - Movistar Yamaha MotoGP Team Director

"It was a very strong qualifying session from Jorge, he's had an impressive pace all day and set some really great lap times during Q2. It's unfortunate that Valentino got stuck in traffic at the end of the session while he was on a hot lap, because he could have been a contender for the front row. However, both riders are satisfied with their bikes. They have a good pace, even with the front hard tyre spec, so we are optimistic for tomorrow's race. It's a shame that the weather forecast for tomorrow isn't looking good, I really hope it won't influence the outcome of the race. Let's hope for either a fully wet or a fully dry race."

Jorge Lorenzo - 2nd / 1'54.849 / 7 laps

"I probably pushed a bit too much, too hard and was late on braking so I had not enough corner speed to be fast on the second tyre. I think the second tyre performed a bit less than the first one, so ultimately I couldn't be faster. We are happy with second place, especially because we have a good pace and a good set-up to keep up in the race."

Valentino Rossi - 6th / 1'55.509 / 7 laps

"It's a shame for me because I have a better potential and could've arrived on the front row because my ideal time would have been the third one. I pushed a lot on the second tyre, because I knew I could improve by half a second, but unfortunately I got stuck in traffic and we arrived there with everybody waiting, it becomes like a big casino, you have to risk a lot, it's a disaster. At the end I hadn't done a clear lap, but anyway the second row is not so bad, because if you are on the third it's more difficult. The second is for sure worst than the first, but anyway you are in the top group, so we need to wait for tomorrow and understand the conditions, if it will be wet or dry and also the temperature, if it's colder it will become more difficult for the front tyre."