In a dramatic qualifying for the Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix, Dani Pedrosa took pole position after his teammate Casey Stoner suffered a nasty crash on his fourth lap, in the first 10 minutes of the session.

Stoner had a heavy highside in turn 13 and was immediately taken to the circuit medical centre. The first X-Rays ruled out any serious injury, suggesting torn ligaments in the right ankle. Stoner was taken to the local Methodist Hospital for further checks and scans. The Repsol Honda team will release a statement later today, as soon as more information is known.

With a final flying lap of 1'38.813, Pedrosa set a new lap record on his way to his second pole position at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and his third of the 2012 season. Stoner, who was fastest in the last free practice this morning, finally finished in sixth position with 1'39.465.


Dani Pedrosa

"It was a tricky session because the asphalt was very slippery and we saw many nasty crashes already in Moto3 and then in MotoGP. It felt that you could control the slide, but suddenly many riders found themselves on the floor. It was crucial to keep the concentration on our riding and not make any mistake and achieve the lap time. To be in pole position is great at a track where the first sector is very tight and it's always good to have a clean start. We did a very good job today, testing the tyres, working on the bike and being ready for the hot laps. I feel we have a good setting for tomorrow. We are confident for the race, but other riders look strong as well. Lorenzo picked up his pace, Spies is strong here and I hope Casey has nothing serious and can be on the grid. We will need to fight at the maximum tomorrow.”

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