MotoGP practice 3: Hayden hot as Stoner comes off

American Nicky Hayden, fastest man ever round the Phillip Island circuit, topped the final free practice session for Sunday’s Australian Grand Prix with a late lap of 1:30.558 on his Repsol Honda after Casey Stoner had dominated the previous 59 minutes.

Stoner, who will have Hayden as his Ducati partner next year, came off the red machine in the dying seconds at Turn 10 where Toni Elias’s satellite Ducati and Stoner’s current team-mate Marco Melandri had already come to grief.

Spectacular moments from Stoner framed the one-hour session as he drifted the Ducati over Lukey Heights and stayed in the saddle through a couple of bucking bronco moments to go fastest with six minutes gone and then improve his time with just five minutes to go.

A lap of 1:30.617 looked likely to see the Australian top the times as he had done in Friday’s opening free practice until Hayden usurped him at the end. Just five riders broke the 1:31 barrier, the other three being Yamaha ace Jorge Lorenzo, Honda satellite rider Alex de Angelis – again on song after finishing third in Friday’s dry first practice – and 100-GP man Colin Edwards on the Tech3 Yamaha.

Valentino Rossi, gunning for podium finish number 11 in a row at the Island, could manage only sixth-best time of 1:31.014 as 2.628 seconds separated Hayden from last man Ant West on the second Kawasaki.

West’s team-mate John Hopkins came off the green machine at Turn 4 moments after Suzuki star Loris Capirossi had a big moment at the same place, the 280-race veteran sliding gently on to the grass on the inside of the corner as the bike ran on.

Sylvain Guintoli earned the points for the most stylish off of the morning: with 20 minutes of the session gone the Frenchman lost the Alice Team Ducati up at the Hayshed and seemed sure to come off but ended up sitting on the bike’s fairing as it ploughed into the gravel trap and deposited him gently beside it.

James Toseland put in a strong showing to be seventh on the second Tech3 Yamaha despite a disconnected sensor on the right side of the bike’s fairing early in the hour.

Hayden, who also topped the time’s in Friday’s wet afternoon session, is looking for only his fourth front-row start of the season when qualifying gets under way this afternoon.

For full results, visit www.motogp.com.au