Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix – MotoGP Sunday Guide

- Casey Stoner starts from pole for the eighth time in 2008. Stoner is the first Australian to start from pole at Phillip Island since Mick Doohan in 1998.

- Stoner´s pole position time is the fastest ever lap of the Phillip Island circuit. The top four riders on the grid have gone faster than the previous pole position record set in 2006 by Nicky Hayden on a 990cc Honda.

- The last time a Bridgestone rider was on pole in Phillip Island was also the first pole position for Bridgestone in MotoGP when Jeremy McWilliams qualified in first position on the Proton KRv3 in 2002.

- Jorge Lorenzo, who has won the 250cc race at Phillip Island for the last two years, is starting from the front row for the seventh time in his debut season in MotoGP.

- Hayden will be starting from the front row for just the fourth time in 2008. Hayden had one of his strongest races of 2007 at the Phillip Island track, running in second position early on before he suffered engine problems on lap ten and retired from the race.

- Randy de Puniet´s fourth place on the grid equals his best grid position of the year which he achieved at both Catalunya and Misano. He failed to finish both races.

- James Toseland, who is celebrating his 28th birthday on Sunday, is starting from his best grid position since the Red Bull US Grand Prix at Laguna Seca when he was also the fifth fastest qualifier.

- Phillip Island is one of just three circuits where Dani Pedrosa has not had a podium finish on a MotoGP machine - the others are Misano and Indianapolis.

- Colin Edwards, who has not missed a race since making his Grand Prix debut, will be making his 100th GP start in Sunday´s race.

- Andrea Dovizioso won the 125cc race at Phillip Island in 2004 by just over one tenth of a second from current MotoGP rivals Jorge Lorenzo and Casey Stoner.

- Valentino Rossi is starting from his lowest grid position since he was the seventeenth fastest qualifier at the final race of 2007 in Valencia following a crash in the qualifying session. Rossi has finished on the podium at Phillip Island for the past ten years - twice in the 250cc class and eight times in the premier-class. This is the first time Rossi has not been on the front row at Phillip Island since 2002 when he was seventh.

- Loris Capirossi needs to finish in the top twelve to become only the second rider in Grand Prix history to reach the milestone of 3000 points across all classes.