Simoncelli starts out “on the right foot”

Marco Simoncelli set the fifth best time of the first practice at the eni Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland on Friday, and was left to contemplate the best start to a weekend in his debut MotoGP season.

The Italian kept his feet on the ground after his best time of 1’23.204 placed him fifth with less than a second separating the top 13 in the session, but he was pleased nonetheless with his performance, one he hopes to repeat on Saturday.

"I am happy with the fifth fastest time although it doesn’t mean that much because there are a lot of riders in just a few tenths of a second. It wouldn’t take much to drop from fifth to the bottom of the time sheets but I can’t deny I’m pleased to be inside the top five for the first time in MotoGP… it feels good!” he said.

“Obviously we still have a lot of work to do because we’re still having some problems with rear grip but I think we have the data we need to make the right changes for tomorrow. Other than that, like I say, I am happy and confident that I can do well again tomorrow. One thing is for certain - we have started out on the right foot."