Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda) was back in the mix on Day 1 at the Australian GP, taking fourth overall and outside the top three by only 0.004 seconds. Last season the eventual race winner was in Q1; this year it could be a different story - with the weather for FP3's deciding session in doubt.
"At the end of the day we are happy enough with our performance, but we still need to improve the setting of the bike overnight," says the two-time GP winner. "I didn’t feel great with the tyre today, but on the last run we seemed to make a big jump and some decent improvement. I look forward to seeing what we can do tomorrow in qualifying and also on Sunday. As things stand I think it’s going to be a big battle, and I look forward to seeing how it all turns out.”
Pace is indeed looking close for many in the top ten - and qualifying will decide the order they line up in from 15:50 local time (GMT +11).