Dani Pedrosa blamed electrical problems and handling issues for his low-key seventh on the grid for the Qatar Grand Prix, but also confessed to losing concentration in qualifying as his troubles mounted.
While the Spaniard's Honda team-mate Casey Stoner topped two practice sessions and qualified second, Pedrosa has not been a factor at the front all weekend.
"We solved a little the issues we had yesterday with the electronics, but we had other problems today," he said. "I stopped in the garage to change the bike and it didn't start, twice. I lost a lot of time there and I had to take the other bike which I didn't feel comfortable with either."
Pedrosa admitted that the problems caused him to lose focus.
"It's a shame. The team couldn't do any better and nor me; from this point I lost the concentration a little and we couldn't get a better position," he said.
But he does not believe that his problems so far this weekend preclude him from being more competitive in the race on Sunday.
"Seventh on the grid is not a good place to start the race, but I hope that we don't have any issues tomorrow and I can have a good race," he said.