Marco Simoncelli says he understands why he crashed twice in Friday practice at Phillip Island and is hugely encouraged by his pace.
The Italian fell at Turn 10 in both the morning and afternoon sessions today, but was still second fastest to Casey Stoner in the latter, having been third behind Stoner and Jorge Lorenzo in the morning.
"I had two crashes in Turn 10 today, but luckily there was no damage to me or the bike," said Simoncelli. "The track is wonderful, most definitely my favorite, but it is quite bumpy and it is easy to make a mistake and crash. It only takes a moment to find yourself on the floor so you have to stay focused at all times.
"The two crashes were different – this morning I lost the front and in the afternoon I lost the rear – but each time I knew why it had happened and I was able to get straight back on the pace. I am happy and calm, hopefully tomorrow we can close the gap to Stoner."
Simoncelli added that his Gresini Honda felt almost perfect going into final practice and qualifying.
"Overall, I am happy though because I was on the pace immediately this morning and improved in the afternoon," he said. "Now we need to make some small changes and try to find more grip on the rear and a bit more feeling for the front, even though it is already good."