Casey Stoner fastest for Honda in first practice at damp Valencia

World champion Casey Stoner and Honda team-mate Dani Pedrosa prevented any giant-killing in a damp opening free practice session at Valencia.

After a topsy-turvy session full of position swapping, Stoner resumed the usual order by putting in a 1m45.513s lap with five minutes to go, with Pedrosa joining him at the front a few minutes later, the Spaniard lapping 0.2 seconds slower.

Until the late Honda surge, a variety of unusual names took advantage of the slippery conditions and appeared at or near the top of the times.

The Ducatis seemed happier in the wet, with works men Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden both leading the way for spells, and Pramac's Loris Capirossi also taking a poignant turn in front at the start of the final weekend of his racing career.

Another underdog to hit the front was Toni Elias, the LCR Honda man twice leading the way.

When the times settled at the end of the session, Rossi, Hayden and Capirossi held third, fourth and fifth places, ahead of top Yamaha rider Ben Spies in sixth. Elias fell to eighth, behind Pramac's Randy de Puniet.

Hiroshi Aoyama was 14th on the sole Gresini Honda entered this weekend following the death of Marco Simoncelli at Sepang.

MotoGP debutant Josh Hayes, substituting for the injured Colin Edwards at Tech 3 Yamaha, beat factory test rider Katsuyuki Nakasuga - in for Jorge Lorenzo - to 15th.

The track remained consistently damp, with lap times only improving by five seconds through the course of the session. Despite the slippery surface the riders all stayed upright, with a trip through the Turn 1 gravel for Hector Barbera (Aspar Ducati) the only incident.

Pos  Rider               Team/Bike       Time       Gap
1.  Casey Stoner        Honda           1m45.513s
2.  Dani Pedrosa        Honda           1m45.736s  + 0.223s
3.  Valentino Rossi     Ducati          1m45.828s  + 0.315s
4.  Nicky Hayden        Ducati          1m46.073s  + 0.560s
5.  Loris Capirossi     Pramac Ducati   1m46.108s  + 0.595s
6.  Ben Spies           Yamaha          1m46.259s  + 0.746s
7.  Randy de Puniet     Pramac Ducati   1m46.371s  + 0.858s
8.  Toni Elias          LCR Honda       1m46.393s  + 0.880s
9.  Andrea Dovizioso    Honda           1m46.402s  + 0.889s
10.  Cal Crutchlow       Tech 3 Yamaha   1m46.581s  + 1.068s
11.  Alvaro Bautista     Suzuki          1m46.922s  + 1.409s
12.  Hector Barbera      Aspar Ducati    1m46.967s  + 1.454s
13.  Karel Abraham       Cardion Ducati  1m47.079s  + 1.566s
14.  Hiroshi Aoyama      Gresini Honda   1m47.581s  + 2.068s
15.  Josh Hayes          Tech 3 Yamaha   1m48.037s  + 2.524s
16.  Katsuyuki Nakasuga  Yamaha          1m48.382s  + 2.869s

Capirossi says he is happy with his decision to retire

Loris Capirossi says he is confident he has made the right decision in retiring at the end of the year, as he prepares for his final MotoGP start at Valencia this weekend.

The double 125cc champion and 1998 250cc title-winner will make his 215th MotoGP start in his farewell race.

He admitted it was tough to think about the significance of his final race amid the sadness over the death of Marco Simoncelli at Sepang a fortnight ago.

"For sure, after that race retiring is hard, but I made that decision a long time ago and I'm happy because after 22 seasons it's a good time to stop," said Capirossi.

"We have a lot of strong riders and it's good to do something else. All stories start and some time they finish. My one is finished. After the race, I have a good life behind me and my family and I think I can do something good with my life."

Capirossi added that he hopes to get the best possible result in Simoncelli's honour on Sunday.

"The situation is strange for everybody," Pramac Ducati rider Capirossi admitted. "The situation we saw in Malaysia was so difficult, but everybody is here and we will try to never forget Marco. This is really important, it's part of our lives.

"He always tried to do the best. I want to hold up the honour of Marco. I will use the #58 on my bike. I really hope he's happy about that. I can't do the same result he could've done, but I'll try to do my best for him."

Marco Simoncelli's crash a freak accident, reckon Casey Stoner and Valentino Rossi

MotoGP world champions Casey Stoner and Valentino Rossi do not think anything could have been done to prevent Marco Simoncelli's fatal accident in the Malaysian Grand Prix.

Simoncelli died from injuries suffered when he veered into the path of Rossi and Colin Edwards during a crash on lap two at Sepang.

Amid suggestions that a quirk of the Bridgestone tyres' characteristics caught Simoncelli out and caused his bike's unusual trajectory in the crash, Stoner insisted that the incident was just an unfortunate one-off and not tyre-related.

"We do have different lean angles now and the tyres pick up grip a little quicker, but I don't think that had anything to do with it," said Stoner.

"It just couldn't be avoided. He was just trying to stay in the race and these accidents can happen, as we've seen in history.

"I think it's just unfortunate, he just got too deep into it. He was trying to save it and stay in the race. Different situations have different consequences."

Rossi suggested that Simoncelli's height and riding style could have been factors in how the bike moved up the track on its side.

"Marco was very big, a lot bigger than all the other riders, and he very much used his body to ride the bike and to battle with the other guys," Rossi explained.

"In this case he was trying not to crash, trying not to go out of the race, and using his body to try and not fall off, and his body became like a third tyre and unfortunately the bike didn't crash and came back on the track. He was unlucky.

"We worked on safety very much in the last years, but these kind of incidents remain the most dangerous, especially on the first lap when a lot of bikes are very close together and an incident like this can finish badly."

Stoner added that Simoncelli's death had given him a chance to reflect at length on his life and MotoGP career.

"It brings a few things to light that I think a lot of people in this paddock forget too quickly," said the recently-crowned champion.

"It shows how precious life is and how lucky we are to be doing what we're doing. But also just the dangers that are in our sport. It brings a new light and new respect for every time you go on track now."

Ben Spies says injuries have healed after Australian Grand Prix injury

Ben Spies says he is in much better physical condition going into the Valencia Grand Prix, but admitted that the mental challenge of racing on in the wake of Marco Simoncelli's death would be as hard as any injury.

Yamaha rider Spies suffered concussion and rib injuries in a heavy crash at Phillip Island, forcing him to sit out the Australian Grand Prix. He tried to compete in Malaysia, but had to withdraw after qualifying due to his discomfort.

But Spies says he will be back to full fitness at Valencia this weekend.

"I'm a lot better," he said. "I needed a rest, the one in Australia was pretty big."

He added that his primary concern now was not his fitness, but getting through what would be a weekend of mourning for Simoncelli.

"Right now my condition is the least of my worries," Spies said. "I just want to get through this last race and do the best I can for Yamaha, see everybody and move on to the test.

"For all the riders, it's not physical, it's mental. Nobody's 100 per cent right now, we just need to be strong and do the best we can this weekend and get it done and dusted."

Spies will be paired with Katsuyuki Nakasuga at Yamaha again this weekend as his regular team-mate Jorge Lorenzo has pulled out of Valencia due to the hand injuries he sustained in his Phillip Island warm-up crash, which ultimately ended his season.