Crutchlow stormed to his maiden front row in Qatar and he looked on course to repeat that fantastic achievement today in a qualifying session that took place on a dry track, as constantly changing conditions continue to dominate the Spanish Grand Prix weekend.
After a rain-lashed third and final practice this morning, damp patches remained scattered around the track but Crutchlow started qualifying on slick tyres and the 26-year-old expertly assessed grip levels to settle into a fast pace.
He topped the timesheets for the opening 20 minutes but Crutchlow slipped outside of the top three as the pace intensified with riders anxious to post a competitive time on slick Bridgestone tyres, with rain threatening to further disrupt preparations for tomorrow's 27-lap race.
Conditions remained dry and lap times continued to fall and a brilliant lap of 1.41.646 put Crutchlow back on top of the timesheets before he crashed at Turn One with only 18 minutes remaining. The spill didn't knock Crutchlow out of his fast and consistent rhythm and he moved back into third spot with a brilliant lap of 1.40.570, only to be denied a thoroughly deserved front row by 0.007s.
Italian Andrea Dovizioso will start the first European round of the new 1000cc MotoGP World Championship heading the third row of the grid.
Dovizioso successfully negotiated the damp patches in the early stages to challenge inside the top three but he will start from seventh position having not been able to find a set-up that permitted him to show his true potential. He ended with a best time of 1.41.180 to finish just 0.090s outside the top six.
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