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Honda end Yamaha's test dominance

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LONDON, England -- Honda's Dani Pedrosa ended Yamaha's dominance in the first official MotoGP test of the year on Thursday with a lap of Qatar's Losail circuit that was quicker than the 2006 pole position time.

Despite light rain overnight, the Spaniard put in a late charge to clock a time of one minute 55.47 seconds on the final day of the test.

American John Hopkins was second fastest on his Suzuki GSV-R800, with a time of 1:55.82, but his day ended early after a heavy crash in the morning left him nursing a suspected fractured hand.

MotoGP organisers said in a statement that he was likely to miss next week's test in Jerez but was expected to be fit for the season-opener in Qatar on March 10.

Yamaha's Valentino Rossi, winner in Qatar last year in a season that saw his long run as champion end with Honda's American Nicky Hayden taking the title, was the only other rider to lap in under 1:56.

Hayden, still recovering from shoulder surgery, was nearly two seconds off team-mate Pedrosa's time.

The Kentucky rider, who saw doctors in California last week to assess his progress, fell twice on Wednesday.

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