Britain's James Toseland will have one thing on his mind when he lines up on the second row of the US MotoGP round at Laguna Seca this afternoon, getting his Tech 3 Yamaha off the line.

He set a blistering time yesterday despite Michelin have massive tyre problems all weekend, and managed to qualifying in front of team-mate Colin Edwards but he knows that a good start and getting away with the likes of Stoner and Rossi is crucial.

"I was confident that once we got on the qualifiers with a bit more grip that I could get up there. I had to pin it and to do a 21 around here is not easy but I got the job done," said the Yorkshireman.

"When I went out on my last tyre I saw 21.9 was third and I came across the line and saw 21.8 on the dash and I was hoping that would be good enough for the first two rows. You can get two laps on a qualifier here but on my second lap I ran wide at the first corner and I knew I couldn’t really get that time back. I was just hoping that was going to keep me on the first two rows and it did.

"I have got that softer race tyre which I saved for today and kept one back for the race. I can do mid to low 23s on that and that could be a possible top six finish. With some of the issues we have had this weekend I’d be satisfied with that.

"I just need a decent start to try and get away with the leaders. I’m getting the hang of the starts and I’m not as nervous as before because it is quite a technique to get these bikes off the line. When you’re flat-out at 14,000 revs and you want to dump that clutch as fast as you can, you really need to know what you’re doing.”