Despite qualifying just 0.376s from pole, Jorge Lorenzo will need to over🗹take at least nine riders to claim a third Ducati victory in a row during Sunday's Dutch MotoGP.

The Spaniard, like Johann Zarco, missed out on a train of riders towing each other around the famous Assen circui🐭t, at the 𓂃end of qualifying.

Zarco went on to drop from pole to eighth and Lorenzo from second to tenth on the grid, the triple MotoGP champion also losing ground throug🌼h the ultra-fast left handers at the end of the lap.

"I think Zarco was the only one, toge✤thꩵer with me, who was alone," Lorenzo said.

"I think it was just Iannone th🍰at was following me and took profit fℱrom my slipstream. The rest of the riders were together like a train.

"Every rider was, let's say, the perfect space apart. Not too close to lose time and not too far not to take profit. They were the perfect distance to be💙 as fas꧙t as possible.

"It was a strange situation, a strange qualifying. Everyone took profit of this little advantage, that gave you two-four tenths of extra speed. And t🦩he ones who were𝔍 alone like Zarco and myself were eighth and tenth. 

"Anyway, if I wouldn't lose so much time in the last sector then - even without any rider in front - I could be on the f🌠irst row anyway. 

"But unfortunately, for the mo🥃ment, in sector four I always lose🐬 two to four tenths.

"Let's try to modify the bike in warm-up to give me more confidence in those particular two corners, which are the fast left๊s before the𒊎 last chicane.

"But this is it. These two corners today cost us the chan🍎ce to be much more in൩ front."

Lorenzo has used a soft rea🌸r tyre during his back-to-back wins at Mugello and Catalunya. He again ran (used) soft rears in f🌱inal practice, but was only tenth quickest and admitted:

"To be honest FP4 was not a good practice. We were with the soft rear, very old tyres aꦰnd we were very slow and with a lot of problems with the wind. Maybe a little bit more than the other bikes. 

"In qualifying the wind reduced a l🥃ittle bit so this was good and with both tyres I was pretty quick. We improved the bike compared to♌ yesterday."

Looking ahead to the race, again set to be held in unusually stable hot and sun⛦ny weather, Lorenzo said:

"I think it's complicated to start so far behind, because this track is quite narrow and ꩵdifficult to overtake. So to be in first or second row would be much better. 

"The good thing is that I've been making good starts ♐this weekend, so if tomorrow I can do the same I can overt🎉ake probable one row. 

"But it will be for me a race to have basically the first two laps and then see how the tyres are reacting, during all the race. It can also be a race of some c🙈rashes so we need to be careful, especially with the front tyre."

Lorenzo is currently t🍃ied for seventh in the wo📖rld championship with team-mate Andrea Dovizioso, 49 points behind Marc Marquez.

Marquez has ᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚqualified on pole for the first time th💃is year while Dovizioso starts from fourth on the grid.

The #99 looks to have a more refined version of the modified fuel tank shape (see belo🌳w), which has ꦿproven so effective in keeping his braking strength for a full race distance.