July 15, 2011 -- Updated 1656 GMT (0056 HKT)
Marco Simoncelli has managed three fifth place finishes so far this season.
(CNN) -- Honda Gresini rider Marco Simoncelli was fastest at an eventful practice ahead of Sunday's German MotoGP.
The Italian recorded a time of one minute 22.225 seconds in the second session after a morning practice which saw five crashes at the Sachsenring Circuit.
Yamaha's reigning world champion Jorge Lorenzo was 0.095 seconds behind Simoncelli, with Honda Repsol's Dani Pedrosa -- taking part in only his second race following his recovering from a shoulder injury -- in third after crashing during the opening session.
Pedrosa's teammate and current championship leader Casey Stoner was fourth, ahead of the third Honda Repsol racer Andrea Dovizioso in fifth.
"Everything is going well, although I am not totally happy because we have some rear traction problems on the left side that we are struggling to resolve," Simoncelli told the official MotoGP website.
"Our other main goal is to get a clear idea about tire choice for Sunday's race. Thirty laps is a lot here, especially because there is barely a single straight for you to relax on," he added.
It was another frustrating day for Ducati's six-time MotoGP world champion Valentino Rossi, who was checked over by medical staff following a crash during the opening session.
The Italian was given the all clear, but was forced into the garage with electrical problems and could only finish down in 12th place.
Spain's Hector Barbera and Cal Crutchlow of Yamaha both suffered crashes late in the session and could only register 13th and 14th place finishes respectively.
The German Grand Prix is the eighth round of this season's MotoGP world championship.
Credit: CNN (www.cnn.com)
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