Many expected Cal Crutchlow to be competitive in Jerez this weekend, judging by the lap times he managed at the final pre-season test, but the Coventry rider was particularly pleased on Friday after making a selection of setup changes.

With a best lap time of 1’39.733, the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider was third on the overall timesheets and had peaked at second in the afternoon session.

“It was quite a tough day because we made a lot of changes that meant the bike was set up completely different to the way we had it at the test,” the Englishman explained. “We made it a little bit longer and lower to give me a good feeling because, while I was able to set the fastest time at the test, the track temperature was much higher today and it meant the bike was not working perfectly with the setup we ran at the test.

“I was changing bikes during FP2 and doing a lot of laps, to try as many things as possible, and I am positive for the rest of the weekend. We’ve got a few ideas to improve even further tomorrow and I will sit down with my crew tonight and have a good look at the data to come up with a plan of attack for the rest of the weekend.

“My Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team is doing a great job again and being competitive and fast today gives us a lot of confidence to take into Saturday and Sunday.”

Rookie teammate Bradley Smith ended the opening day of the Gran Premio bwin de España in 14th place, meaning he will strive to push for a top ten position by the end of Free Practice 3 in order to guarantee a position in Q2 Qualifying.