Scott Redding was delighted to have sufficient power at his disposal to pass fellow riders on the straight at the Valencia MotoGP test on Tuesday.

After spending his rookie season on an underpowered Open class Honda, the Englishman is making his debut on the new Marc VDS RC213V. Redding admitted that he could barely conceal his delight when he passed former Factory class team-mate Alvaro Bautista - now on the Aprilia - in the wet afternoon session.

"I passed him on the straight," he said. "That's all that matters today [laughs]! I thought, 'I have to pass someone on the straight.' I got a good exit and then on the straight I was just grinning all the way.

"I remember in the race he passed me three times on the right side and today it was the same thing but the other way. It was really funny for me, just to not struggle. Being able to pass someone makes your life just so much easier."

Redding was one of ten riders to take to the soaking wet track and placed third overall at the end of the session, behind Danilo Petrucci and Nicky Hayden. For the 21-year old it was important to get some much-needed time in the rain.

"I wanted to have more track time to try and understand the Bridgestone tyres and also the new bike with Ohlins [suspension] and Brembo [brakes]. It was really positive because we managed to improve the lap time throughout the day. We went out and got faster so this is confidence building. We managed to find the limits more and I think Chris [Pike, crew-chief] started to understand how this bike and the suspension is starting to work. In the end it was a useful day."



Redding was also delighted with the chemistry in his garage, which includes new crew chief Chris Pike.

"I have a better feeling now than I did with the last six months with the team," he said. "Just instantly we have a good bond. They have worked together and we have a good package. We have Frank doing the electronics. He's Italian so the humour is a bit different. It's good to get a balance and we know we have to enjoy it to be fast. It's not just for me but also for them. If you can build their relationships as well it makes it better for me."

Having two days testing the new machine behind him, Redding admits there is still work to be done, starting with his riding position.

"The problems I got with the bike, fitting wise, is the tank is quite short. When I go into the corner I feel that my weight is falling off the bike. We need to try and find a longer tank and a bit wider. We still need to adjust the seat to have it perfect. This is the time to make it count and make it feel really comfortable.

"Quite a big difference with seamless gearbox because you can shift on the angle. You can use the torque [too]. With the electronics you have more feel on the bottom, it's always helping you. I enjoyed this bike more than the 'Production' bike."

The Englishman suffered a small get off at the end of the session caused by the sudden drop in temperature.

"The temperature just dropped," he said. "When the sun went down I was getting faster and more comfortable and I felt the grip level dropping - but I was still getting faster. I kept pushing. It was going to be more or less my last lap, and I saw I was on a pretty decent lap. Then it just went down, I guess the tyre lost temperature and we just lost the front."

Better weather is forecast for Wednesday's final day.