The Italian had set the second fastest time of the wet session, a 1m40.998s, to slot in second behind pacesetter Cal Crutchlow.

However, the run of 11 laps during which Rossi logged his best time was later cancelled as the Yamaha rider exceeded the maximum stint length using the supersoft wet front tyre imposed by Michelin.

A statement read: "Valentino Rossi was found to have used the 1008B Super Soft Full Wet Front Tyre more than 10 laps, so he was imposed a cancellation of the lap times during the run where the 1008B tyre was used illegally (the run of more than 10 laps)."

It means Rossi's best time from FP1 is now considered to be a 1m47.225s, ahead only of Bradley Smith and only slightly ahead of the 107 percent cut-off.

If weather conditions fail to improve on Saturday, it could mean Rossi will find himself outside of the top 10 after third practice and therefore having to fight his way through the first part of qualifying.