Alex Lowes is confident his PATA Yamaha R1 will be more favourably suited to the Jerez circuit as he looks to get back to the WorldSBK podium this weekend.

The Briton – currently third in the overall standings - had to settle for the results he could manage last time out in Imola after struggling with an energy-sapping virus throughout the weekend but has brighter expectations for this weekend’s sixth round.

A return to the southern Spanish venue after an absence of one year, Lowes’s 2017 results with Yamaha saw him finish just off the podium then and he is confident of doing better this time around.

“In the past it's also been a track that suits our Yamaha R1 and, with the steps we've made this year with the bike, I'm heading to Spain confident we can be in the fight for the podium in all three races this weekend."

Coming off the back of a weather-disrupted, but still productive test at Misano last week, Lowes feels the bike has made a step forward.

“We got a lot done with the limited amount of dry track time we had on the afternoon of the second day in Misano. We managed to complete most of our test plan but, obviously, we didn't get the chance to do any long runs.

“We made some steps forward with the bike and I'm happy with how the test went. Jerez is a track I really enjoy and one where we do a lot of laps in the winter, although the temperature will be a lot higher for the race weekend.”