Counting down the days until the 2018 season, Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) took the first strike of the season as he ended the two day Jerez test at the top of the timing sheets, with a lap time of 1.38.889.

Putting him 0.581s ahead of his rivals, the British rider explains he now feels comfortable on board his ZX-10RR machine and is looking forward to getting action underway next month. Working on different parts of the bike, he will now look at fine tuning his set up on the green machine. Putting in a strong lap on his 62^nd of the day, not even a small crash at turn six deterred Sykes.

“My main concern has been working with the bike at this test,” began Sykes. “We have a different mindset this year, we finished last year with a very strong pace and I’m thankful we’ve continued that. I had a very small crash through turn six – I could have got up and walked faster. But the boys put me out on my second bike and after two laps the lap times came back, so I feel very positive and prepared for the season coming up.”

Sykes and his team will now head to Portimao for the second test next week, before getting packed up and ready to take on the legendary Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit for the season opener. You can follow all the progress with the WorldSBK VideoPass.