HM Plant Honda's Ryuichi Kiyonari turned off his electronic aids in the third British Superbike race at Brands Hatch yesterday and immediately performed far better but the three-time champion admits there is a lot of work to do.

The reigning champion struggled in the mixed conditions on Saturday which set him up with a bad grid slot for race two but Kiyo scythed his way through the field in the third outing to take sixth place, fractionally behind Showdown rival Michael Rutter.

“Qualifying was difficult for me and we tried a completely new setting, but it didn’t work the way we wanted and we didn’t have time to make any more changes. In the first race we selected the wrong tyre, like many other riders, and it was just a mistake," said Kiyo.

"We changed settings for the first Sunday race after morning warm up to try and give me confidence in the front of the bike, but the feeling was not good. We went back to the original settings and improved the front feel. I was cautious in the early laps of the third race of the weekend, but I didn’t want to push too hard and crash.

"We had turned off all the electronics in the third race and I just tried to ride the bike, because where the conditions changed from Saturday to Sunday we had less time to make improvements. It was not easy but we tried to improve but it was frustrating not to be fighting at the front. We have much to improve on and I need to be back on the podium."

"This weekend has been disappointing for me as we have worked hard to find the right setting and we made changes between races and after warm up but I wasn’t feeling comfortable, although in the third race it felt better and I could push the front and finish sixth. It has been a frustrating weekend but I think we can come back at Cadwell Park faster to make sure we stay in the top six for the Showdown.”