Monster Yamaha's Cal Crutchlow is finding the going at this weekend's Phillip Island MotoGP round tough but the Briton was able to stick in the fourth-quickest time in second free practice despite suffering from bronchitis.
The Isle of Man resident picked up the illness in Malaysia and, although his accompanying temperature has gone down, the track's physical nature is proving tough.
“It was a good start to the weekend and I'm happy considering how ill I've felt before today. I had a really high temperature yesterday but the bigger issue is the bronchitis because I am finding it quite hard to breathe," said Crutchlow.
"I felt better today and concentration is not a problem but this track is so physical and fast that you don't get a break. And with the wind you are constantly fighting the bike, so that isn't making it any easier for me. I will go and see the Clinica Mobile staff again tonight and hopefully I'll feel better again tomorrow.
"I'm still not anywhere near 100 per cent and my target is to leave this weekend picking up some decent points. We can make the bike better because I lose a lot of time in the second half of the lap. You get a lot of spinning from the rear tyre at this track and that is an area we need to look at improving for the rest of the weekend. The track seems really bumpy as well. It was bad last year but today it felt five times worse and the surface is wrecked, but everybody is in the same boat."
