Pata Honda rider Jonathan Rea experienced his first taste of the Laguna Seca track during yesterday’s World Superbike free practice sessions, and even though he was a rookie at the Mazda Raceway he still managed to make it into Superpole two after lapping a 1’23.638 to place him seventh fastest overall.

The Northern Irishman found the Corkscrew ‘intimidating’ but he really enjoyed riding the American track. For Rea, who missed last year's races through injury, it was a new circuit to tackle on his CBR1000RR Fireblade SP.

But the 27-year-old took to the track instantly, finishing his opening session in fifth place and ending the day just 0.3 seconds from the provisional pole position time of fellow Brit, Ducati’s Chaz Davies.

“I really enjoyed riding – it’s an amazing track and, to be honest, the Corkscrew is quite intimidating. I think I’ve got it right about three times in all my laps. The good thing is that my guys are making really good progress with the bike,” said Rea.

“All day we’ve chipped away and done a lot of work on used rubber. According to the data, it seems that the drop in lap times from new to old isn’t as harsh as last year.

“We need to make a really good Superpole because this is a difficult place to pass but, we’ll keep that in mind as we set up the bike and try to make it one that we can make some passes with.

“As I said, I’m really enjoying riding here and although the position isn’t that great, the gap to the front is not too big, so I’m looking forward to making more progress.”