Pata Yamaha’s Alex Lowes introduced a host of setup changes to his R1 ahead of this morning’s World Superbike Superpole session but the work didn’t quite pay off as a wrong choice of front Pirelli rubber saw the Derby man struggle and eventually crash out of race one.

Lowes had been struggling with the bike until changes to not only suspension and electronics but also to his seating position made him a lot more comfortable and he was able to race with team-mate Sylvain Guintoli and former MotoGP champion Nicky Hayden but with six laps to go, his front tyre called enough and Lowes went down at the Southern Loop.

"I'm disappointed to start the season with a crash at Phillip Island. I was feeling comfortable on the YZF-R1 after the work spent in practice here over the past week and a strong qualifying. We have made some good progress already and will continue to work step-by-step tonight but I'm looking forward to a stronger finish and a second chance at some good points in the race tomorrow afternoon,” said Lowes.