Kawasaki’s Leon Haslam was straight on the WorldSBK pace at Magny-Cours despite not racing at the French track since 2015.

The reigning British Superbike Champion finished second to Yamaha’s Michael van der Mark on combined timesheets after this afternoon’s session was a washout with heavy rain battering the circuit.

“It was slippery out there but it was OK in the end,” Haslam told bikesportnews.com. “This morning you just pushed as hard as you needed to. It was one of those sessions where if someone went fast, you went out and pushed a little bit harder.

I think everyone was in the same boat. It was also just trying to gather information in case it is a wet race tomorrow. This morning was not fully wet in the end but this afternoon obviously was, so it was quite important for me to understand what the bike felt like in proper rain conditions.

“We also got to try the new rain tyre, which is very different. I feel we have had a positive day of collecting data and finishing inside the top three in each session.”

Haslam’s Friday was particularly impressive as he had not been to Magny Cours since 2015, and it is a particularly difficult place in cold and wet of late September.

“I have not been here for a few years but I remembered all the slippery patches from previous years, which was nice. I have crashed on most of them over the years! They are still all there! It was nice to understand that”

Now Haslam hopes for dry weather, which is forecast for Saturday and Sunday. Bit dry track time will be short before Superpole and then race one.

“We have 20 minutes to figure it all out and then we are into qualifying and then the race.”