Petronas Sprinta's John McPhee is aiming to take his first Moto3 podium at this weekend's Jerez MotoGP round and thinks it will come by focusing on smaller details.

The Scot is aware that the pace in Spain will be hot due to the amount of test time all the riders have had, so intends to work on his ability to fight in the inevitable pack and make passes count.

"Jerez is a circuit that I like a lot. I had a podium there in the Spanish Championship but in the world championship I haven’t been on the rostrum at Jerez and that is my goal right now," said McPhee.

"It’s a circuit at which everyone is fast because they’ve all put in many laps there, so it is difficult to have an advantage over others.

That means that any detail you can improve during practice is important, as in the race everything tightens up.

"I have pace, especially in practice and qualifying and I feel strong on the bike. What I need to improve is being able to fight more in the race and being able to pass more riders more easily, especially under braking. I will work on that. I'm looking forward to the race."

Jerez hasn't been a happy hunting ground for McPhee with a best of only tenth. McPhee picked up two points in the United States, thanks to a 14th place, which rounded off a weekend in which he showed great speed during practice.