Five-time WorldSBK king Jonathan Rea is relishing this weekend's Catalunya race and the battles it will bring on his team's home soil.

The Kawasaki man, whose KRT squad is based literally over the fence from the track at Granollers, has never raced at the circuit but a test in the summer has stood him in good stead for the three races this weekend.

“It is a really exciting moment because I grew up watching MotoGP racing at Montmelo and I loved the layout. I played it on the Playstation and it was always my favourite track," said Rea.

"We were lucky to get the chance to test there in the middle of the summer and I felt great with it. I had a smile inside my helmet when I was riding. We learned lots of things to help us get ahead in first practice on Friday morning. Another reason to get excited is that it is the team’s home race.

"So while we will not have a full ‘squad’ of sponsors and extended family of the crew, we will be racing for them. It is an important race for the team, which is based just over the grandstand in Granollers.

"Of course the target is always to win, so we will put our heads together and work in the same way as we have been doing – preparing the bike to be strong over race distance. I am looking forward to the battles it is going to bring.”