John McPhee off to a flier on Friday in Austria

John McPhee had a solid first day of track action in the Austrian GP, ending the day in seventh on the combined timesheets and showing great pace in both the dry and wet.

FP1 was a dry session for the Moto3™ field, before rain hit and tricky conditions for FP2 meant laptimes couldn’t improve in the afternoon. McPhee was seventh in FP1 with a 1:38.396 after 20 laps, and only put in ten in the afternoon as the conditions kept changing. The Scot did, however, show great pace in the wet and feels confident for the rest of the weekend – whatever the weather.

All in all, it was a satisfying Day 1 for the BTT and one to build on during FP3 and qualifying, which begin on Saturday at 9:00 (GMT +2) and 12:35 respectively.

John McPhee, P7:
“This afternoon the conditions started off really tricky, with the track bone dry in some corners and in other areas it was still full wet. We went out with a full wet bike to get some laps in and felt comfortable, but there was nothing really to gain because in some areas you’re just pushing the tyre, so we switched to a full dry setup and waited. But I’m feeling really good, we started the weekend off strongly this morning and I had a really good feeling. The bike’s feeling good and I’m feeling good, so overall I think either way we can be strong. It looks like the forecast might be dry for the rest of the weekend. It’s still a bit iffy, but I’m looking forward to it.”