Jonathan Rea endeavouring to keep emotions in check as Ulster rider enters final weekend with Kawasaki

Rea will make the switch to new team Pata Yamaha after the conclusion of the final round of the championship on Sunday at Jerez in Spain.

The Ulster rider will ride the Yamaha R1 for the first time in the post-race test at Jerez on Tuesday as he replaces fellow former champion Toprak Razgatlioglu in the team, who has signed for the Shaun Muir-run factory BMW squad for 2024.

On Friday, Rea struggled in free practice, finishing the day in an uncharacteristic 13th place with team-mate Alex Lowes also finding the going tough in 16th.

Only four riders ventured out in the morning FP1 session due to damp and cold conditions.

In what must be an emotional weekend for Rea as his spectacular nine-year association with Kawasaki draws to a close, the 36-year-old is trying to focus primarily on closing out third in the championship.

He is currently 50 points ahead of his soon-to-be Pata Yamaha team-mate Andrea Locatelli in fourth.

Spain’s Alvaro Bautista only requires two more points in Saturday’s first race (13:00 BST) to win the title for a second successive year from Razgatlioglu.

“I’m trying not to think too much about it or let the emotions play because I’m still learning how to manage that,” said Rea.

“I managed really badly in Portugal where I felt it was a chance to win a race and I made some mistakes and rode with too much aggression.

“So, I’ll try to go out and give my best and try to set the bike up in the right way. And then let’s see.

“Jerez is a bit of a bogey track for us – it’s not my most favourite track,” he added. “The weather forecast isn’t super-hot like we would normally experience.

“We expose our weaknesses in super-hot conditions, so hopefully that will play into our favour and we can be there or thereabouts and finish this Kawasaki chapter in a good way.

“Sunday night when it’s all done, we have our team dinner together but we still have to chase down third in the championship, so I haven’t allowed myself to think too much about what lies ahead, but surely that will come very soon.”

On Friday, it was confirmed that Rea will have former Ten Kate World Supersport team-mate Andrew Pitt as his crew chief at Yamaha, while Northern Ireland man Phil Marron will leave Yamaha to continue working as crew chief to Razgatlioglu at BMW.

Razgatlioglu, also gearing up for his final races with the Pata Yamaha team, led the practice times yesterday from Remy Gardner (GRT Yamaha), with Bautista in third.

The champion-elect missed some of the session after crashing out at Turn 3, escaping with only his pride mildly dented.

Bautista’s Aruba.it Ducati team-mate Michael Ruben Rinaldi was fourth fastest ahead of Dominique Aegerter (GRT Yamaha) and Philipp Oettl (Team Go Eleven Ducati).

On Sunday, the Superpole race is due at 09:00 GMT with the final race of this year’s championship at 12:00 GMT.