CHIPPENHAM'S Danny Kent finished 12th at the Austrian Grand Prix, after finished 17th in the qualifiers.

Kent gave himself a lot of work to do after underperforming, by his standards, during qualifying.

He wasn't happy with 17th, but he took the opportunity to rack up practice laps to learn more about his bike.

Kent missed out on the fastest lap but reduced his lap time by almost a second and improved the feeling with his Speed ​​Up SF18 bike in both track conditions.

He admitted: "I am not overly happy with my starting grid, but I have a good feeling with the bike.

"I did a lot of laps so I could understand the bike a bit more. Important to get a good start (in the race) and I will be pushing 110% to have a good result!”.

It was a good performance by Kent at the Red Bull Ring. He started well, recovering three positions at the start, and throughout the race he was able to recover two more positions for a respectable finish.

Kent maintained a steady pace to close the Grand Prix in 12th and was pleased with his performance over the weekend.

He said: “I am happy with the race I ran.

"I had a few problems on two corners which is where I lost most of my time compared to the others, but I was able to make consistent laps and finish in the points.

"I hope to continue in this way at home Grand Prix in Silverstone, thanks to my team!”

Next up for Kent is Silverstone, starting on September 7 and finishing on September 9.