MALMESBURY'S Danny Kent had a tough weekend in Spain for the third round of the Moto3 world championship at the iconic circuit of Jerez, where he finished 11th, writes Alannah Fellows.

The 20-year-old was struggling to find a strong set-up on his Red Bull Husqvarna Ajo KTM bike and was able to qualify only in 13th position on the grid, back on the fourth row.

Getting a solid start, the former dual Moto3 Grand Prix winner improved by two places and was clinging to the back of the leading pack for the first half of the race. However, he eventually started to drop off the pace and was locked in a battle for ninth position with team-make Niklas Ajo.

Kent crossed the line 12.685s behind race winner, Italy's Romano Fenati.

”It wasn’t our best race," said Danny. "We worked hard all weekend to get the right set-up and this morning we made some final changes that worked well.

"There were four or five laps in the middle of the race when our pace wasn’t fast enough and the lead group got away, although at the end we did have a good pace. "Now we have a week’s rest, but I will continue working on my fitness in order to be as ready as possible for Le Mans.”