Rizla Suzuki’s Álvaro Bautista sealed the manufacturer’s best MotoGP result of the season by taking fifth at a rain-soaked Silverstone in England on Sunday.

Bautista got a good start and was up with the front runners in the first few corners, but the amount of spray coming from the track – due to all the standing water – hampered his vision and by the end of the first lap he had consolidated his ninth place starting position.

As the race developed the Spaniard got into a smooth and consistent rhythm in the treacherous conditions and produced personal best laps that were comparable to a podium position.

Bautista moved through the field with a couple of neat passes and benefitted from other riders crashing on the slippery surface. He managed to keep his Rizla Suzuki GSV-R upright to bring it safely home for a well-deserved fifth place.

“For sure I am very happy today, because we have been able to finish the weekend with a great result,” the Spaniard said. “This has been the first race that I have been able to feel competitive since the injury and I was nearer my limit than I have been all season.

“In the race it was important make a good start, I did that and I think I was maybe fifth or sixth, but it was difficult to see because I was splashed a lot by other riders and I couldn’t see too much and had to drop back a bit.

“Fifth is a good result and now I’m looking forward to getting to the next race and have the same level of confidence and feeling – if not even better!”

Rizla Suzuki now has a weekend off before heading to Assen in the Netherlands for the Dutch TT on Saturda, 25 June.