Walker opted to go straight out on a qualifying tyre as soon as pit lane opened for the 12-lap Superpole session, trying to set a fast time before the onset of rain. Unfortunately, a slipping clutch forced the 30-year-old British rider to slow on his flying lap and by the time he'd returned to the pits for adjustments, the rain that had been threatening all afternoon finally arrived.

The rain finally stopped halfway through the session and Walker waited until the dying moments before heading out onto a rapidly drying track to try and improve on 15th place. Despite damp patches on the final two turns, the Fuchs Kawasaki rider managed to set his fastest time of the weekend; jumping up to eleventh place and the third row.

'It was obvious it was going to rain before the end of the session, which meant I had to get a fast lap in right at the start,' said Walker. 'Unfortunately, I had a bit of a problem with the bike and I kind of knew that we weren't going to get it sorted before the rain arrived over the back of the circuit. Sure enough, there were spots of rain on my visor when I started my out lap and it was raining proper by the time I got halfway round the lap.'

'When the rain stopped I knew there was a chance that the track would dry out quickly, so we threw in another qualifier right at the end of the session. There were still a few damp patches around the last couple of turns but despite getting it a bit sideways out of Woodcote on my final flying lap, I managed to do enough to move myself up the grid.'

Eric Bostrom will start from row five on the grid tomorrow, after struggling to find a set-up during alternate wet and dry practice and qualifying sessions.

'Every qualifying session has been both wet and dry, so it's been difficult to find a good set-up on the bike for Silverstone's bumps and ripples,' said Bostrom. 'I guess it will just be a case of head down and go for it in the races tomorrow.'