Andrea Iannone thinking of victory after return to podium in Most

Andrea Iannone is hopeful of thrusting himself into victory contention after securing a WorldSBK podium in Race 1 at Most.

The Ducati rider battled fellow Independent rider Danilo Petrucci for best of the rest behind a dominant Toprak Razgatlioglu.

Despite having the pace advantage over Petrucci, Iannone couldn't find a way through, however, third place was a brilliant result as he returned to the podium for the first time since round two in Barcelona.

“I’m really happy about Race 1 because we recovered a lot from yesterday," said Iannone. 

"After FP1, we were 14th or 15th in the classification, so the work we did as a team was unbelievable. 

"I think we have a good chance. It was a really difficult race because the temperature was high but, in any case, I never gave up, I did my best and we will try a little bit more on Sunday.”

Iannone's improved form was something of a surprise following a difficult Donington Park round, and Friday in the Czech Republic.

But the former MotoGP rider, who is competing at Most for the first time in his career, showed his class following minor set-up changes.

Iannone added: “We changed the setup a little bit but not completely different. 

"We tried to do a little bit and made a little step forward. It’s not always easy to improve the bike. 

"It’s my first year, my first time here, so I’m happy after four years, of watching on TV. The atmosphere in the team is magic. 

"We’ll try to improve and I also hope Ducati recovers the gap and fights for victory.”