Chris Walker moved to the top of the MCE British Superbike Championship timesheets ahead of qualifying for the opening round of the season at
Brands Hatch after timing his final lap on a drying circuit to perfection.
The series veteran, who will be making his 208th
BSB start come race day, has been a consistent top ten performer throughout the weekend on the Pr1mo Bournemouth Kawasaki, though the wet-to-dry conditions of the fifth and final practice session before qualifying ensured a scramble for the best laps in the final minutes.
Lapping around three seconds off the ultimate pace, Walker was one of four Kawasaki riders to fill the top five, with Tyco Suzuki's Josh Brookes in second place as the sole usurper amongst Gary Mason, Michael Rutter and James Hillier.
Dan Linfoot was sixth fastest on the Buildbase BMW, ahead of Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki's Shane Byrne, GBmoto Honda's Tristan Palmer and Hardinge Honda's Jenny Tinmouth, the female racer making a welcome appearance in ninth.
Despite the prospect of rainy weather for qualifying later this afternoon, as well as race day tomorrow, most riders left it until the drier closing stages to set times, while the likes of Tommy Hill and Alex Lowes chose to set unrepresentative times.
CLICK HERE to view the full FP5 times.