All eyes were now on who could usurp Danielsson from the top of the timesheets, with most people hedging their bets on Parente, not least because his arch-rivals for the championship were proving well off the pace.

However, rather than the usual suspects leading the way, there was a new name topping the group for the first time this season. Indeed, 2005 front runner Tristan Gommendy was wasting no time in getting reacclimatised to the World Series on his return to Pons Racing by immediately proving the driver to beat.

Not that he was unchallenged, with Pons refugee Celso Miguez riding on Comtec Racing's wave of confidence in taking the challenge to his replacement, while Patrick Pilet was also showing well on his home circuit for Tech 1 Racing.

Indeed, the battle for the top three rows was intensely between these three drivers, with Miguez snatching the top spot, only for Gommendy to respond by firstly spinning and then by claiming back his position with five minutes remaining.

Miguez hit back but was unable to dislodge the Frenchman, the Spaniard dropping to third at the chequered flag when Pilet popped in a time just two thousandths of a second off his countryman's pace setting time.

Still, it was a marvellous performance for the former GD Racing driver, with Pilet delivering Tech 1 Racing their best grid slot yet of fourth in only his second outing in the car, much like Miguez who will line-up sixth overall.

It was Gommendy though that was left to celebrate, even if he did miss out on overall pole position by two tenths of a second from Danielsson. Still, with Gommendy improving with every session, he is confident he can challenge for victory in the race.

“I didn't expect to feel so at home. We made some major changes to the setup on the rear suspension during the session and it worked out very well. I think we can still improve a lot of things.”

Ryo Fukuda completed a strong day for Tech 1 on their home circuit with the fourth best time in Group B, while fifth fastest for Sean McIntosh means both KTRs will start the first race from inside the top ten.