The 33-year-old, the🌠 oldest full-time rider on the grid, believes one of the secrets to his speed in the slippe🍸ry conditions was his old school body-on-the-bike and less lean angle style.

While increasing edge grip has seen many riders lean their bikes ever more, d♏ragging elbows and almost shoulders in some corners, Espargaro feels he was getting more acceleration.

“I like when♋ it's super hot and slippery,” Espargaro said after topping the timesheets by just 0.002s from team-mate Maverick Vinales.

“I think also my riding style - that sometimes is not the most beautiful out there - allowed me to accelerate with the bike at some degrees less [lean] than the others. I think in the central part of the🌠 tyre there is more grip, more traction.”

Pressed o🦋n whether he feels he suffers in some areas🅘 because of his style, the Spaniard revealed:

“We try to analyse a lot in Aprilia… On the right corners, I stay more on the bike than the left, but when there are🐻 more right corners, I’m faster! And when there are more left corners, like Americไa, I’m slower.

“So I lean less in the right [corners] but it looks like it's not that𓆉 bad with this bike. I create a bike to accelerate, so I don't really ne🧜ed to lean that much.”

The formation of a sa💝tellite Aprilia team, run by RNF, has also allowed Espargaro to compare his style with the extreme lean of Raul Fernandez.

“If you analyse the ridi♔ng style of Raul [Fernandez], I love it," Espargaro said. "But he spins a lot because he really leans a lot the body and as soon he touches the throttle, he has a lot of spin, a lot of problems the throttle.

“So yes, [🉐my style] is not beautiful, but it's effectiv💜e!”

While Fernandez was 14th on Friday using the 2022 spec Aprilia, Vinales’ near e𝔉qual speed to Espargaro underlined the latest RS-GP can work with multiple riding styles.

“The bike is better everywhere,” acknowledged Esparg♌aro, explaining how the latest Apr💞ilia felt compared with the bike he took to third place last year.

“It's a little bit better on the aerodynamics. On the✃ turning. A little bit better to stop, although we have to still work there. We have some ideas for tomorrow to try to ♈stop better the bike.

“The traction is good when it's hot like this and the engine revs a little bit more. So in some places that last year I touch the [rev] limiter, this year I have a🦹 little bit more margin, so the bike is good and I feel good in Jerez.

“We were fast here last season and I had the feeling that this year we are stronger and faster than last year, so it's good to rec🃏onfirm that.”

But after a tough start to the season, without a podium in either the Saturday or Sunday races., Espargaro was cagey on being called the favour🌱ite for tomorrow’s Sprint.

“Yes, we are very strong not juꦗst for the fast lap, but also with the medium tyres. But there are many talented riders that can still be in the front,” Espargaro said.

“And you know in Jerez, if someone starts good, even with less pace than the others, if they are in front to manage the tyre pꦓressure behind them is not going to be easy. So you never know…”