WORLD Superbike contender Neil Hodgson continued his build-up to the new season by posting seventh fastest time in a three day test session at Spain's Valencia circuit.

And although the Burnley rider was just off the outright pace of reigning champion Troy Bayliss, he was more concerned with getting the right set-up on his new Ducati Tetsastretta in preparation for the opening round in two weeks time.

He said: "We came to Valencia for a test and that's exactly what we did.

"While it may be nice to be at the top of the timesheets, it's far more important that we get the bikes right before the season begins.

"My Ducati 996R is a great improvement on the machine from last year.

"Throttle response is so much better and the engine performance is incredible - I even managed to pass Ben Bostrom on the straight, something that wouldn't have been possible last season.

"The race here on March 10 is going to be tough, it always is, but everything is in place and I'm feeling more confident than I ever have.

"We had a couple of set backs during the three days and because I am so competitive it can be frustrating to see other people going faster.

"All in all however I am pleased with what we have accomplished.

"My best time of 1min 35.459 secs was well inside my time from last year - that's pretty good when you consider that I spent most of this session setting up the front suspension.

"The new hlins forks are incredibly sensitive and getting them just right for Valencia is a real challenge.

"The track here is like a billiard table - on a more unevenly surfaced track it wouldn't matter, but here it can take time to dial in."

Hodgson's HM Plant Ducati/GSE Racing team-mate James Toseland was quickest of the pair for a while during the second day of the test and recorded a time of one minute 35.83, two seconds quicker than his previous best.

But Australian Bayliss showed just how determined he is to hang on to his title by topping the test times in Spain.

The former British Superbike champion's time of 1:34.261 seconds was well over a second under the circuit record and even quicker than the 1:34.56 recorded by American Ben Bostrom, on the L&M Ducati, at Valencia last December.

Bayliss said: "Everything was good these three days and in every test we've done since the end of last year we've made a major improvement.

"I did three long runs on race tyres and their performance was excellent, while on my qualifying tyre I did the fastest lap I've ever done around here.

"Now I'm really looking forward to the race in two weeks and feeling really confident about the season ahead."