Clarke fastest in F2 Portimao test

The Briton, who has raced in the series for the last two years, topped two of the day's three sessions - ending up three tenths of a second clear of his rivals.

"It's a good feeling," Clarke said. "It's the result of hard work all winter - I've been working on simulators and trying to test as much as possible, preparing quite a lot for these four days so its nice to see the result of my hard work.

"My pace was good last year but I want to put that behind me really. I'm not here to finish eighth, I want to be a lot higher than that.

"I felt like I sussed it and was really comfortable in the car at the end, and I've taken that momentum and carried it into testing - the proof of which was today I think."

Alex Brundle was second fastest on his return to a Formula 2 cockpit, having raced in the series back in 2009.

F2 regulars Benjamin Lariche and Jolyon Palmer were third and fourth, with newcomers Kevin Mirocha and Antonio Felix da Costa completing the top six.

Other drivers new to F2 were Max Snegirev, Andre Negrao, Thiemo Storz and Bruno Mendez.

Pos Driver                     Time/Gap
 1. Jack Clarke               1m35.515s
 2. Alex Brundle                +0.312s
 3. Benjamin Lariche            +0.395s
 4. Jolyon Palmer               +0.458s
 5. Kevin Mirocha               +0.495s
 6. Antonio Felix da Costa      +0.517s
 7. Ramon Pineiro               +0.787s
 8. Max Snegirev                +1.146s
 9. Plamen Kralev               +1.399s
10. Andre Negrao                +1.853s
11. Natalia Kowalska            +1.887s
12. Thiemo Storz                +2.113s
13. Bruno Mendez                +2.187s