De Puniet: Crash will calm me for race

The LCR Honda rider was sensational in British Grand Prix qualifying, holding provisional pole for most of the hour, and only being denied by Jorge Lorenzo in the final moments.

He said his late crash in the Arena section had happened when he was making a final push to try and topple the championship leader.

"I'm very happy to be on the first row, it was my target," said de Puniet, who had also been rapid in both practice sessions.

"I thought about the pole position but Jorge was faster than me. I pushed a lot on the last lap and went faster in the middle of the track but then pushed too much and made a mistake.

"It's not a problem for me, my bike is good and tomorrow will be another story. I think we have a good target and we'll see tomorrow. I think it's better for me to crash today because I will be more quiet for the race."

The result is de Puniet's first front row start since joining LCR in 2008, and equals his previous career best qualifying position, which he achieved for Kawasaki at Catalunya three years ago.