"It was a bit of shame that I couldn’t finish on the podium but to be honest I’d have only been there because of what happened to Marc (Marquez)," Crutchlow began to explain. "But I am happy because I rode really well. The problem once again was my start. I have got to work on that because once again it wasn’t acceptable.

"The positive point is I had good consistency in the race and I was a lot faster than I expected, given what had happened with the tyres over the weekend. It was good to race so close to Valentino on the factory Yamaha and I enjoyed it."

On this occasion, it was a three-way duel for the final rostrum result as GO&FUN Honda Gresini’s Alvaro Bautista was also involved in the fight.

"It was a very hard but fair battle with (Valentino) and Alvaro," Crutchlow continued. "I actually thought there was one more lap but, because I’d been so close to Valentino on the straight, I’d not seen my pit board. I’d have liked to be on the podium but fourth is my best result for a few races and hopefully we can be strong in Japan next weekend."

In Japan this weekend, Englishman Crutchlow will push for a fifth podium finish of the season, having been yet to finish inside the top three since July’s German Grand Prix.