Jacque: From hair on the soup to fish in water!

World champion Valentino Rossi may have won at Shanghai on Sunday, but it was the performance of Frenchman Olivier Jacque that shone like a beacon through the mist and spray.

The former 250cc world champion has been drafted into the Kawasaki team to replace the injured Alex Hofmann at Shanghai and Le Mans - and rode like a hero on his team green race debut, despite little prior knowledge of the ZX-RR and its Bridgestone tyres.

After overtaking Sete Gibernau at three-quarter distance, 15th on the grid OJ set off after race leader Rossi - and would finish the 22 laps just 1.7secs behind the Italian superstar.

Jacque's result was Kawasaki's best-ever in the premier class and a personal best for the 31-year-old Frenchman, who had previously recorded a fourth in the 2003 French GP with Yamaha.

"For sure Valentino's crew didn't have my name ready to put on his pit board over the final laps!" smiled Olivier, referring to the Gauloises Yamaha team's improvised 'O' which appeared on Rossi's pit board. "I still don't really understand myself how it all happened. It's magic, better than winning the world title.

"When I arrived as a replacement rider on Thursday I said I felt like 'a hair on the soup' but today I felt like fish in water!" he smiled. "I really enjoyed the race, the team did a great job and the Kawasaki was working very well. I was feeling at home on the track. It's just a big surprise. I knew I could be fast in the wet, but not that fast.

"It's very strange to be back after one year and sitting here. I fought for three-years for this podium and never got it and now I'm here, so you never know what will happen," he added.

Meanwhile, Rossi may have struggled to decipher who was behind him in the closing stages - but he was quick to recognise the potential threat Jacque will pose at his home GP in two weeks time. "I read that Olivier was coming to MotoGP for two races and that China was just for training, so now we must watch out for him at Le Mans," said the Italian.

Jacque's ride was also praised by his former Yamaha engineer Ichiro Yoda, who is now the technical director of the Kawasaki Racing Team - the Japanese questioning why Jacque doesn't have a full time ride.

"Incredible, I can't believe this result and I don't understand why a rider like Olivier is not in MotoGP full time," he declared. "I hope the sport will see more of him. I worked with him at Yamaha for the 250 world championship so this result today with Kawasaki is very special for both of us."

"A fantastic result, and full credit to Olivier in very difficult conditions," added team manager Harald Eckl. "Two weeks ago at Estoril we saw that he still had what it takes to race at this level, and today's result just goes to prove that the decision to put him on our bike for this race, and for the next at Le Mans, was the right one."

Jacque's team-mate Shinya Nakano failed to finish, retiring with an electrical problem at the end of lap two.