Jonathan Rea admitted he was happy to come away with a solid podium finish after an "anxious" start to this season's World Superbike championship.
The Co Antrim rider overcame difficult wet conditions to finish second behind last year's champion Alvaro Bautista in Saturday's opening race.
Rea led early on but would have to settle for a runners-up spot, finishing 3.471 seconds behind Spaniard Bautista.
Read more: Jonathan Rea on vlogging, underdog status, retirement and being 'all in'
Toprak Razgatlioglu - the 2021 champion - completed the podium, 6.168 seconds off the lead.
Rea said he was "nervous" for the World Supersport riders who raced before the Superbikes, with wet conditions making the Phillip Island circuit difficult.
“I was nervous for the WorldSSP riders who raced before us and I started getting anxious even before our race started, just watching them," Rea said afterwards.
"A big shout out to John McPhee in WorldSSP (who took his Kawasaki to a podium finish in his first ever WorldSSP race). I was yipping it up in the garage when he was racing.
"So I went to see him in Parc Ferme after his race, and ask how the conditions were in the full wet. I was pretty convinced to make a full wet set-up for Race One.
"I made a great start and I felt good. In the wet conditions, I felt good straight away.
"I just put my head down then ran into a few issues with my quick shifter. I had to re-learn how to ride the bike again without it.
"When Alvaro Bautista came past me I could see that he was better than me in some areas, but I was better in some others.
"I was trying to learn and adapt to not having a quick shifter. It was difficult, especially off the gas while on the edge of the tyre, with negative torque from the engine.
"It was so easy to be at full angle and lose the rear. The harder I pushed the more issues I had, but the problem is that when you see Alvaro going away, and the gap coming down to Toprak behind, you are trying, and trying so hard."
Rea added: "So it was a nervous race and the conditions were not as grippy as they were in the November WorldSBK round. The pre-race target was a podium and we got that, and took a bag full of points.
"On the grid I felt the race could have been for us, but not today.”
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