Weather conditions were hot and dry at Most for the sixth of twelve rounds of the Superbike World Championship World SBK, but also wet, making this intense route, with its 21 turns and curves, both a physical and technical challenge for alex lowes and his Kawasaki.
Ninth in the first free practice session of the morning, the Briton was second for most of the second free practice session, which took place in intense heat, eventually finishing in 4th place on the time combined.
“The bike felt pretty good today, even if Toprak was still very fast. This track wasn't the easiest for me on the Kawasaki, but in some parts, the twisty sections, the bike was working really well and I felt good on it. There are things to improve, such as passing in the first sector and braking. Overall, I'm quite satisfied. I did a lot of laps, the pace was pretty good, so it was a good day's work. »
Saturday morning, the Kawasaki rider finished 3rd in the qualifying Superpole, certainly almost 7 tenths from the inevitable Toprak Razgatlioglu, but only 29 thousandths fromAndrea Iannone, which augured good things for the first race.
Unfortunately, during race 1, alex lowes made a bad start and went 8th on the first lap. He then began a slow climb which took him to 6th place on the 16th of 22 laps, but fell at turn 2 on the following lap.
The next day, during the Tissot Superpole Race, the number 22 was initially relegated to 5th place in the first lap, but fought back to 4th place in the second lap. It looked like he might stay in that spot for the entire race, but the Ducati duo of Alvaro Bautista and Niccolo Bulega bickered entering T1 on the final lap, causing Bautista to crash. Bulega returned to the track, but alex lowes wasn't far behind and he attempted to pass the red Panigale before the finish line, ultimately putting his factory Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR less than 0,5 seconds across the line. This is his seventh podium of the season.
In the final 22-lap race of the Most weekend, alex lowes accidentally started before the red lights went out, earning him a double long lap penalty which compromised his race. He fell back to 15th place at one point, but showed real pace to come back and finish in 9th place.
In summary, the work now focuses on the first moments of the races, in order to take full advantage of a Ninja also invigorated by the Super-Concessions.
alex lowes : “I would have been fourth in the Superpole race without Alvaro's crash. It's difficult to overtake on this circuit, but in some parts the bike works so well that I can be very fast. The race was difficult, but I am very happy to be on the podium again. It's a difficult race, but I'm very happy to be on the podium again, after Saturday's lack of results. Honestly, I didn't expect to get on the podium again here in Most and the pace was really high. I wasn't comfortable at the start of the second race and I didn't know if the bike was in first gear or not. We tried a lot of different things with the clutch for starts, because it's very important now. A good qualifying and start can really change your race in WorldSBK. I tried to squeeze the clutch to see if it was in gear, and the bike jumped forward. I wasn't trying to anticipate the start, I was just trying to feel if the gear was engaged. It was a first for me, a flying start like that, and I received a double penalty of a long lap. It was a tough ride from there. But my pace was good, very close to that of Andrea Locatelli and Remy Gardner. This is a positive point in these hot conditions. Most was a difficult circuit for us, so if we can be as competitive as we were in Superpole, in Superpole Race, in the two main races and in the package with the Ducatis, then I think we can look towards the next rounds. »
In the general classification, alex lowes brings back only 14 points from its Czech weekend and remains fourth, 20 points behind third place.
Three weeks after Most, the seventh round of the WorldSBK championship will take place at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve, Portugal, from August 9-11.
