Lowes creeps into contention with double
Alex Lowes will go into the final round of the 2012 MCE British Superbike Championship with a genuine shot at winning the title after his remarkable performance at Silverstone with consolidated with a last gasp double victory.
Having only made it into the 'Title Showdown' as the sixth and final entrant, the WFR Honda rider has struck the form of his career at the right time.
Scoring his second consecutive pole position at the Northamptonshire circuit, Lowes shrugged off a tight battle in the opening stages of race one to eventually cruise home more than five seconds up on the opposition for his and WFR Honda's first-ever BSB win.
"I didn't have any issues and the WFR Honda was working fantastically. I didn't want to make a mistake as I haven't led many BSB races, but on the last few laps I could see the gap on the big screen and I just thought I needed to go for it. The team did a fantastic job and we had a bit of luck but it is an awesome feeling."
Made to work harder in race two, Lowes nonetheless displayed his fighting credentials as he diced with Josh Brookes and Shane Byrne over the final laps, culminating in his determined overtaking attempt on Byrne into the final corner at Luffield.
Pulling it off successfully, Lowes rounded off his second win of the day, completing a clean sweep of topping all free practice sessions, qualifying and both races.
Though Byrne's four consecutive podiums means he remains a favourite for title glory at the Brands Hatch triple-header in two weeks' time, Lowes is now up to third place, a manageable 24 points adrift.
"I was happy enough with a win in the first race so to do the double is mega. I got into a rhythm and then I made a mistake onto the straight and I lost some time. On the last lap I knew I could turn in tight and I managed to get down the inside of Shakey and that was what we needed to do.
"We just scraped into the Showdown so I am still taking it one race at a time and we will see if we can do the same again at Brands Hatch."
