Sam Lowes confident ahead of Misano WorldSBK despite “a couple of bad rounds”

Although by his own admission there have been some “bad rounds” in 2026, Sam Lowes is “happy” with his WorldSBK season until now.

Lowes has often been the closest rider to the two factory Ducati riders this year, although in Hungary and Czechia he struggled. 

At Aragon, he was back on the podium in all three races, and after a good test at Misano previous to that as well the Marc VDS rider is confident heading into the Emilia-Romagna WorldSBK this weekend (12-14 June).

“We’re halfway through the season, [and] apart from a couple of bad rounds at Balaton Park and Most, I’m pretty happy with how it’s going,” said Sam Lowes, speaking to WorldSBK.com ahead of the Emilia-Romagna Round.

“I love racing here in Italy. It’s like a second home for me and my wife, who is Italian and our daughter speaks both English and Italian.

“It’s always a great place to race. I have great memories here from Moto2, and I’m looking forward to getting started. 

“I knew Aragon was going to be good for us. I made a few mistakes over the course of the weekend, but the important points were good. 

“It was important for us to have had the good weekend that we did, and now arriving here with good confidence after the test where I felt strong.”

Despite being pleased with his Aragon Round, though, Lowes is hoping to make improvements in the coming races as he tries to close the gap to the factory Ducati riders and continues to hunt for his first WorldSBK win.

“I could have done better in a few races, but sitting third in the championship, behind the two guys who I think have a bit of a step on everyone, I just need to find a step as we’re on the same bike as them,” he said.

“I need to knuckle down and try to decrease the margin to try to fight for a better position by the end of the season at Jerez.”