“Fantastic” Superpole triggers “positive” Misano WorldSBK Saturday for Alex Lowes

Alex Lowes enjoyed a “fantastic” Superpole as part of a “positive” Saturday for himself and Bimota at the Misano WorldSBK.

It was the Emilia-Romagna Round of 2025 that saw Bimota on the front row for the first time in WorldSBK with the KB998 thanks to Axel Bassani, a result Lowes repeated this year with a different milestone as he became the first non-Ducati rider to qualify on the front row in Superpole this year.

Lowes was unable to convert that into a podium and in fact dropped to fifth in the race, behind Yari Montella and his team-mate, Bassani, but it was a “positive” day overall.

“A positive Saturday: qualifying was fantastic, really happy to be on the front row, we know how important the qualifying is in World Superbike,” said Alex Lowes, speaking to WorldSBK.com after Race 1.

“My best lap ever here in Misano and this was really positive. 

“We had a long wait before the race so the track temperature was a lot different, so in the race the changes I made on the bike this morning, maybe the front of the bike, I didn’t feel as comfortable. 

“But I tried to do the best race I could, make a good start, was not too bad, some battles with Axel [Bassani] and today he was faster than me. 

“He passed me, I was trying to understand where I could be better.

“He was definitely better in the first part of the track, also turns 12 and 13 he was a lot better. I just struggled to have the confidence in the front to force the bike. 

“I tried my best a little bit, then I had a gap behind me so I tried to manage the race as best I could, understand what we need to do for tomorrow, and I’ll try to go a bit faster. 

“Well done to him, both bikes in the top-five, a good qualifying, and a positive day for the home race of Bimota.”

On his battle with Bassani, Lowes added: “I had fun, we were on the limit. He passed me a couple of times, just went a bit wide and I managed to pass him back, but he was faster than me in the race, he had more speed, so it was difficult for me to defend too much. 

“I tried to stay with him to, let’s say, pull away from the other guys, but not today. 

“But we’ll see tomorrow if I can improve a little bit – myself, obviously, a little bit better feeling from the bike, especially the front [and] I think we can do a good job because in general the confidence is quite good.”