“Nothing to fight with”: Alex Lowes questions UK WorldSBK Race 2 strategy

Alex Lowes looked set for a fourth place and best-non-Ducati finish in Race 2 at the UK WorldSBK last weekend (10–12 July), but he was overhauled by Axel Bassani at the end.

Lowes had entered the weekend hoping to be in podium contention, but he found himself unable to match the performance of the Ducati riders on Saturday and Sunday.

But cooler conditions arrived on Sunday and Lowes’ potential improved: fourth in the Superpole Race, and he was running in that fourth spot again until the final laps of Race 2.

It had been a fast start to the race from Lowes, and he suggested afterwards that the pace at the start cost him at the end.

“This morning’s race [Superpole Race] was good, and then the last race I was on the grid, obviously starting a bit further up,” said Alex Lowes after Race 2 at Donington.

“I had a good start, just wanted to push as hard as I could, really. I felt good, really good, for maybe 10 or 11 laps, but then I started to slide a bit on the entry. 

“I don’t know if the wind was blowing a bit of dirt on the track. 

“I was obviously pushing really hard at the start, the lap times we were doing, but I really paid the price at the end: my rear tyre dropped massively, and the last 10 laps I couldn’t really attack like I wanted, especially right on the edge of the tyre. 

“When Axel [Bassani] passed me, I tried my best, but I had nothing to really fight with. 

“We need to understand why the tyre dropped. Okay, the pace was faster at the start compared to [Race 1], but it seemed to drop a lot, [in Race 1] I was able to stay a lot more consistent. 

“We need to understand that; the conditions were a bit different with the wind, but the pace was also quite strong. 

“I don’t know if I was just being a bit too aggressive and paid for it in the last laps. So, that was a shame.

“There’s been many races where getting that good start and attacking for 10 laps has given me a chance to fight for a podium or a top-five; looks like at this track it was a bit more critical with the rear tyre and it went against me.”

Lowes added that the jump from seventh in Race 1 to fifth in Race 2 didn’t necessarily mean that Bimota had taken a big step from Saturday to Sunday at the UK WorldSBK.

“I feel like in the cooler conditions we had more of a chance, and in the 10-lap race we could hang in there for 10 laps,” he said.

“The starts have been good. I’m happy. 

“It’s still a similar distance behind the winner of the race compared to yesterday, so we didn’t improve too much, because other people probably didn’t do as good a job, which helped us a little bit. 

“We have to be happy with the job we did. We’re consistently, let’s say, the next best [behind the Ducatis], and doing a good job as a team, enjoying it. 

“We have to just keep trying to get better.”