SBK, Lowes: "Happy about the actual first time with Bimota. Tomorrow, I want the top six."

He crossed the finish line in Race 1 in eighth place. A far cry from the first his first place a year ago when he made the Superpole Race and Race 2 his own. Nevertheless, Alex Lowes said he was pleased with the first real narrative, riding the Bimota on the Phillip Island circuit.

"I'm satisfied. Certainly, I'm more so than those who, in light of the good work they did in 2024, had higher expectations, but this is the first time with the KB998 in extreme heat and with no information. We're still learning, collecting data, and making changes. So, coming in with a new bike, and battling with Locatelli not far from the second group of Ducatis, can't disappoint us. The V4 Rs have a nice margin here, but we're developing and working on what we have," he stated.

In spite of a result that might not seem positive, the Britsh rider confided that he feels proud of what the team did in the winter and at Phillip Island. "I obviously see it differently than the others. It wasn't an easy task, because there were manufacturers who worked hard and long to get this far. Bassani finished first or second on several test days, and maybe that fueled excessive expectations. The truth is that the competition is much better prepared, while everything is new to us. Certainly, we could do better, and I'm convinced we'll make progress, but we have to be happy with the starting point," he continued philosophically in his reflection.

The next steps are clear. "We need to improve the sensations on the bike and the performance in direct comparison with others. Personally, I wasn't too far away, but it's certainly easier to be in the back of the pack than in the middle and fighting. And now I need to get back to feeling the sensations of when you're up in front," he said, expressing his desire to fight while knowing that it's not a walk in the park.

"We have to consider that, in the SBK, everyone's close and improving all the time. As far as we're concerned, these twenty laps done in high temperatures allowed us to figure out how to make progress. Starting already from tomorrow, we'll try to make some and get closer to the top six. That's our goal for the weekend," he concluded.