Having spent the winter working on finding consistency, Alex Lowes arrived in Australia hoping for two Top 5 finishes.
At the end of Sunday evening, it was a case of mission accomplished for the Englishman, but having been in the middle of the podium scrap, he could be forgiven for having been slightly disappointed to come away with a brace of fourth place finishes.
Jonathan Rea may have claimed a victory-double at the season-opener, but the case could have been made for Lowes being one of the stars of the weekend.
The Yamaha YZF-R1 looked a potent weapon in the hands of the 26-year-old, and speaking to the people closest to him in the Crescent Racing run squad, it’s clear that they feel this could be only the beginning of a strong campaign.
“To finish within a second of the winner in both races was impressive,” said Paul Denning. “The bike, the technical structure, the team have all improved, but Alex himself has also taken a massive step forward in his approach and consistency.”
“It really showed in Phillip Island. He spent the winter doing long runs in testing, and the bike underneath him was because of that hard work, and meant he could fight to the end of the race.”
“Honestly, I thought Alex had a chance of winning in the second race, when he passed Johnny for second. Alex won the British Superbike championship, but it’s a different position to be fighting at the front in WorldSBK,” explained Denning.
“He felt that he was at his limits and didn’t want to take a risk in the last two laps. The more you race at the front, the more your self-belief and confidence grows and trying to win the race week in and week out becomes a normal thing.”
“For Alex it was something different in this championship to be fighting with them, and he showed he’s got what it takes.”
Lowes’ speed and credentials have never been in doubt, but he has had to quiet some doubters in the paddock. From the outset of his WorldSBK career, he had the speed to surprise the front-runners, but having to wring the neck out of uncompetitive machinery also gave him a reputation as a crasher.
This was something that he was keen to put behind him over the winter, and on the basis of the season-opener he has made a big step forward. His crew chief, Ian Prestwood, worked with him during their 2013 BSB title winning season and in Australia he spoke about the improvements that he has seen.
“This is our second season in WorldSBK, and we had one in BSB,” said Prestwood. “Over the winter Alex has been much more calculated and brought a more concentrated attitude to the work that he’s doing.”
“He’s looked at last year, and realized that he started the year injured, which caused everything to be more difficult. He’s concentrated on not making mistakes and therefore not being injured.”
“So all the way through winter testing, he’s ridden within himself and he’s not made any mistakes. He’s just really calculated attitude to doing everything within his level rather than trying to do something that he’s not capable of,” added Prestwood.
“Alex has always been a smooth rider but he’s improved that over the winter. With the Yamaha you have to ride the bike… smooth maybe isn’t the right word, but you have to ride it less aggressively.”
“The rider can’t grab at the brake or grab at the throttle. You need to be much more flowing. He’s really got his head around that.”
“He’s learned that even if you need to do a lap, that’s still not the way to do it. The way to do it is to back off even more. He’s learned the bike and he’s done a lot of laps over the winter, which has been really good for him.”
Speed has never been a concern for Lowes and Yamaha. The team know the potential is there to set fast lap times, but having focused on getting the most from the bike over 35 minutes of racing the maturation of the rider was crucial.
“If you were to put Alex on a garden gate and he’ll go fast for a lap, but that doesn’t win races,” continued Prestwood. “He’s focused on finding that consistency himself. I’m just going to encourage it because it’s the right thing to do.”
“Phillip Island has always been a good track for him. He’s proved what he’s capable of. I think he was capable of winning both those races. We had the pace to win both races this weekend.”
“He’s proved that he can ride within himself and still has the pace of anybody else. The bike’s better, the team’s better. Everything’s working well.”
The results in Australia came as a surprise to some and now the team know that the biggest challenge is building on them.
Phillip Island suited the Yamaha in 2016, with the track layout playing to the strength of the bike. The big test will be continuing in this vein of form in Thailand, at the next round of the WorldSBK Championship.
Photos: Yamaha Racing
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