Why third was “the right result” for Sam Lowes at Dutch WorldSBK

Third place was “the right result” for Sam Lowes in Race 1 at the Dutch WorldSBK, the Marc VDS Ducati rider feels, despite being close to leading at points.

Lowes was third for the entire race, trailing the factory Ducatis of Nicolo Bulega and Iker Lecuona. 

He was almost two seconds behind Lecuona when rain started to fall mid-race and he started to close in. Eventually, Lowes was right with the two Aruba.it Racing machines, but he could not make a move. When the rain abated and the track dried, the gap grew again.

Having felt good enough for third all weekend, Lowes felt the end result was the correct one, despite having been so close to the lead – and what would’ve been a first World Superbike win – as the conditions changed.

“I think it’s the right result,” Sam Lowes told WorldSBK.com after Race 1.

“I got a bit closer because of the rain but, in reality, I was third-best with my speed and pace. Probably all weekend I’ve been third-best.”

Lowes added that he’s struggling in a few corners in particular versus the factory bikes that beat bhim in Race 1.

“It’s a very good track for me, obviously with many years in Moto2,” he said.

“With the fast, flowing nature of this track, especially sectors three and four are, let’s say, Moto2 style, so it’s probably a track I can adapt to a bit quicker. 

“The bike’s working well. I need to improve a little bit in turns one, three, and 10; I’m not so fast, they’re the places I was losing to those guys. 

“We can have a look tonight.”

A change of front tyre could be in Lowes’ plan tomorrow having run out of grip towards the end of Race 1.

“Towards the end, I was struggling with the front tyre,” he said.

“We’ll have to think tomorrow, check the weather and see whether the harder tyre is an option or so if we can maybe do something to help.”

The Marc VDS rider also feels he’s still missing race fitness and, although he didn’t suffer as much as he expected in Saturday’s 21 laps, he admitted that the mid-race rain could’ve helped him physically.

“I missed a bit towards the end of last year,” he said, “so my race fitness is not amazing. 

“The rain probably helped me a bit, but I didn’t suffer as much as I thought I would with my arms. That’s very positive. 

“I can sleep a bit more relaxed tonight because I was nervous about that before the race.”