Superpole qualifying was held on Saturday morning, in dry but relatively cool conditions. Alex finished the session having earned a start from the second row, thanks to the sixth fastest overall lap time. Axel placed 16th in Superpole Qualifying.

Come the first race and the air and track temperatures had risen, as had the excitement for the fans in what was finally a strongly contested race with many changes of lead and riders in potential podium positions.

The proposed 18-lap race was red flagged before the end of the first lap when a sudden oil leak caused another rider to crash out. The track had to be inspected and cleaned before racing could resume. A quick-start procedure was then followed by a 17-lap race for full points.

The race was a truly remarkable entertainment for the fans, with very close action inside the front group of riders, which numbered up to 11 at times, even approaching the halfway point.

Tyre life on a recently resurfaced and very grippy track was a strong consideration for most riders to take on board, and those with the most grip left were able to maintain or even increase their pace near the end.

Alex was in the podium fight for much of the early part of the race but ended up seventh, albeit only 5.352 seconds behind first time race winner in WorldSBK, Andrea Iannone.

Although in 12th place at the flag, Axel pushed hard throughout and finished just over ten seconds from the winner in a race which was incredibly closely fought out at times between the main competitors, even after 17-laps.

On Sunday there will be two more Motorland races for Axel and Alex. The Tissot-Superpole Race will take place over ten laps and then Race Two is scheduled to have an 18-lap duration.

Alex Lowes, stated: “I feel I did the maximum I could and I tried to be there in the race. Everyone was a bit concerned about the rate of tyre wear so the pace meant that everybody was sticking together. On the last ten laps some people went faster but with our package today it was impossible. It was a not an easy race and I was struggling in the last sector of each lap when people were passing me. I couldn’t get the nice rhythm that I wanted. I didn’t make any mistakes, stayed focused and it was better than the opening races at the last two rounds. Let’s see what we can do on Sunday.”

Axel Bassani, stated: “Race one was a difficult one because when you start from the back it is never easy to recover any positions, Especially here, as there are two long straights and it is difficult to overtake. From the beginning of the race I tried to control the tyres, to arrive at the end in a good way. The pace was not so bad but it is always difficult to overtake here. We finished in P12 with some points and tomorrow have two more races. We will try to do a better job.”

Tito Rabat (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) was 19th in Superpole qualifying but retired in Race One.

2024 KRT Rider WorldSBK Statistics

Alex Lowes:
2024: Races: 28, Wins 2, Podiums 11, Superpoles 1
Career Race Wins: 4 (3 for Kawasaki)
Career Podiums: 45 (25 for Kawasaki)
Career Poles: 2 (1 for Kawasaki)

Axel Bassani:
2024: Races: 28, Wins 0, Podiums 0, Superpoles 0
Career Race Wins: 0 (0 for Kawasaki)
Career Podiums: 6 (0 for Kawasaki)
Career Poles: 0 (0 for Kawasaki)

8 x Riders’ Championships (Scott Russell 1993, Tom Sykes 2013, Jonathan Rea 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 & 2020), 1 x EVO Riders’ Championship (David Salom 2014)
6 x Manufacturers’ Championships (Ninja ZX-10R 2015 & 2016, Ninja ZX-10RR 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020)
5 x Teams’ Championships (KRT/Provec Racing 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 & 2019)

Kawasaki FIM Superbike World Championship Statistics
Total Kawasaki Race Wins: 180 – second overall
Total Kawasaki Podiums: 553 – second overall
Total Kawasaki Poles: 109 – second overall

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