Alex Lowes: Gardner was smart, Rea is eliminated / World Superbike Championship

Alex Lowes is having a great 2024 Superbike season so far He finished fifth in the first race at the TT Circuit Assen and took the podium in the race on Sunday. The Kawasaki rider did not hesitate as he received third place on the silver plate from Remy Gardner (Yamaha).

“Maybe he thought I was too far back,” Lowes told SPEEDWEEK.com with a smile on his face. “I saw how he was driving, but he left the right door open before the last chicane. I didn’t expect him to leave a gap to me. I just had to pass him.”

In the second race, which was won by BMW star Toprak Razgatlioglu, the twin brother of Marc VDS driver Sam Lowes could also do well by starting in row 1. But first he lost by accelerating, then the Kawasaki rider lost a few places because of low tire temperature and was also pushed aside by Andrea Iannone (Ducati). And on the ninth lap there was an unfortunate contact with former team-mate Jonathan Rea, causing both to crash.

“After a few laps I found my rhythm,” Lowes said. “I saw that Johnny was having problems and he was passed. I was able to accelerate better from the last corner and tried to pass him in turn 1. I had already passed him when my front wheel slipped. He couldn’t get out of the way, I caught him. I feel sorry for him.”

Rea dismissed the incident as a racing accident.

Lowes still sees room for improvement at Kawasaki. “We are at the limit and we always rely on other drivers having problems and we have to take advantage of these situations.”

In the overall standings, Alex Lowes is fourth after the third event of the season and 30 points behind championship leader Alvaro Bautista (Ducati). However, he can take solace in being the best Kawasaki rider. New teammate Axel Bassani is far behind in midfield with 22 World Cup points.