Alex Lowes used a thrilling last-lap move to win shortened World Superbike Race Two Sunday at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, in Australia. Riding his factory Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR, Lowes rode around the outside of two-time and defending Champion Alvaro Bautista with less than half a lap to go to claim the victory.
Bautista, who led most of the race on his Aruba.it Racing Ducati Panigale V4 R, came up 0.028 second short in second place.
Danilo Petrucci was a close third on his Barni Spark Racing Ducati.
American Garrett Gerloff finished eighth, the highest BMW rider, just 4.1 seconds behind Lowes on his Bonovo Action BMW M 1000 RR.
The original start of the race was red flagged due to a big crash by Pata Yamaha by Prometeon rider Jonathan Rea, who was stretchered off the track and taken to the medical center. The six-time World Champion later reported that he had no serious injuries, but it was his second bruising crash of the week.
Prior to Rea’s crash, Toprak Razgatlioglu’s ROKiT BMW suffered a mechanical problem, knocking him out of the race.
The race was restarted for 11 laps and the requirement for a pit stop and tire change mid-race was removed.
More, from a press release issued by Dorna:
Lowes lights up the land down under with double triumph
Alex Lowes secured victory in both the Tissot Superpole Race and Race 2, putting an end to a four-year drought in style.
Despite being a strong contender, Toprak Razgatlioglu faced disappointment in Race 2 as a technical issue forced him to retire, although he had earlier secured his first BMW podium in the Tissot Superpole Race.
Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) emerged victorious in an exhilarating Race 2 at Phillip Island, securing a remarkable double win. Lowes’ triumph was sealed with a breathtaking last-lap maneuver at Turn 9, overtaking Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) in a display of sheer brilliance.
However, the race was not short of drama as Toprak Razgatlioglu’s (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) promising run in the race was abruptly halted on Lap 3 at Turn 9, as a technical issue which led to his untimely retirement. Jonathan Rea (Pata Prometeon Yamaha), unfortunately crashed out at Turn 11 in the early stages, leading to a red flag and subsequent race restart. He was taken to the medical centre and declared unfit with multiple contusions and abrasions.
Despite the challenges, Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Team Motocorsa Racing) showcased an impressive performance, swiftly climbing from P6 to challenge Bautista for the lead after the restart. However, it was Lowes who ultimately prevailed, with Bautista settling for second place.
Meanwhile, Andrea Locatelli (Pata Prometeon Yamaha) staged a remarkable comeback before unfortunately crashing out on the final lap while battling for position. Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) claimed a well-deserved third place, rounding off the podium. Notably, Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) showcased a commendable recovery from a poor start to secure fifth place, with Rinaldi finishing just behind in sixth.
More on worldsbk.com
P1 | Alex Lowes | Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK
“It was an unbelievable day! The second race was chaos from the start. It was a little bit delayed, and in the first part of the race Toprak’s bike blew up. I was nearly off track, I did well to stay on. Then, Jonathan had a big crash, so I hope he’s okay. I was dropping back a little bit, but just before the red flag, I had a couple of good sectors to get back on my brother. I had some good speed, and the temperature was down a little bit. My focus in the restart was to make a good start, put myself in the first three or four positions. I knew Toprak wasn’t there, and when he is, you have to ride a little bit more defensively because he’s always going to have a pass. Once I got settled into the race, I was struggling to stay with Bautista a little bit and Michael.
Locatelli passed me at Turn 4. He was going to hit the back of Bautista, so he went wide and then I managed to stay on the line, stay close to Alvaro because, in my head, I was thinking he was struggling to enter the corner because the grip was going. I knew I could be really fast through Turn 8 and into Turn 9. This was my chance to pass him and try to stop the bike into Turn 10 and 11. I had a little plan, and it went quite well. In the end, I had a lot more grip than Alvaro which allowed me to make this pass.”
