Alex Lowes scrapes for a top-three finish in the championship this WSBK season: Jonathan Rea is not surprised by the Kawasaki results
Kawasaki rider Alex Lowes’ results this season are significantly better than last year. The rider who finished eleventh in the 2023 WSBK season is currently P4 in the riders’ standings and is only ten points behind defending champion Alvaro Bautista (Ducati). Record world champion Jonathan Rea is not surprised by the strong form of his former Kawasaki team-mate
According to Rea, Kawasaki knows how to get the maximum out of the race weekends. And Lowes also has a lot of experience. “They have a lot of experience with the ZX-10RR. The bike is at the end of its life cycle. But they can therefore exploit the full potential of the bike and the rider,” explains Rea.
Last year, Rea scored more than twice as many points as Lowes at Kawasaki. This year, Rea is finding it much more difficult. While Lowes collected 213 points in the first seven events, Yamaha newcomer Rea only scored 86 points
“I’m pleased that Alex was able to take a step forward,” said Rea, referring to his former team-mate’s good results. Nevertheless, Rea does not regret the switch to Yamaha: “I never think about it and wonder how I would cope in this situation now. ”
“But they do a good job,” praises Rea. “When I left the team, I was fighting for the top three in the championship. I was battling with Toprak and Alvaro most weekends. But it became more and more difficult. “
But Rea would not say that Lowes has been underestimated for years. “He has a reputation for always giving 100 percent as soon as he gets on the bike. But I think that he wasn’t able to show his full potential due to a few injuries,” commented Rea and added: ‘I also doubt that his environment was right for him. ’
Rea is referring to the crew that Lowes worked with until the end of 2023. In the winter, the Brit switched from crew chief Marcel Duinker to Pere Riba. The working methods of the two Kawasaki crew chiefs are fundamentally different: while Duinker works in a more analytical and data-based manner, Riba, as a former rider, has a reputation for responding better to the rider’s feedback
