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The MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship saw sparks fly literally and figuratively as Ducati independent riders Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) and Alberto Surra (Motocorsa Racing) came together on Lap 4 as they both sought both P4 and the same piece of track. The pair battled with 18 Laps to go into the third sector, where the #14 got on the inside of Surra on the run into Turn 15, then, when Surra tried to return the favour, slipping in on the inside to Turn 16, the two bikes came together slightly, but at such a tight lean angle, the contact sent the Brit sprawling. For the incident, FIM WorldSBK Stewards handed Surra a Long Lap Penalty for Irresponsible Riding and went on to finish Race 1 in P9.

FELT HE WAS FASTER: “I wouldn’t have crashed if he wouldn’t have done that; he didn’t have the pace to stay there, so it was a strange move”

Sam Lowes arrived at Most after a tough weekend at Balaton Park. While he and fans have become accustomed to seeing the orange and maroon bike in Parc Ferme, he landed his best result of P6 in the last round. His worst result of the round was his P20 after his contact with Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha), which resulted in the Italian making contact with Miguel Oliveira (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) and leaving the Brit with a damaged gearshift. At Most, the #14 led Surra at lights out after recording a Tissot Superpole time half a tenth faster than the Italian. He had clearly hoped for better results, but after his early return to the boxes, he will have to try again on Sunday.

On Race 1 and the incident, Sam Lowes said: “It wasn’t the best day obviously. We did well to qualify P4 because, on this track, the first laps are difficult. We weren’t the fastest over the first laps, so I tried to pass on Turn 1, but Surra was quite strong to be fair. I made a good, clean move into Turn 15, and he came straight back in on the next one. Obviously, he’s entitled to do that; that’s racing, but he hit me, and I crashed, so not too much to say really. I wouldn’t have crashed if he wouldn’t have done that. He didn’t have the pace to stay there, so it was a strange move. Maybe he could have stayed behind me and we could have gone forward and caught up because I had quite a lot of speed. This is part of the game, though. We’re all on the same track, and people can make the moves they want; we’ll try to do better tomorrow.”

VIRTUAL REPS: “It’s been a great weekend for me until now, I didn't know the track, I had only ridden it in the WorldSBK video game”

Alberto Surra has been impressive as of late, first showing signs that he was indeed ready for the WorldSBK level with his P9 in the season opener, then, at Balaton Park not only did he return to the top ten, but he landed a trio of top eight finishes, including a WorldSBK career-best P6 in the Tissot Superpole Race. At Most, he landed in P5 in the Tissot Superpole session, his best qualification so far as well. After the incident with Lowes, Surra’s pace started to drop, in small part at least due to a missing front wing, he states may have come off as a result of the contact. Despite dropping to P12 by Lap 10, he went back to work, overtaking riders and was capped off by a Lap 19 overtake on Xavi Vierge (Pata Maxus Yamaha) for P9.

On his Race 1, Surra said:  “It was a great race. It’s been a great weekend for me until now. I didn't know the track; I had only ridden it in the WorldSBK video game. I’m very happy about the work with the team. I need to improve my grip; it was a shame during the Long Lap. I am sorry for what happened. I didn't feel any contact as I was in the inside on Turn 17. I didn't see Sam, and I didn't feel any contact. Maybe he got a wing. I am sorry for the team that will have to work to repair, and I hope that the incident is nothing serious for Sam.”

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