Hot conditions and hot laps were the order of the day as Elf Marc VDS Racing Team rider Sam Lowes made a fast start in round four of this year’s WorldSBK Championship in Cremona

Scorching early May heat meant it was a demanding opening day at the 3.7km Italian venue, but Lowes rose to the challenge brilliantly to lap close to the top three in both Free Practice sessions.

Saturday promises to be another intense day, with Superpole underway at 11am local time ahead of Race 1 that is due for action at 2pm.

/// SAM LOWES: 6TH, 1:29.669, 39 LAP

FP1 started this morning at 11am local time with ambient temperatures already reaching close to 25 degrees and Lowes was immediately able to post competitive lap times in a dramatic session that saw five riders crash.

Lowes briefly led the session in the early stages and he avoided any drama on his Ducati Panigale V4R machine to set a personal best lap of 1:29.669 that placed him fifth on the timesheets.

Clear blue skies and a peak ambient temperature of 31 degrees saw track temperature soar to a sizzling 49 degrees this afternoon, which meant faster times were had to come by as grip levels were impacted by the intense heat.

A 1:29.791 saw Lowes finish FP2 as top Independent Team rider in seventh and his slightly better speed this morning secured him sixth on the combined leaderboard at the close of a positive day one.

“We have strong pace and I enjoyed riding today”

“Cremona is a very different track compared to the first three rounds with the layout smaller and tighter, but it’s been a good first day and I enjoyed myself on the bike today. I always love riding in Italy and today was no exception on a day where we spent a lot of time focusing on my race pace and understanding the tyres over the longer distance. I’m pleased with my consistency, but I need to improve in the second sector tomorrow because that’s where I’m losing the most time. We have a clear plan of where to work and once again the team did a great job today. Finishing sixth overall with a strong pace makes me confident for the rest of the weekend. Qualifying on the front row again will be fantastic but if I can get on those first two rows, I think we can get a result tomorrow and I’m really looking forward to it.”