Less than 24 hours after Sam Lowes and Tony Arbolino claimed top 10 finishes in the British Grand Prix, the Elf Marc VDS Racing duo were back at Silverstone to carry out a positive day of testing ready in readiness for an intense race schedule ahead.

• Dry but windy weather with intermittent sunshine enabled Lowes and Arbolino to test a range of set-up options on their Kalex machinery, with both drawing positive conclusions at the end of a busy and fruitful day.
• Lowes and Arbolino will be back in race action on August 20 when the title battle continues at the high-speed and spectacular Spielberg track in Austria’s Styrian mountains.

/// SAM LOWES

• After fighting his way through from 15^th to seventh in his farewell British Grand Prix appearance before his new WSBK adventure begins with the Elf Marc VDS Racing Team in 2024, Lowes was hard at work today completing 32 laps that placed him fourth overall.
• An intense schedule for Lowes including evaluating front and rear suspension settings, with a positive direction found with the Ohlins forks that Lowes is keen to further assess in upcoming races.
• Satisfied with the progress made and happy with his pace, the 32-year-old opted not to participate in the third and final session of the day.

“I feel we’ve made a good step”

“It has been a positive test and I’m particularly happy with the progress we made in the braking zone and some improvements we found with general front feeling. I feel we’ve taken a good step with the front, so a big thanks to my crew because they’ve worked hard to help me in that area. It was quite windy, but I was still able to complete the number of laps we wanted to, and I feel we’ve got a good direction and some interesting options to consider at the next race in Austria and beyond. I felt comfortable on the bike and what we found here makes me even more confident and optimistic that I can be in the hunt for the podium in Austria.”

/// TONY ARBOLINO

•  After a difficult British Grand Prix weekend that ended with the Italian claiming a hard-earned 10^th place, today’s test gave Arbolino and his Elf Marc VDS Racing crew the perfect opportunity to try a range of geometry settings aimed at solving some recent grip issues.
• The Italian took full advantage of the available track time and in the third and final session of the day he fired in a best lap of 2:04.894.
• That was good enough to secure P1 and his excellent speed was a clear indication of the positive steps the 23-year-took throughout, with Arbolino improving by nearly three quarters of a second compared to the opening session.

“I felt really strong on the bike”

“It was a long and demanding day because we tested many things, but I have to say we leave with a very positive feeling. I felt really strong on the bike and in the final session we made a very good step, so now I really can’t wait to go to Austria. I am totally convinced that now we are ready for the second part of the season and we can be back in the fight at the front in every race.”