The Elf Marc VDS Racing Team heads from South to North America this weekend to take on the unique challenge of the Circuit of the Americas in Austin for round four of this year’s Moto2 World Championship.

• Sam Lowes and Tony Arbolino continue their early season flyaway tour eyeing a strong challenge when they tackle the partially resurfaced and demanding 20-corner layout of COTA this weekend.
• The Moto2 field kick off the action in a modified schedule this weekend with FP1 getting underway at 9am local time on Friday and Lowes and Arbolino will do battle for podium glory in the 18-lap race at 1120am on Sunday.

/// SAM LOWES

• A hard-fought 10^th place last weekend in a difficult Grand Prix of Argentina has made Lowes even more determined to be back fighting at the front when he tests himself against the physically and mentally demanding 5.5km COTA track this weekend.
• The Briton has fond memories of COTA after taking his first Moto2 victory there in 2015 and he was back on the rostrum in second position in 2016.

“The main objective is to be back fighting at the front”

“I’m really looking forward to riding at COTA. I’m obviously disappointed with the result in Termas but COTA is the perfect place for me to try and get myself back at the front. I took my first win in Moto2 there and I’ve always had a great connection with the track and the American fans and it’s always a place I love to be at. COTA is a fantastic track and I’ve always enjoyed riding there and I’m curious to see what the new surface is like and whether the bumps are a bit better than last year. The main objective this weekend is to be back fighting at the front. The important thing at the end of a challenging weekend in Argentina was to score points and we need to keep that run going in Austin but just be much closer to the front and challenging for the podium.”

/// TONY ARBOLINO

• Two top six finishes in the opening three races of 2022 have given Arbolino a huge injection of confidence and belief that he can be in the hunt for his first Moto2 podium in Texas.
• The Italian boasts an impressive record at COTA and he finished sixth in 2019 in the Moto3 race. Also, was an excellent sixth in his first Moto2 ride in Austin last October.

“I’m sure this weekend can be another positive one for me”

“Argentina was another very positive race for us, but we could see that we are still missing those crucial last couple of tenths to be right in the podium battle. The good things is that we were there fighting very close to the front and once again we were able to learn about our potential and where we can improve in the future. Now we go to Austin and that is a track I really like. It is fast and technical, and my target will be to challenge at the front. I had one of my best races of last season in Austin, so we arrive with a positive mindset that this can be another really strong weekend for me and the Team.”