Sam Lowes was 15^th and Tony Arbolino 19^th at the close of Friday at the Sepang International Circuit, with both men confident of making steps forward ahead of qualifying.

• After a 10-day break that followed the Thai GP, Elf Marc VDS Racing Team duo Sam Lowes and Tony Arbolino were back on track on Friday at the Sepang International Circuit for the day’s two practice sessions.
• While dry throughout the day, conditions were tough with riders tackling high track temperatures of 51 degrees in the afternoon P2 session, with humidity standing at a punishing 71%.

/// SAM LOWES, 15^th – 2’07.066

• Sam initially started the day well, but soon found he was lacking feeling with the front tyre, as well as rear grip. He finished P1 in 12^th.
• The 33-year old’s crew made various changes for the afternoon, and altered the balance of the bike. Some were to his liking, and others weren’t, meaning the Briton will spend the evening with the team analysing the right direction to take to improve his overall position of 15^th.

“I feel like we’re not too far away”

“Obviously it was a difficult day. We made some changes from the morning to the afternoon. Some were good; others were bad. So, we need to pick the best package and put it together to make a step forward tomorrow. It wasn’t the best day. I felt like we actually worked quite well. There were some positives. But we’re obviously missing a bit of pace. It’s not the best position to be in and we’ll try to improve it tomorrow. I feel like we’re not too far away, but we are on the timesheets. We need to analyse everything tonight, see what we can make better and then go again tomorrow.”

/// TONY ARBOLINO, 19^th – 2’07.296

• On the back of his excellent comeback in Thailand, Tony started the day steadily, getting a feel for the track, but found rear traction a problem area as he placed 13^th in P1.
• In the hot afternoon conditions, Tony and his crew focussed on improving the rear grip of his bike as well as its turning capabilities through the track’s numerous fast changes of direction. Tony was 18^th in P2, and 19^th overall.

“We know where we aren’t feeling so strong and competitive”

“It was a tough day. We were not feeling right, like we were at this track last year. But we know where we aren’t feeling so strong and competitive. We’re working on improving that to be better tomorrow. That’s the only thing we can do and manage. So, let’s make a refresh this evening and then we’ll be ready for tomorrow.”