Unbroken sunshine welcomed the riders and teams to a circuit more commonly called ‘Portimao’ with ambient temperatures recorded at 33°C in FP1 and 32°C in FP2.

The second Free Practice session was held at an unusual 18.00hrs, to prepare the competitors for the latest spectator-friendly initiative in WorldSBK. The Saturday and Sunday full distance races have been scheduled to end shortly before the sun descends into the hills that surround the Portimao circuit.

On track, Lowes was eighth quickest in FP1 before ending day one in an overall ninth position. In a very close two-part Friday Alex was just 0.392 seconds from the best single lap time.

Bassani placed 14th overall but was just 0.710 seconds from the fastest rider, Danilo Petrucci.

Now Alex and Axel face a much altered Saturday schedule compared to the rest of the European season. FP3 will take place at 12.10 (Portuguese Time) on Saturday, Tissot-Superpole Qualifying starts at 14.45 and then a 20-lap Race One will begin at 18.00.

Alex Lowes, stated: “That was a pretty good day for us. We had some issues in the morning session so we had to do a bit more work this afternoon. There was a new rear tyre to try from Pirelli and we had to test both front tyre options. It was a bit hotter than the conditions we have normally have at Portimao, so we had to try all the combinations. We found some positive points and some points for improvement. We need to piece it together now to make a good plan for FP3 on Saturday afternoon.”

Axel Bassani, stated: “We have finished a really hot first day here at Portimao and riding in the evening makes it a little bit more difficult. But we improved a lot in respect to our first free practice. We tried a new rear tyre and for sure it is better. There are some parts of the track where we can improve. Alex helped me in the first pitlane exit of FP2 and I really appreciate that. Following your team-mate means you can learn a lot and Alex was a gentleman to help me. Now we look to tomorrow.”

Tito Rabat (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) was overall 16th on Friday, just 0.743 seconds behind the leading rider. No fewer than 18 leading riders set a lap time within one second of each other.

2024 KRT Rider WorldSBK Statistics

Alex Lowes:
2024: Races: 18, Wins 2, Podiums 7, Superpoles 0
Career Race Wins: 4 (3 for Kawasaki)
Career Podiums: 41 (21 for Kawasaki)
Career Poles: 1 (0 for Kawasaki)

Axel Bassani:
2024: Races: 18, Wins 0, Podiums 0, Superpoles 0
Career Race Wins: 0 (0 for Kawasaki)
Career Podiums: 6 (0 for Kawasaki)
Career Poles: 0 (0 for Kawasaki)

8 x Riders’ Championships (Scott Russell 1993, Tom Sykes 2013, Jonathan Rea 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 & 2020), 1 x EVO Riders’ Championship (David Salom 2014)
6 x Manufacturers’ Championships (Ninja ZX-10R 2015 & 2016, Ninja ZX-10RR 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020)
5 x Teams’ Championships (KRT/Provec Racing 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 & 2019)

Kawasaki FIM Superbike World Championship Statistics
Total Kawasaki Race Wins: 180 – second overall
Total Kawasaki Podiums: 549 – second overall
Total Kawasaki Poles: 108 – second overall

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