WSBK: Lowes Remains With KRT in 2021

Alex Lowes will stay with the Kawasaki Racing Team for another season following a great start to their partnership in 2020.

The Lincolnshire rider took two podiums, including one win, at the season opener at Phillip Island this year and currently leads the WorldSBK championship.

Lowes penned a one-year contract extension that will see him remain with the Japanese manufacturer until the end of the 2021 season.

Speaking about the deal Lowes said:

“It is great to be with Kawasaki for 2021. I can continue adapting to the team and adapting myself to the ZX-10RR. Ever since I joined the team, I’ve really felt like it was an opportunity for me to make another step forward with my riding. Being teammates with Jonny, I feel I can learn so much from him and the atmosphere in the team is great. The current situation in the world is not ideal for anyone but Kawasaki really makes me feel positive and focused on the future.

“It has been fantastic to get something sorted for 2021 before going into the rest of the races this year. My personal target is to keep working hard every day, keep improving myself and also as a team to continue enjoying it. That is why we go racing; this little bit of ‘down-time’ has made us all appreciate how amazing our job is. Our fire was already burning hot, but this recent period has certainly brought up the level of appreciation about what we do. I cannot wait to get back up there with Team 22 this season, working with Marcel and the guys, and looking forward to even bigger things as we go into next year.”

Alex Lowes

Lowes debuted in WorldSBK in 2011 as a replacement rider at Castrol Honda before joining the grid full-time in 2014 with Crescent Racing and the Voltcom Suzuki Team.

Consistent positive results bagged him a move to the factory Yamaha team in 2016 where he achieved his breakthrough with numerous podiums and a maiden WorldSBK victory in Brno in 2018.

He finished third overall in his final year with Yamaha and secured a move to reigning manufacturer champions Kawasaki where he started the 2020 season with a win plus second and fourth place finishes at Phillip Island and holds the provisional championship lead.

KRT Team Manager Guim Roda commented on the contract extension:

“The job Alex has done until now, his motivation for the KRT project and the serious way he trains himself to be the fittest rider he can be have been such strong arguments to renew with him. It also gives him the time and reassurance to show his full potential on the ZX-10RR. He has the speed to ride the bike on the limit and to perform at the level we expect. We found him a good combination with Jonny in terms of mutual respect, and the competition between the riders will help lift up the team to the maximum. We have evaluated his riding style since he joined with us for 2020 and we believe he can ride the bike fast and consistently.

“We expect to restart this current season again – to make sure the show comes back for all. Fixing an agreement with Alex for 2021 so early in the season will give him a calmness to fully concentrate on his racing and make the best results possible this year.”

Guim Roda

Reigning world champion Jonathan Rea’s contract with KRT also expires at the end of the season but is expected to be renewed.