MotoGP: Sam Lowes makes Aprilia debut

Moto2 championship contender Sam Lowes has made his debut on the Aprilia RS-GP machine he will ride in MotoGP next season, spending today lapping Italy’s Misano circuit.

But, expecting a big step up from the Gresini Kalex machine he currently rides, the Lincolnshire racer says he was pleasantly surprised with just how manageable the GP machine was.

“It was a really, really good day – and impressive to get the first feelings on the Grand Prix bike. Obviously it felt very different from the Moto2 bike – its obviously a lot faster, and the carbon brakes feel a lot different as well.

“But we got a lot of laps in, and the pace was really good – I actually surprised myself at the end how fast it was. It’s been really positive, really good fun, and I’m looking forward to tomorrow.

“The step is big from Moto2 to MotoGP but the bike was easier to ride than I expected it to be, which is nice! I’m a bit quicker than I expected to be right away as well, which is also nice, so we’ll see how tomorrow goes!”

Lowes, who is testing at the circuit alongside Casey Stoner and the Ducati test team, will continue for another days’ testing tomorrow.