Sam Lowes (Ducati) was puzzled: “It didn’t feel like Magny-Cours”

Only the BMW and Honda works teams, along with the Ducati customer team Marc VDS, travelled to Magny-Cours last week for a two-day test. The weather on Thursday and Friday was extreme: under blazing sunshine, the tarmac heated up to over 60 degrees Celsius, which was an ordeal for both riders and machinery alike.

However, as this year’s very long summer break in the 2026 Superbike World Championship ends with the round at the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours, the test was more than just a way to pass the time. Ducati privateer Sam Lowes hopes that the insights gained will prove helpful for the race weekend from 4 to 6 September.

“It was a really good test; it was nice to be back on the bike after a few weeks,” said the Englishman. “But it didn’t feel like Magny-Cours – it was really hot! Temperatures were over 30 degrees; I think it even reached 40 degrees on one day, with track temperatures around 60 degrees. That was really good for us, because we know those are conditions I struggle with a bit.”

Lowes is enjoying his best Superbike season to date this year. With four events still to go, the 35-year-old sits fifth in the World Championship with seven podium finishes and is battling it out with his brother Alex (Bimota) for fourth place. The test in France could give Sam the edge in the twins’ duel.

“We tried out a lot of things, tested the race tyre, tested the SCQ tyre on the morning of the second day and set some good lap times. I think it was a productive test, and hopefully we can use that to our advantage in a few weeks’ time,” says the Ducati rider. “We tried out a few components on the forks, which was positive. Everyone thought it was a good test. It was very hot; I didn’t do any race simulations, but on the second day I did a few longer runs, and everything went well.”

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