Italian World Superbike Friday Practice Results: Alex Lowes beats Danilo Petrucci to top time

After a fairly unrepresentative, damp FP1 topped by Sam Lowes, Alex Lowes was fastest in WorldSBK FP2 at Cremona.

FP2

Alex Lowes was fastest in WorldSBK FP2 at Cremona Circuit, the only fully dry session of the day at the Italian venue.

Lowes' brother, Marc VDS rider Sam Lowes, was fastest ahead of the Kawasaki rider in FP1, but in the dry it was the Magny-Cours pole sitter who was both the fastest and most consistent.

Lowes lapped consistently in the high-1:29s in FP2, before dropping into the 1:29.685 that put him top at the end. He was just under 0.1 seconds faster than Danilo Petrucci, who took second place despite an altercation with Remy Gardner.

Replays showed Petrucci slow on the racing line between turns one and two, looking behind while making a gesture at Gardner, who had to take to the gravel to avoid the Italian. While Petrucci finished FP2 in second place, Gardner was down in 16th.

Nicolo Bulega was briefly fastest in the middle of the session, but ended up 0.151 seconds adrift of Lowes in the end in third place.

Tito Rabat, who was competitive in the Cremona tests earlier this year, was another rider to spend time in P1, but ended fourth - still a strong showing for the Puccetti Kawasaki rider.

Andrea Iannone was fairly stealthy on his way to the fifth-fastest time, finishing just ahead of Alvaro Bautista who ended sixth.

Iker Lecuona allowed for some more positivity at Honda with his seventh-fastest effort, ahead of Garrett Gerloff, Scott Redding, and Axel Bassani who completed the top 10.

The best showing for Yamaha's new-spec YZF-R1 was a 13th place for Andrea Locatelli.

FP1

Sam Lowes topped the times in a damp FP1 at the Cremona Circuit in Italy for the WorldSBK Italian Round.

Lowes was not one of the first riders to head out on track, but was one of only a few riders to complete more than 10 laps.

The track began affirmatively damp after overnight rain in northern Italy, but dried out towards the end. Many riders headed out on slicks at some point, but it was wet tyres that did the job for Lowes.

Alex Lowes was second-fastest, but over 1.7 seconds behind his brother with his late single lap run.

Michael Ruben Rinaldi rounded out the top three, ahead of Andrea Locatelli on the new-spec Yamaha R1, and Alvaro Bautista who completed the top five.

Markus Reiterberger, riding this weekend in place of the injured Toprak Razgatlioglu, was sixth, ahead of Niccolo Canepa who is standing in for Jonathan Rea at Cremona. 

Bradley Ray was eighth-fastest, ahead of Marvin Fritz, Dominique Aegerter's replacement at GRT Yamaha, while Tommy Bridewell, who is wildcarding this weekend, was 10th-fastest.

Only 11 riders set a time in FP1, the slowest of them being Ivo Lopes, 9.890 seconds off the pace on the MIE Honda.