Pata Yamaha’s Alex Lowes has a difficult first experience at the awesome new San Juan Villicum circuit in Argentina last weekend and still needs to find a little bit more from his bike and a little bit more from himself.

A rider with his first win under his belt this season, and three podiums in all, had a middling kind of Argentinean round, with a seventh and sixth place to show for his efforts.

Not what he was looking for, of course, but an improvement on some recent races since his last podium at Laguna Seca race one. And with his team-mate Michael van der Mark having an unproductive weekend too by his recent podium standards, it seemed Argentina was also not the best track for the official R1 right now.

“It was a tough weekend and I struggled a bit,” said Lowes after race two. “I did not have the pace I thought I would have and I rode the best I could in both races. I was struggling to get the bike to hook up out of the corners and then because of that I am trying to gain that on the brakes and I was having some problems stopping the bike, so it just did not quite happen.

As a team we are like nearly there and Michael has ridden great at Portimao and in Magny Cours, but especially Misano and Portimao, he was really strong at those tracks. We just need to make a consistent step with the bike so we are genuinely there every weekend. This weekend the gap was too big to the Ducati and Kawasaki, it was quite clear to see, so we need to keep working hard.”

The circuit conditions at Villicum, with the circuit starting to break up in places, changed day-by-day and on a hot Sunday it was tricker than race one. “The track was more difficult today and after Friday I was concerned we might not even get to race, the way it was breaking up,” said Lowes. “It was getting worse and worse, but actually the layout has been great. The track conditions are the same for everyone and I don’t think it has affected me any more or any less than anyone else.”

Now, after a new adventure in Argentina, an old WorldSBK favourite at Losail, which constitutes the final round of the season.

Already?

“It has all come too quick for me,” said Lowes. “This year, we have some really good points for me and been quite a consistent yet but we have not made the step that I believe I need to make. Simple as that really.”

There are some aspects of the Losail layout that should help Lowes and VDM, according to Alex.

“In fourth, fifth and sixth gear my bike feels strong,” he stated. “I am not worried about that but we just need a bit of punch off the slower stuff, and there is not too much of that at Qatar.”

Lowes overall job in Qatar is to keep Villicum podium finisher and new Independent Riders’ champion Xavi Fores (Barni racing Ducati) behind him in the final championship points table. Lowes is currently sixth, but just five slim points in front of Fores making the Losail round as important as any he has run this year.