Britain's Sam Lowes has revealed he and some of his mechanics were not paid during the 2018 Moto2 season and that contributed to his lack of results.

The Isle of Man resident had probably his worst year to date with only 49 points scored and not even the sniff of a podium.

"It's been a tough year for me, a tough year for the team. There were financial issues with myself and a lot of other people not being paid. The technical side of the team dropped over the year because of that," said Lowes.

"I don't like making excuses and I've managed to get something great for next year and I can show it. We had a few mechanical issues, I could have handled it better but that's on me. There were a lot of things going on."

Lowes has returned to the Gresini squad with which he had success in 2016 and says the new Triumph motor very much suits the way he rides - and it showed with his sharp-end pace at the two winter tests.

"From the first lap it felt great, the torque and the power of the engine really suits my style. I'm quite aggressive into the corner, slower maybe than some in the middle but use the power on the exit  

"The bike is fun to ride, you can work with it and find areas to improve, and I think that is important for next year."