Elf Marc VDS’ Sam Lowes returned to action at a majestic but muggy Mugello on Friday afternoon, sitting eighth in the Moto2 times.

Scorching hot conditions dominated the opening day of practice at Italy’s spectacular Tuscan track today, as ambient temperature soared to a stifling 33℃ for FP2, making it incredibly complicated for riders to improve their lap time from the morning’s opening 40-minute session.

With thunderstorms predicted across the region tomorrow, Lowes’ FP1 1’52.550 lap sat him sixth in the morning standings before an afternoon of race prep rather than a push for another hot lap saw him conclude the day eighth overall and firmly inside the promotion zone for Saturday’s qualifying.

“Today was positive in general but finishing in eighth position shows we have some margin to improve,” Lowes said on Friday afternoon. “I felt a lot better in FP2 in terms of my own riding and the only reason the times were quite slow is because the conditions were so hot.

“In FP1 I found it quite difficult to manage the bike. I felt stiff and had some pain in the neck from the Le Mans crash but I felt a lot better this afternoon and that’s good news.

“We need to work on the balance of the bike and I’m struggling a little with front feeling. I changed to the new tyre quite early in the session to get some information on tyre endurance and to understand my rhythm. I’m happy with my pace for the race and I’m sure when I need to push for a fast lap time, I can make another step.”