The Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team are ready to resume the fight in Thailand this weekend for Round 2 of the 2018 FIM Superbike World Championship at the Chang International Circuit in Buriram. Alex Lowesgot his season off to a solid start at the opening round of the season at Phillip Island by finishing in sixth and fifth respectively in the first two races of the year and is aiming for his first podium of the season in Thailand. His teammate Michael van der Mark recorded a double top-ten finish in Australia and is confident that he can improve on these results in the heat and humidity of Buriram.
After an incredibly dramatic opening round of the WorldSBK season in Australia – which saw tyre issues in Race 1 lead to a flag-to-flag Race 2 with compulsory pit stops for all riders – the Pata Yamaha team move on to the Chang International Circuit for Round 2, a track that both riders enjoy and have scored podiums at in the past.
The 4.554km Chang international Circuit is located in the Buriram Province in the East of Thailand, about 400km from Bangkok, and is a mix of fast flowing segments, combined with slower technical sections that reward smooth riding. Known for its incredibly passionate fans, this is the fourth consecutive year the track will host a WorldSBK round after opening in 2014 and making its debut on the calendar in 2015.
Alex Lowes said: “Thailand is a race that I really enjoy. The track has quite a simple layout in the first half and is more flowing with some technical sections in the second half of the lap. The most important thing in terms of setup is getting the bike stopped, so this is an area I’ll be focusing on in free practice. Overall, round one was solid but I want to be fighting for podiums every weekend, so this is my target for Buriram. I’m ready to go!”
Michael van der Mark stated: “I am really looking forward to Round 2 in Thailand. For sure, if you just look at my results, Phillip Island was disappointing but we took a lot of positives from the weekend and I am sure that we will be a lot stronger here in Thailand. I really like riding in Thailand and enjoy the Buriram circuit a lot. We have been working really hard in-between rounds to make sure we can hit the ground running on Friday morning and we will be giving it our all to secure the best possible results this weekend!”