Alex Lowes will race for MSS Colchester Kawasaki for the rest of this season after his impressive debut for the team at Thruxton. The 20-year-old, standing in for the injured Stuart Easton, took pole position before crashing out of second in race two and the team have confirmed he will see out the season with them.
Lowes started the season with the WFR Honda squad competing in the EVO class before losing his ride, and is now relishing the opportunity to contest the second half of the season in one of the strongest outfits in the pitlane.
“I'm so happy to be signed up by MSS for the season, what a turnaround from a few weeks ago. Obviously I'm here due to someone else's misfortune so I can't lose sight of that but I hope I can do the team proud from here on in. My aim has got to be to try and get in that top six and I feel privileged to be in one of the best teams in the paddock.”
The timeline of Stuart Easton's recovery is still uncertain but team owner Nick Morgan has confirmed that Lowes will remain with the team, even if Easton returns before the end of the season.
“We've signed Alex Lowes as Stuart's replacement whilst he recovers; if Stuart comes back before the season ends then we would have a three rider squad. Alex really is a talent and it would be madness to let him go. Alex's ride first time out at Thruxton was a dream start, right up until his crash anyway!”
The team has also signed up Andrew Pitt as Crew Chief for Gary Mason. Nick Morgan believes Pitt, who won the World Supersport Championship with Kawasaki in 2011 will be a valuable asset to the team.
“He is a mega experienced racer and will be a great point of contact for Gazza and an asset for the team as a whole. Gary will definitely be back with confidence at Knockhill, Thruxton was a 'bitty' round for him for sure and we solved the problem that he had in race one.”
In the weeks since Thruxton, Mason has been to visit Stuart Easton in hospital and is delighted to see that his teammate is on the mend.
“It's been a horrendous few weeks, probably the biggest low of my career being involved with the crash with Stuart. I'm so glad we got over to see him last week, he's going to need everyone behind him over the next few months. For me I want Knockhill to go where Croft left off. Thruxton was a non-event for me, race pace in race two was mega but we obviously started from pitlane. Having Pitty in my corner has given me loads of confidence but I need a huge points haul at Knockhill.”
