WorldSBK, Bimota in-house duel: Bassani wants a rematch with Lowes

Constantly fighting for the top spots is incredibly difficult with such a dominant Ducati, but Bimota is working hard and its riders are battling for supremacy within the garage.

Ducati monopolized the podiums in all three Superbike races at Donington Park Circuit, and the second force was once again Bimota, also second in the manufacturers’ standings. The gap between the two Italian brands is wide, and it’s certainly never easy to race knowing that the top two or three places are practically already assigned every weekend.

After the Bulega-Lecuona-Montella trio, the rider who collected the most points in England was Alex Lowes: fourth in Race 1 and in the Superpole Race, fifth in Race 2. His teammate Axel Bassani finished the first race in ninth, but on Sunday he bounced back with a fifth and a fourth place. The result in Race 2 is significant, as he managed to beat his very own teammate.

The previous round at Misano Adriatico ended in great disappointment for Bassani, who crashed in the final race while he was on the verge of taking third place on the podium. At Donington Park he was eager to make amends, even though from free practice it was already clear that it would be unlikely to clinch one of the top three positions.

The Venetian rider was aware he would face difficulties in England, but said he was satisfied with having improved over the course of the weekend: "I knew it wouldn’t be easy, because Donington Park isn’t the best track for me. On Friday I was thirteenth; for Sunday we made a small change to the bike and it worked. I’m happy with how we wrapped up the weekend; a P4 is like a podium for us. We worked well and we need to keep giving our all without giving up."

Understandably, Bassani views fourth place as a podium, given there are Ducati riders he simply cannot battle with. And beating his teammate in Race 2 was very important. Since he started racing with Lowes, in 2024, he has always been beaten in the overall standings.

In the first year they were riding Kawasaki machinery—an absolute novelty for Axel after years on the Panigale V4 R—while Alex had far more experience, so seeing him ahead wasn’t a surprise. From 2025 there’s the Bimota project, with a KB998 Rimini that uses the engine and other parts from the Ninja ZX-10RR, but also a completely different frame. The Englishman finished sixth (218 points), while the Italian was tenth (140).

In the overall standings of Superbike 2026, the better placed is Lowes, fourth with 182 points, while Bassani is sixth with 153. In between is Sam Lowes (Ducati, Elf Marc VDS team) with 177, and just behind Axel is Lorenzo Baldassarri’s Panigale V4 R (Go Eleven) on 145. Keeping the two Ducati riders behind will be tough, but both Bimota riders are eager to prevail over one another. Their duel for supremacy in the garage will surely be interesting to follow. Axel would finally like to get the better of his experienced teammate. The next SBK round is at Magny-Cours, a track he likes and where he took two podiums with the Motocorsa Ducati in 2022. But we’ll have to wait until early September to see the championship back in action; now there’s a long (too long) break.

Follow us also on our official profile Instagram @Corsedimoto