‘Someone needs to tell him it’s ok’
John McGuinness on how Sam Lowes needs to end races by crossing the finish line even if it’s not a win.
He’s one of the most experienced riders on the grid, so to go for an ever-decreasing gap over a wet patch with 22 laps to go is not what Sam Lowes should be doing. He knows better than that. He seems to have a chemical reaction in his brain that when anyone is getting away he has to respond. Why go for such a risky move with so many laps to go? You have to finish the races. It must be hectic though, riding that bike in Moto2, you’ve made a bad start there are people up the inside of you, the leaders are getting away – the curve balls are being thrown everywhere. Sometimes you just have to accept that it’s just not going to happen irrespective of your desire, the bike or the amount of training you’ve done.
There are a lot of people having their say from pundits to commentators but they’ve not been in that situation. It’s like Viñales crashing as he came out of the pits in qualifying. You think, how’s that possible? But he didn’t mean to do it! Everything about Sam from his personality, his demeanour, his training, his work ethic is spot on. He’s not a diva, which is why you can’t help but love the man and want him to do well. He ticks every box, but there is one box somewhere hidden that isn’t ticked – that last piece of the puzzle. Is it impatience, is it stress or does he just want to win at all costs? Is the battle more important than the war?
As Brits we’re on the bike with Sam, we want him to win so when he does make a mistake we all feel it because he’s carrying the nation on his back. We take it to heart. But it’s easy to point fingers when you’re sat on your sofa. He is capable of winning at any track in any conditions, but someone needs to tell him a podium is a great result – he doesn’t have to win every race, but he does need to stay on. When people make mistakes they are always put down to ‘it’s racing’, ‘onwards and upward’, ‘we’re focusing on the next race’ etc etc, it’s always positive. Maybe what he actually needs is someone to tell him he f***ed up.
‘Does he just want to win at all costs?’