Jake Dixon has been one of the revelations of the year so far , taking two podiums and two pole positions from the first eleven races of the season for the Aspar GASGASG squad . Crucially , the Brit has shown speed at every track we ’ ve visited . He currently sits eighth in the championship . Lowes has had a trickier season so far . The Brit was hamstrung by a case of tendonitis in his left wrist over the winter , which limited his preseason testing . The speed has been there , however , with the 31-year old scoring third and fourth places in the first two outings of the year . But a run of misfortune led to six straight DNFs , stretching from the USA to Barcelona . In spite of that , Lowes has been competitive all season long , and a regular challenger for the leading positions . While a home podium has been elusive in his six previous Moto2™ outings in front of his home fans , he should be in the mix once again this weekend . Dixon signed off on the first part of 2022 with a brilliant third place at Assen . It was an outing which showcased the Englishman ’ s current strengths , as well as one or two areas in which he can improve . “ I struggle a bit at the beginning when there is a full fuel tank ,” he said in the Netherlands in June . “ When the bike gets lighter , I can prepare the exits of corners a lot more . The grip came good at the end . After a couple of tough races , this feels pretty good .” Yes , there were a handful of mistakes in the first eleven races , such as crashing out of the victory fight in Indonesia and Portugal . But Dixon has consistently shown speed and made a massive jump in performance . Reviewing the first part of the season ,
Dixon said , “ We ’ ve been good all year , and strong in qualifying . I ’ ve led a few races and crashed out as well . I ’ ve taken many positives , many learning experiences . The one thing I ’ ve really learnt is how to bounce back from disappointment . Each time I get knocked down I get back up again . This is the key to being successful . Going to Silverstone with a podium , I want to do the best job possible there , and try and send it for the fans .” Dixon finished 25th and 23rd in his two previous Moto2™ appearances in front of his home fans . Silverstone was also the scene of his first MotoGP™ outing last year when he deputised for the injured Franco Morbidelli . He came home a respectable 19th . Lowes , meanwhile , has never let his head drop despite some frustrating results . He put a tough run of races to an end in Germany , where he finished third in a competitive late fight with Pedro Acosta and Marcel Schrotter in what was his 150th grand prix . “ My confidence grew as the race went on ,” he said back in Germany . “ I thought , ‘ If I end up fourth or fifth today , that ’ s ok . But I saw I had more pace . Days when you can have a grand prix podium don ’ t come around all the time . I made a mistake but in the last races , that mistake would ’ ve been a crash . It seems every moment I ’ ve had lately , I ’ ve been down . I needed that race .” Lowes was agonisingly close to a home podium last year , when he came home fourth , just 0.3s back of third . He was in the running for a top two in 2016 only for a late collision with Johann Zarco to end his hopes . He will be keen to overcome some of the recent misfortune to climb the podium steps in front of the home crowd for the first time .
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