Image: Russell Colvin.

Kawasaki BCperformance’s Bryan Staring always anticipated Winton’s fifth round to be one his most challenging stops of the 2019 Motul Pirelli Australian Superbike Championship (ASBK), the Western Australian thankful to exit the Victorian venue with minimal damage to his title campaign.

The former champion qualified in P8 before piecing together a 7-4 scorecard for sixth overall, losing just 11 points on leader Mike Jones (DesmoSport Ducati) in the standings, with the advantage now stretched to 19 as the series heads into a pair of strong and favoured circuits of Staring’s.

“This weekend was definitely about damage limitation with two finishes today,” Staring commented. “The first one was seventh, which wasn’t too bad, and race two with fourth position, we couldn’t have hoped to finish that high based on how things were looking beforehand.

“I’m very happy with that and I’m happy to come out of Winton with points on the board and without losing too many points in the championship. I’m very happy to get to the final two circuits of the year, which I’m very much looking forward to.”

The ASBK now heads to Phillip Island for the second time this season on 4-6 October, marking the penultimate stop on the calendar.