For fans unable to make it to The Bend this weekend (and there’s still time, tickets and championships-to-be-decided reasons to go!), we have options…
ASBK fans from all over the world can enjoy all the live racing action from the comfort of their own home this weekend from the mi-bike Motorcycle Insurance Australian Superbike Championship, presented by Motul Grand Finale at The Bend Motorsport Park.
ASBK TV official Free-to-Air broadcast partner SBS have stepped up to provide ASBK fans the opportunity to catch the livestream action from Saturday via their exclusive broadcast platform SBS On-Demand.
SBS has long been the home of great motorsport and in 2021 they have again provided ASBK race fans with both Live Free-to-Air coverage and the opportunity to catch all the action via SBS On-Demand after each round. At no cost to join, ASBK fans simply need to jump on and subscribe to SBS On-Demand.
The ASBK Championship comes to massive conclusion on Sunday and ASBK TV have all the angles covered with Free-to-Air coverage on SBS HD, SBS On-Demand or via Fox Sports Australia from 12.30pm – 3.30pm (Australian Central Daylight Times).
New Zealand race fans can catch the action on Sky Sport NZ who continue to broadcast every round of ASBK to fans across the ditch.
From the comfort of home, or on mobile devices, SBS will provide free to air coverage, and Fox Sports Australia and Sky Sport NZ will ensure pay TV viewers won’t miss a minute of the action.
Live race coverage will include the Alpinestars Superbike, Motorsports TV Supersport, Dunlop Supersport 300, Yamaha Finance R3 Cup and the bLU cRU Oceania Junior Cup, plus race fans will get no shortage of behind the scenes features.
Fans across the nation and around the world can also go to www.asbk.com.au and watch up to the live ASBK TV Live Stream on Sunday.
Exclusive Live telecast of the Grand Finale of the mi-bike Motorcycle Insurance Australian Superbike Championship, presented by Motul, can be seen:
Saturday 4th December ASBK Livestream Telecast 10.30am – 5.00pm (ACDT = SA time)
Exclusive telecast on SBS On-Demand
Sunday 5th December ASBK Live TV Telecast 12.30pm – 3.30pm (ACDT = SA time)
SBS HD
Fox Sports Australia
Sky Sport NZ
SBS On-Demand
Sunday 5th December ASBK Livestream Telecast 9.30am – 4.00pm (ACDT = SA time)
Check your local guides for times and more information.
Keep up to date with the latest news on the mi-bike Motorcycle Insurance Australian Superbike Championship, presented by Motul via www.asbk.com.au and following ASBK on Facebook and Instagram.
The opening bout of the triple-header ASBK Superbike weekend took place on Saturday afternoon and resulted in a come from behind win for BCperformance Kawasaki’s Bryan Staring. It also ended with a no-points score for Wayne Maxwell after a collision with Daniel Falzon.
2019 ASBK Round Three – The Bend Race Two Reports ASBK Superbike Race Two
Maxwell shrugged that disappointment off when the lights went out just after 1030 on Sunday morning for the second of three 10-lap ASBK Superbike races at The Bend this weekend.
2019 ASBK Round Three – The Bend Race Two Reports ASBK Superbike Race Two
The #47 Suzuki scored the holeshot ahead of championship leader Cru Halliday, that pair immediately started to gap the field over the course of the opening lap.
2019 ASBK Round Three – The Bend Race Two Reports ASBK Superbike Race Two
Saturday’s victor Bryan Staring threaded his way past Josh Waters, Daniel Falzon and Alex Phillis to move up to third position by the end of lap one. At the end of that opening lap Maxwell led Halliday by half-a-second, while Staring was a further 1.3-seconds behind in third place, and having to stave off the forward thrusts of Falzon.
ASBK Superbike Race Two – The Bend 2019 – Image by Rob Mott
Halliday then started to close on Maxwell and as they started lap three Staring lost position to Falzon after getting into turn one a little too hot, and sideways, in his quest to try and keep Falzon, Waters, Phillis, Herfoss and Mike Jones behind him. That was a six-strong freight train battling hard for track position.
2019 ASBK Round Three – The Bend Race Two Reports ASBK Superbike Race Two Maxwell leads Halliday – Image by TBG
Mark Chiodo put in a fantastic performance yesterday, leading much of the opening race before finishing fourth, the young Victorian was trying to stay in touch with that leading pack this morning, running in ninth position with seven laps to go.
ASBK Superbike Race Two – The Bend 2019 – Image by Rob Mott
Falzon put in a new fastest lap of the race to start reeling Halliday and Maxwell in, Staring was also coming along for the ride. The Dunlop runner knowing that he may have an edge for grip in the closing laps.
On the following lap Falzon must have made some small error as he lost a few bike lengths on Staring. The Kawasaki man then quickly pulled away and in no time was on the back of Halliday’s YZF-R1M. Cru must have sensed him there, looking around as they went down the main straight, only for Staring to pass him on the opposite side! A couple of corners later Staring put a great move on Maxwell to take the race lead, from there he immediately started to pull away, with apparent ease.
ASBK Superbike Race Two – The Bend 2019 – Image by Rob Mott
It then became a race for second place, and what a race it was becoming. Mike Jones had joined the party, passing Falzon and then Halliday to move up to third place. Jones’ next target was the #47 Suzuki of Wayne Maxwell. All riders were suffering from tyre wear issues now, some a little worse than others, but all those Pirelli runners were suffering to some degree.
ASBK Superbike Race Two – The Bend 2019 – Image by Rob Mott
Mike Jones looked to be suffering less than the others though as he slipped the DesmoSport Ducati past Wayne Maxwell for second place with four laps to run.
Bryan Staring was now more than three-seconds ahead, the Dunlop rider running a different race here today. At most tracks the Pirelli rubber used in ASBK has the edge, but here at The Bend it is clear that Dunlop has the advantage.
With three laps to run Lachlan Epis went down with Ted Collins. Glenn Allerton was already out of the running after breaking his wrist yesterday after a clash with Alex Phillis, not a great weekend for the NextGen BMW squad. Two wrecked bikes from two accidents, neither of which was really the fault of their riders.
At the last lap board Staring had a seven-second lead over Mike Jones, who in turn had just under half-a-second on Wayne Maxwell. That was where the action was on the final lap, Maxwell all over the back of Jones through the opening series of bends but the Queenslander responded, both riders having to stand the bikes up on the fat part of the tyre in their quest for drive but it was the Ducati man that managed his Pirelli best to take second place.
Bryan Staring – Image by Rob Mott
Staring though untouchable, winning the race by eight-seconds.
Bryan Staring returning to Parc Ferme – Image by Rob Mott
Championship leader Cru Halliday took fourth place ahead of Josh Waters.
Troy Herfoss got the better of Daniel Falzon on the final lap to take sixth place.
Arthur Sissis a highly creditable eighth place ahead of Glenn Scott while Alex Phillis managed to push Mark Chiodo outside the top ten on the final lap.
Cru Halliday retains the championship lead while Bryan Staring moves up to second place, six-points adrift of Halliday, and one-point ahead of Jones.
Defending champion Troy Herfoss took 15-points for that sixth place and sits in fourth place in the championship, 16-points behind series leader Halliday.
A tale of two tyres…
Staring’s rear Dunlop on left – Jones’ Pirelli on right
Bryan Staring’s Dunlop on the left, the Pirelli on Mike Jones’ DesmoSport Ducati on the right – Image by THBCperformance Team Manager Kelvin Reilly congratulates Bryan Staring – Image by Rob Mott
ASBK Superbike Race Two Results
Bryan Staring – Kawasaki
Mike Jones – Ducati +7.908
Wayne Maxwell – Suzuki +8.111
Cru Halliday – Yamaha +10.233
Josh Waters – Suzuki +11.527
Troy Herfoss – Honda +15.235
Daniel Falzon – Yamaha +15.569
Arthur Sissis – Suzuki +16.174
Glenn Scott – Kawasaki +23.097
Alex Phillis – Suzuki +25.014
Mark Chiodo – Honda +25.158
Matt Walters – Kawasaki +28.867
Sloan Frost – Suzuki +33.654
Damon Rees – Honda +38.055
Brendan McIntyre – Suzuki +46.625
Evan Byles – Kawasaki +58.122
David Barker – Kawasaki +62.002
Phil Czaj – Aprilia +64.672
Matthew Tooley – Yamaha +75.173
Paul Van der Heiden – BMW +78.186
ASBK Superbike Race Two Results Bryan Staring – Kawasaki Mike Jones – Ducati +7.908 Wayne Maxwell – Suzuki +8.111 Image by TBG
ASBK Superbike Championship Standings
Cru Halliday 131
Bryan Staring 125
Mike Jones 124
Troy Herfoss 115
Josh Waters 111
Daniel Falzon 95
Wayne Maxwell 93
Matt Walters 78
Glenn Scott 77
Aiden Wagner 71
Mark Chiodo 67
Glenn Allerton 56
Arthur Sissis 55
Alex Phillis 54
Damon Rees 49
ASBK Superbike Race Two Results Bryan Staring – Kawasaki Mike Jones – Ducati +7.908 Wayne Maxwell – Suzuki +8.111 Image by Rob Mott
Australian Supersport Race Two
2019 ASBK – Round Three – The Bend Supersport Race Two Image by Rob Mott
Reid Battye scored the holeshot but Nic Liminton squeezed past him a couple of turns into the eight-lap race. Toparis had not got a great start but steadily worked his way past Oli Bayliss and Aidan Hayes to move up to third place by halfway around the opening lap.
2019 ASBK – Round Three – The Bend Supersport Race Two Image by Rob Mott
Oli Bayliss was looking much more composed this morning, with none of the mistakes he made early in the opening ASBK Supersport race on Saturday afternoon. He was engaged in a strong tussle over fourth place throughout the opening lap with Broc Pearson and Aidan Hayes.
2019 ASBK – Round Three – The Bend Supersport Race Two Image by Rob Mott
Up front it was Nic Liminton being stalked by Tom Toparis, as Reid Battye struggled to keep that pair in sight. Pearson though put in a great second lap to break away from Bayliss and Hayes. Pearson then closed and passed Reid Battye, but Pearson then put together a poor lap that was a second slower than his previous, allowing the leading duo to really break away.
2019 ASBK – Round Three – The Bend Supersport Race Two Image by Rob Mott Broc Pearson leads Reid Battye
Aidan Hayes was tussling over fifth position with Oli Bayliss but Hayes went down with five laps to run. Bayliss had almost four-seconds on Luke Mitchell and was looking safe in that fifth place.
Nic Liminton went wide on the next lap and lost drive as his rear skidded across the dirt which allowed Tom Toparis to make an easy pass and quickly pull away from the young South Australian.
2019 ASBK – Round Three – The Bend Supersport Race Two Image by Rob Mott
Pearson had caught and passed Battye quite easily early in the race, where he was lapping more than a second faster than the Suzuki man. Immediately around that stage of the race though Pearson’s rear tyre went off badly and Battye was able to sneak back past and pull away from Pearson in the later laps.
The battle for sixth place was being waged forcefully between Dallas Skeer, Luke Mitchell, Zac Johnson and young Kiwi starlet Avalon Biddle was now catching fifth placed Oli Bayliss as the race wore on. As they got the last lap board Dallas Skeer got the better of Bayliss to take that fifth position, Bayliss was then shuffled down to ninth place as the whole group gazumped him, presumably his tyres toasted.
2019 ASBK – Round Three – The Bend Supersport Race Two victor Tom Toparis Image by Rob Mott
Tom Toparis went on to win by over six-seconds. Liminton was on a softer rear tyre that had allowed him to be strong early on but he paid the price as the laps progressed.
2019 ASBK – Round Three – The Bend Supersport Race Two second placed finisher Nic Liminton Image by Rob Mott
Reid Battye worked hard for that third position while Broc Pearson came home in fourth place. Dallas Skeer made it two Suzuki GSX-R600s in what is an otherwise Yamaha dominated Australian Supersport Championship.
2019 ASBK – Round Three – The Bend Supersport Race Two – Third placed Reid Battye interviewed in Parc Ferme Image by Rob Mott
Tom Toparis leads the series by 46-points over Liminton with Pearson a further eight-points adrift in third.
2019 ASBK – Round Three – The Bend Supersport Race Two Image by Rob Mott
Australian Supersport Race Two Results
Tom Toparis – Yamaha
Nic Liminton – Yamaha +6.144
Reid Battye – Suzuki +6.695
Broc Pearson – Yamaha +7.776
Dallas Skeer – Suzuki +15.150
Luke Mitchell – Yamaha +15.528
Avalon Biddle – Yamaha +15.703
Zac Johnson – Yamaha +16.761
Oli Bayliss – Yamaha +16.884
Andrew Edser – Kawasaki +23.856
Chris Quinn – Yamaha +24.341
Rhys Belling – Yamaha +26.111
Timothy Donnon – Suzuki +31.651
Jack Passfield – Yamaha +31.888
Australian Supersport Race Two Results Tom Toparis – Yamaha Nic Liminton – Yamaha +6.144 Reid Battye – Suzuki +6.695 Image by Rob Mott
ASBK SSP600 Championship Standings
Tom Toparis 178
Nic Liminton 132
Broc Pearson 124
Oli Bayliss 113
Reid Battye 109
Aidan Hayes 90
Dallas Skeer 73
Rhys Belling 63
Ty Lynch 58
Jack Passfield 53
Luke Mitchell 52
John Quinn 50
Callum Spriggs 49
Chris Quinn 46
Andrew Edser 39
Australian Supersport 300 Race Two
2019 ASBK – Round Three – The Bend Supersport 300 Race Two Image by Rob Mott
Race one dominator Olly Simpson again got a fantastic start this morning as Senna Agius nipped at his hees along with Seth Crump.
2019 ASBK – Round Three – The Bend Supersport 300 Race Two – Senna Agius leads Image by Rob Mott
Simpson then looked to perhaps miss a gear or suffer some sort of minor hiccup, Agius managing to squeeze his way through to the lead shortly thereafter.
2019 ASBK – Round Three – The Bend Supersport 300 Race Two – Olly Simpson leads Seth Crump Image by Rob Mott
Simpson got the lead back and Crump added further insult by demoting Agius to third, but still ahead of championship leader Max Stauffer.
Crump hit the front early on the second lap as Agius pushed Simpson back to third. The South Australian was blooded in the Red Bull Rookies a few years ago though and knows how to put the elbows out, he did exactly that as he pushed past Agius.
2019 ASBK – Round Three – The Bend Supersport 300 Race Two – Seth Crump and Senna Agius doing battle Image by Rob Mott
Seth Crump then came under attack next up as Simpson forced his way through to the lead.
The 300 Supersport regulars though came back at him just as hard, a group of eight riders giving no quarter.
With four laps to run it was Agius, Crump, Simpson, Baker, Khouri, Ford, Stauffer and Levy all running nose-to-tail or side-by-side, depending on where they were on the circuit.
On the next lap though the tussle between Simpson and Agius went next level. Simpson took the inside line into a curve and chose to give no room to his sparring partner, forcing him off on to the grass. Luckily that rider did manage to recover and rejoin the circuit without major incident.
Two laps to go and Hunter Ford had just set a new lap record, 2m10.034, to hit the front for the first time. A couple of corners later Crump, Khouri and Ford went three-wide into a closing radius left-hander and, somehow, all came out the other side.
At the last lap board it was Simpson and Ford side-by-side, smashing elbows at the stripe hard enough to make each others machine violently wriggle. It was Seth Crump though that took the early lead on that final lap, but he was then quickly shuffled by Agius and Simpson, as they swapped positions.
Simpson then went back in front and it was elbows out again as Agius tried to make a move. Hunter Ford then went up the inside of Agius a couple of corners before the end. Simpson was a little wide at the final turn which allowed Hunter Ford to almost get him on the line, but Simpson held on by nine-thousandths of a second. Ford second, Agius third.
Australian Supersport 300 Race Two Results Olly Simpson – Yamaha Hunter Ford – Yamaha +.009 Senna Agius – 400 Kawasaki +0.244 TBG Image
Only a second covered the top-eight and rounding out that group was championship leader Max Stauffer.
I have to say that was a new level of aggression that we had not yet seen before in Australian 300 Supersport. It will be interesting to see if officials take any steps to try and rein them in, as it certainly doesn’t get more aggressive and ruthless than that without an invisible borderline being crossed. In my judgement, that line was not crossed today, but gee it did go oh so close…Crucially though, they were all left standing, somehow.
2019 ASBK Round Three – The Bend Saturday Report One
Daniel Falzon showed his one-lap pace that set the Friday benchmark was no one-lap wonder when he went marginally quicker this morning in warm-up, a 1m52.648. Clearly the YRT rider is now more comfortable with his YZF-R1M, and is enjoying The Bend circuit, along with the home support from the local South Australian crowd.
Daniel Falzon – Image by Rob Mott
Under a new qualifying format for ASBK this season the Friday afternoon session is dubbed ‘Timed Practice’, and it is the times from this session that decided the nine riders that automatically qualified for the Q2 session just before midday on Saturday. The riders from tenth back in the Timed Practice session having to fight it out in a Q1 session, with the top three then being promoted into Q2, making for a final 12-rider tussle over the first four rows of the grid.
300 Supersport
Prior to the Superbikes heading out for their qualifying sessions, the massive YMI Supersport 300 field took to the track to battle for their grid positions ahead of their opening stanza which is scheduled to take place over seven-laps at 1510 this afternoon.
Olly Simpson again topped proceedings amongst the 300 Supersport competitors but the big surprise was the pace of Brandon Demmery who slotted himself up to second place and very nearly stole pole from Simpson late in the session while Hunter Ford rounds out the front row after pushing Senna Agius down to the second row.
Seth Crump had clearly woke up with a new spring in his throttle tube this morning as he found a massive amount of time compared to yesterday, the KTM rider qualifying fifth while Locky Taylor also went much quicker today and rounds out the second row.
600 Supersport
The Supersport 600 grid will not be decided until later this afternoon though, with their Q2 session scheduled for 1435 this afternoon. Tom Toparis is on provisional pole from his stunning lap yesterday afternoon, a 1m55.964, almost a full-second quicker than second placed Broc Pearson.
Superbike Q1
It was again somewhat of a tyre preservation session when Superbike qualifying got underway, with most riders just going out for one quick lap, then spending the remaining of the 15-minute session in the pits. Arthur Sissis put in a 1m53.789 early on which proved good enough to secure his place in the Q2 session while Matt Walters left things a little bit later to secure his slot through to Q2, as did Alex Phillis. Ted Collins though then rejoined the track and managed to knock Phillis out of third spot and steal back his promotion through to the Q2 session.
Superbike Q2
Mike Jones was very quick out of the blocks to lay down a 1m52.665 early benchmark in Q2, he backed that straight up with a 1m52.392. Halfway through the 15-minute session the only other rider in the 1m52s was Wayne Maxwell, on a 1m52.958.
Mark Chiodo then went third quickest, a 1m53.014 a big improvement for the young Victorian.
Daniel Falzon then got wound up with five minutes remaining and lit up the timing screens straight away, -0.172 at first split and he doubled that gap through all the remaining splits to record the first ever 1m51s lap of The Bend International Circuit, a stunning 1m51.592s. His competitors had four-minutes to come up with an answer to the South Australian’s speed.
His team-mate was the first to try and return serve, Cru Halliday dropping in a 1m52.243 and then improved his marker down to 1m51.953.
With two-minutes remaining Wayne Maxwell was on a hot one, under at the first split, and the third split but the final turns just lost him a fraction and he just missed out on besting Falzon, a 1m51.675s though declaring his speed ahead of the three 10-lap races. He was going quicker again on the next lap, under at the first two splits but again lost time on Falzon through the final sequence of curves and Falzon’s pole looked safe…
Mike Jones though then went out again and was a full half-a-second in front at the third split, he carried that speed to the line to set a new outright benchmark of 1m51.220!
Thus Falzon was demoted to second while Wayne Maxwell rounds out the front row.
Wayne Maxwell will start from the front row – Image by Rob Mott
Cru Halliday was the only other rider in the 1m51s and heads row two ahead of Josh Waters and Bryan Staring.
Mark Chiodo heads the third row on the back of an impressive performance today to qualify in front of Glenn Allerton and Troy Herfoss. The defending champion to start from ninth on the grid.
Matt Walters rounded out the top ten ahead of Arthur Sissis and Ted Collins.
For reference, the race lap record set on a green track here last April was a 1m52.939 recorded by Herfoss, but the pole record and circuit best lap last year went to Wayne Maxwell with a 1m52.175. Thus Jones’ new benchmark almost a full-second quicker than what we saw here last year.
The opening 10-lap ASBK Superbike race is scheduled to take place at 1540 this afternoon, with the remaining two races in this triple-header round slated for 1020 and 1505 on Sunday.
Few competitors braved the wet track this morning at The Bend. The rain had fell in the early hours but despite a stiff breeze, the track seemed to be holding on to the water, and a dry line was stubbornly refusing to appear around the 18-turn, 4.945-kilometre ‘International Circuit’ layout.
Only four ASBK Superbike competitors braved the wet circuit in the FP2 session this morning which saw Lachlan Epis enjoy seeing his name at the top of an Australian Superbike time-sheet for the first time.
Lachlan Epis topped the wet morning session that saw only four Superbike competitors brave the track – Image Rob Mott
It was not until around 10am that things really started to improve but even an hour later when the Asia Superbike 1000 Championship riders took to the track for their 40-minute FP3 session conditions were still far from perfect.
The important session for ASBK Superbike competitors did not take place until after 1330 and by that time the track was in good shape but the wind was still causing riders plenty of problems.
Under a new qualifying format for ASBK this season the Friday afternoon session is dubbed ‘Timed Practice’, and it is the times from this session that decide the nine riders that automatically qualify for the Q2 session just before midday on Saturday. The riders from tenth back in the Timed Practice session fight it out in a Q1 session, with the top three then being promoted into Q2, making for a 12-rider tussle over the first four rows of the grid.
The opening 10-lap ASBK Superbike race is then scheduled to take place at 1540 on Saturday afternoon with the remaining two races in this triple-header round slated for 1020 and 1505 on Sunday.
Superbike competitors did get an hour long session late on Thursday afternoon (Link) that saw Josh Waters top proceedings ahead of Bryan Staring and Wayne Maxwell. To be honest, the Thursday session is probably a better gauge of potential performance come the races than today’s chronos.
Josh Waters was quickest at The Bend on Thursday – TBG Image
With Staring pulling double duty across both ASBK Superbike, and also a stand-in role for Team Kawasaki Thailand in the Asian Road Racing Championships Superbike class, the extra track time to work on tyre longevity will be invaluable for the Western Australian. Staring was second to Broc Parkes in the FP3 session for the ARRC Superbikes.
Bryan Staring on the Thailand Kawasaki Asian Road Racing Superbike – Image Rob Mott
Local favourite and YRT Superbike rider Daniel Falzon was the early pace-setter when ASBK Superbike Timed Practice got underway at 1340 with the 25-year-old setting a 1m52.769 on his first flying lap before then returning to the pits, where he remained for the rest of the session.
The 30-minute session was approaching its halfway mark before Troy Herfoss, Glenn Allerton and Wayne Maxwell bothered turning a wheel. They circulated slowly on their exit lap as they looked for a good track position that would give them clear air for a time attack lap that would secure them an automatic entry in to Saturday’s Q2 session.
Wayne Maxwell – Image by Rob Mott
Herfoss went fourth quickest on his second flying lap but was bettered by Wayne Maxwell who moved up to P3 with ten-minutes left in the session.
Mike Jones – Image by Rob Mott
Mike Jones was in P2 after recording a 1m52.943 on his first flying lap early in the session, similarly Bryan Staring had put a quick one in early and was P3 before being relegated to P4 by Maxwell. Josh Waters then pushed Herfoss back to P6 while championship leader Cru Halliday was P7 ahead of Mark Chiodo while Glenn Allerton rounded out the top nine. With five-minutes remaining in the session that entire top ten was sat in pit-lane…
Cru Halliday, Mark Chiodo and Glenn Allerton did go out again to try and better their times but failed to make any progress thus that is how it stands until qualifying gets underway tomorrow just before midday. I have to say it was a far from scintillating day for the Aussie Superbike category today but that should turn around come qualifying tomorrow and when the action starts proper with the opening 10-lap bout at 1540 Saturday afternoon.
Josh Waters topped a 60-minute free practice session late this afternoon at South Australia’s The Bend Motorsport Park as riders prepare for this weekend’s triple header of 10-lap Australian Superbike races on the 18-turn, 4.945-kilometre ‘International Circuit’ layout.
A 1m52.695 was the opening benchmark set by Waters today on the Ecstar Suzuki GSX-R1000R on what could almost be called his new ‘home’ track. Mildura is still over 300-kilometres away from Tailem Bend but this is about as close as it gets to home for the 32-year-old.
Bryan Staring was second best today, two-tenths behind Waters on what is the longest circuit that Australian Superbike visits. Staring is pulling double duty this weekend as he is also racing for Team Kawasaki Thailand in the Asian Road Racing Championships Superbike class. The ARRC Superbikes will race two 12-lap races this weekend, one on Saturday and the other on Sunday, which makes for a busy schedule for the West Australian this weekend.
Wayne Maxwell was third quickest ahead of local favourite Daniel Falzon and DesmoSport Ducati’s Mike Jones.
Troy Herfoss turned few laps today and was almost two-seconds off the P1 pace of Waters and ranked sixth on the timesheets. No doubt that is not indicative of the pace we can expert from the defending champion this weekend as the Penrite Honda squad spent time today experimenting with different fork settings, and also had their schedule interrupted with a minor electronics issue.
Glenn Allerton was seventh ahead of championship leader Cru Halliday and local star Arthur Sissis while Matt Walters rounded out the top ten ahead of Mark Chiodo and Alex Phillis.
For reference the race lap record set on a green track here last April was a 1m52.939 set by Herfoss, but the pole record and circuit best lap went to Wayne Maxwell with a 1m51.275.
Nic Liminton at The Bend today – TBG Image
Nic Liminton topped proceedings in the Supersport category ahead of Broc Pearson, Tom Toparis and Oli Bayliss.
It was an Aussie 1-2 in Asia Superbike 1000 Championship practice with Broc Parkes besting Bryan Staring by a few thousandths of a second, 1m53.855 versus 1m53.859. Honda’s Zaqhwan Zadi was third quickest ahead of Yuki Ito.
Thirty-three days between events doesn’t seem such a long time, but thankfully we are now on the verge of the third round of the ASBK at The Bend Motorsport Park (SA) this weekend. It’s going to be a tremendous event – dubbed the “International MotoFest” – as we hook up with the Asian Road Racing Championship (ARRC) for the second year at the new venue.
The Bend in 2018
From a spectator perspective it is an excellent venue to see the majority of the track, as well as the world class facilities of a GP standard international circuit. As an added attraction to local race fans a number of Australian riders will be competing in the new Asian Road Racing Championships Superbike class, led by Broc Parkes.
The “new” venue is an unknown quantity this weekend, albeit a bit better than the first visit. A little over a year ago, the ASBK was the first major motorsport competition to take advantage of the facility. Back then the track was green and the infrastructure was about 90 per cent completed, the rest of the venue was brand new and there had been a reported $1 million of grass seed planted – as being on the edge of a desert, the surrounds tend to be dusty and bone dry.
ARRC returns alongside the ASBK to The Bend Motorsport Park in 2019
Besides making it aesthetically more impressive, it serves the purpose of keeping the dust down – somewhat – from the winds that blow off the desert. Hopefully these pristine autumn conditions will continue for the coming weekend with next to no wind, but the forecast contradicts what we wish for with very cool morning temperatures and gusty winds of up to 30 km/h predicted for the weekend…
Tory Herfoss holds the lap record on the championship winning Penrite Honda, but with only three ASBK races held here before, no doubt this will be blown away this weekend, with the dust adding another element to the grip problems that many are talking about.
Herfoss leading Falzon and Maxwell from Bayliss at The Bend in 2018
The recent test had the dynamic Team Ecstar Suzuki duo of Wayne Maxwell and Josh Waters ascend to the top of the time sheets. However as far as working out a favourite for this weekend, that time sheet will be about as meaningful as reading the TAB form guide the day after a hay burner race meeting.
Herfoss dominated Wakefield
At the previous round of the Motul Pirelli Australian Superbike Championships at Wakefield Park, in March, there were surprises, disappointments, season ending incidents, successes and lap records lowered. However the one constant that stood head and shoulders above all the proceedings was the continued dominance of the “Guvna of Goulburn”, Troy Herfoss on the Penrite Honda.
Troy Herfoss claimed the Wakefield win – Image by TBG
Simply irrepressible.
For the fourth year in a row, the defending Australian Superbike Champion ruled the roost on race day as he smacked all opposition to take the double win in the Kawasaki Australian Superbike Championship races, and lowering his own lap record in the closing laps of the opening leg.
The only thing that he didn’t achieve was extending his run of three consecutive pole positions. That honour (and the $500 Elite Roads Pole award), went to re-born Superbike rider, Cru Halliday. He claimed the top spot with the fastest ever lap by a motorcycle at the circuit.
Troy Herfoss in the lead – Image by Rob Mott
With a brace of impressive second place finishes Halliday confirmed he is a true dark horse for the title after his consistency across the opening two rounds.
Halliday leads the championship from Herfoss as we head to South Australia, with the new draftee into the DesmoSport Ducati Team, Mike Jones, a further eight-points adrift in third.
Aiden Wagner out with injury
Before the weekend at Wakefield Park really got into its stride, it lost a massive amount of gloss and oomph that had had the paddock salivating after the controversial opening round at Phillip Island in February.
A repeat action of Aiden Wagner’s air-to-ground strafing and bombing attack aboard the Landbridge Racing Yamaha R1 failed to eventuate when the pilot crashed in the opening practice session and severely damaged his starboard wing.
Injured Aiden Wagner tried to hold it together for the opening Superbike race at Wakefield – Image by Rob Mott
Wagner valiantly gritted his teeth and battled through with a severely damaged shoulder that kept popping out of its socket while he was riding the bike. It even popped out at night while he was sleeping.
It’s not the first time he has had trouble. He has had three shoulder reconstructions and this latest incident will ensure it is operation number four and he will, more than likely, be out for the season. It is a body blow to the intrigue of the title as he had brought an exciting element of mongrel to the championship. And in a lot of people’s eyes the ASBK needs a bit of that mongrel.
Aiden Wagner’s big off – TBG Image
It was saddening to see the Queenslander, sitting dejected during Sunday’s lunchtime Pit Lane Walk, trying to put on a brave face as he autographed his posters for the many fans in attendance. Luckily he is left-handed. You have to shake your head in bewilderment and respect for what many motorcycle racers put themselves through for their chosen sport.
Troy Herfoss – Penrite Honda Racing
While it was a disappointment to see the slow and painful, demise of Wagner’s season, it was refreshing to see “The Guvna” walking around the Goulburn paddock, a spring in his step that was definitely missing at Phillip Island, a few weeks previously where he had an absolutely wretched week splitting his time between WSBK and ASBK fields.
Troy Herfoss had a renewed spring in his step after Wakefield, after a less than stellar start to the season – Image by TBG
The less that is said about the WSBK challenge the better, and in the domestic races he finished with 9-6-7 results to be in sixth place in the championship coming into Wakefield.
The spring in his step and the confidence in his voice became more apparent as the weekend went on. Back on his home track was the best medicine to get his title defence heading upwards. Being in front of a very healthy bunch of locals could only but lift him to another level as he attempts to be the first rider since Jamie Stauffer, in 2006-07, to successfully defend his title.
Anyone who discounts that he cannot do the double better have a dozen eggs at the final round at Eastern Creek in early November.
There was no denying Herfoss. He again demonstrated his affinity for tight, twisty and challenging tracks. He may have qualified third fastest beside Halliday and Wayne Maxwell (who has quickly acquainted himself with the Team Suzuki Ecstar GSX-R1000R), but he was still on the all-important front row.
Herfoss and Halliday dueling it out at Wakefield – Image by Rob Mott
Herfoss has a secret groove around the tight, twisty and at times bumpy 2.2 km layout. More akin to a “Scalextric” groove. If he gets in front, put down the glasses. He also has a unique setup by holding one gear from turn two all the way to the final turn, that allows him to keep the bike settled and really attack the laps on what he calls a real rider’s track.
It’s not only Wakefield’s tightness that Herfoss excels in. Take last year for instance. Herfoss reigned supreme at Morgan Park to take the double (to follow up on from his win in the second race at the previous round at Hidden Valley in Northern Territory), and then wrapped up the title in 2018 with a win in the first race at Winton a few weeks later to record four wins in a row on his way to a second title in three years.
But the weekend wasn’t all about the dominance of Herfoss and the demise of Wagner’s title assault. There were plenty of subplots to keep the cauldron bubbling away, with a two-pronged attack coming to the fore.
Troy Herfoss took the overall round win from Wayne Maxwell and Daniel Falzon at The Bend in 2018
After a dominant display at Wakefield last year, Herfoss went on to win the round taking out two of the three races at The Bend as well as the lap record. He was never headed in the championship lead for the remainder of the year.
While Herfoss may have the historical consistency going into the third round, the man leading the title and undoubtedly supremely determined to keep it will be Cru Halliday on the Yamaha Racing Team R1M. As I have stated a few times this year, he is my true dark horse for the title and I reckon this weekend the track may well play into his hands.
Cru Halliday – Yamaha Racing Team
Last year, Halliday continued his domination of the Supersport field at The Bend and this experience should hold him in good stead. While he changed his riding style last year for the Supersport bike, this in turn has changed his language on the Superbike. His lines are a little different, as he incorporates a bit of what he learned being back on the Supersport machine. With 18 corners on the undulating surface of The Bend, he may just have the ingredients to even increase his title lead.
Halliday scored the $500 cheque from Elite Roads for taking pole position at Wakefield
Halliday has won Superbike races before – as a factory rider and as a privateer (2017). Now back on a fully supported ride in the premier class he has brought some of that refinement with him and is carrying more corner speed than the majority of the field.
You only have to go out trackside to do some corner split times to see that. Halliday is riding with the confidence that comes with winning and with such a dominant performance in last year’s Supersport title, he has brought his A-game to the premier class.
Mike Jones – DesmoSport Ducati
Mike Jones is proving again that he has what it takes. In recent years he has been an occasional visitor to the ASBK, as he predominantly chased his dreams to compete overseas and get back to where he was; racing in MotoGP and other top level competition in Europe.
This year, the opportunities were evaporating and he borrowed a bike off Matt Harding to compete in the opening round. It garnered impressive results including a new lap record – the first ASBK rider to dip into a 1:31 lap at Phillip Island.
Mike Jones kicked off the season on the Mike Harding Kawasaki- Image by Rob Mott
Every cloud has a silver lining and this is true for the Troy Bayliss/Ben Henry owned team. Bayliss’ championship aspirations evaporated in the second race of the year at Phillip Island when he suffered his second huge crash of the weekend, damaging the ring finger on his right hand so badly that it required surgery.
It was another blow to the championship as Troy has his own fair share of mongrel, and he appeared to be in the frame of mind and fitness to really take it to his younger rivals. Hopefully, he will make a return at the next round at Morgan Park aboard the new V4.
With the unfortunate withdrawal of Troy Bayliss from the second round, a ride on a top flight team was presented to Jones on a plate. He grabbed the plate and devoured the contents.
Mike Jones joined the DesmoSport Ducati for the season after Bayliss was injured
From the outset of Friday practice Jones looked comfortable as he became reacquainted with the bike and the team he last rode for in 2016. Jones also claimed the 2015 title on a Kawasaki, at that time the championship was at its nadir with no factory participation, as instead the majority of top flight teams were participating in Terry O’Neill’s Australasian FX Superbike Championship.
In just two rounds this year, Jones has demonstrated that he has the ammunition to reclaim the title, and this time around it would no doubt be so much sweeter for the depth of this field is so much deeper than in 2015. No doubt the overseas experience has been of a benefit ,but his pedigree in Australian racing is very impressive.
Mike Jones – TBG Image
It is a much needed boost for Jones as the opportunity he was looking for in Europe failed to materialise, so it opens the way for him to make a huge impact on the domestic scene, as well as keeping his name in the frame for future overseas forays.
Ben Henry – DesmoSport Ducati
“We’re looking forward to racing this weekend. It’s a challenging track, and the surface means the winner this weekend might not be the outright fastest, but instead, the rider that can be consistently quick while preserving grip in the Pirelli’s throughout the race. Mike hasn’t raced here before, but he rode well in the test, and looked really comfortable on-track, so together with Troy (Bayliss) and Paul (Free), I’m looking forward to helping him get some more strong results.”
Mike Jones – Wakefield Park – TBG Image
Troy Bayliss will not be on track but will be at the track.
“It was great to finally get the V4R out for a shakedown during testing for this weekend’s racing.” Said Troy. “It was a really good first impression, and I’d love to see it on-track this weekend, but with only one bike and still some work to do on settings, it’s just not quite ready to race yet. Mike had a solid test on the Panigale FE and with his style and feedback, will be in contention again as we chase the 2019 ASBK Championship.”
Wayne Maxwell – Team Suzuki ECSTAR
Discount any rider at your peril but Maxwell will be geed up for a stellar performance. He needs to pulls back points on the leaders after that much well publicised incident with Wagner at Phillip Island in February damaged his points tally.
Aiden Wagner – Maxwell tumbles – Image Rob Mott
With the tightness of the championship a rider can really only afford one bad race result throughout the year, if he is going to stay in contention Maxwell is hoping that his misfortune is behind him.
Ones that will be equally determined to get their title chase back on track will be three-times champions, Josh Waters and Glenn Allerton.
Josh Waters – Team Suzuki ECSTAR
Josh finished third overall at the opening round but in reality his results are only a poofteenth off securing a better result, such is the level of competition and the depth of talent in the field. In the opening round he finished third overall, stating that he was happy with the 5-3-5 results.
Josh Waters – TDJ Image
His then new team-mate, Maxwell, led him home in the opening leg, however he was in front until that incident in leg two. In the final race for the weekend Waters did beat his team-mate, but Maxwell was pretty well battered and at the finish line the gap between the pair was just 0.085 second, and Josh’s fastest lap in that race was just 0.082s faster.
In the other two races a fit Maxwell also carded the fastest lap times of the pair. They might have been only a tenth or so quicker but to a top line rider, the difference doesn’t matter. It’s the fact that his team-mate is faster and higher up the leader board.
The positive foundation of the opening round was negated at Goulburn as he could only manage a brace of sixth-place finishes. More worrying was the gap as in race one he was a massive 13-seconds behind the race winner, and in leg two over eight-seconds behind after 13 laps – a similar gap to leg one at the same distance…
Josh Waters – Image by Rob Mott
As we head west to South Australia Josh is running fourth in the title, only 16-points off the title lead and in front of his team-mate.
Last year at the Bend was where Waters’ title aspirations were derailed somewhat with electronic glitches in the Gixxer and brake problems then giving the then defending champion nightmares, his strong start to the year had started to unravel.
I expect that Josh will do something special this weekend. The 32-year-old from Mildura needs a solid bag of points. The test confirmed that he is very much in the game, but he won’t be happy if he doesn’t lead his team-mate home in both races as the series approaches the halfway point.
Glenn Allerton – Maxima Oils Next Gen Motorsports BMW
This first two rounds of this year’s chase have been a challenge for Allerton who sits in a lowly 10th position on the Maxima Oils, Next Gen Motorsports BMW. At the beginning of the year the team took a gamble and switched to Dunlop rubber which necessitated a change of set-up and development for the different characteristics of the rubber.
Glenn Allerton – TDJ Image
Additionally there is not a lot of development work being carried out on the S 1000 RR engine as the team await delivery of the BMW HP4. This is not expected before the half-way point of the year which no doubt adds to the frustration.
Compounding the situation was the decision after the first round, for a number of reasons, to revert back to the tried, and tested, Pirelli rubber.
Wakefield was a disaster for the team. Leg one arguably gave Allerton his worst on-track result in an ASBK race when he finished 16th. He managed to recover somewhat to finish 11th to cap off a completely forgettable weekend for the team. Hopefully a decent result is awaiting this weekend so we may see a collective smile reappear on the team’s faces.
Glenn Allerton
“I was hugely disappointed about my results at Wakefield Park. I know I can race a lot better than what I did, but sometimes you are going to have those tough days at the office and we certainly had a tough outing last time out. However, this has got me revved up for this weekend to improve on my results and get a better outcome for both myself and the team. I believe The Bend Motorsport Park will be a much better round for myself, as the Maxima BMW S1000RR suits the high speed and corners which the circuit lends its self to. Honestly, we have nothing to lose and everything to gain, so I’m just going to lay it all on the line and go for broke this weekend. After a tough opening two rounds, the team and sponsors deserve a good result and nothing would please me more than to deliver them that for their hard work they have put in. Regarding the Bend Motorsport Park circuit. I really like track and the overall layout. It’s got a bit of everything which makes for a good fun circuit to race on. I’m looking forward to getting back there and hitting the track for the First Practice session on Thursday.”
Glenn Allerton was chasing setup all weekend at Wakefield Park – Image by Rob Mott
Bryan Staring – Kawasaki BC Performance Team
Mentioning Dunlop brings us to the Kawasaki BC Performance Team of Bryan Staring. There is no doubting Staring’s talent; he is the only rider to win Australian Championships in 125cc, Supersport and Superbike classes, and also boasts an impressive resume on the world stage.
Bryan Staring – Image by TBG
Similarly to last year, the season has started off pretty well, he was third in the opening race and followed that up with a fourth and a sixth and is in a good spot in fifth overall, on equal points with Maxwell, and just 21-points off the lead.
Staring is a proven race winner but maybe his biggest disadvantage is being the only rider in the leading bunch that is on Dunlop rubber. Also to add to his challenge this weekend, he is doubling up in the ARRC as a replacement rider for Team Kawasaki Thailand.
He will be on the Dunlop control tyres that are used in the Asian championship, but these are different spec’ to what he is running in the Australian title. Maybe that might change this weekend.
Daniel Falzon – Yamaha Racing Team
Herfoss may have put on an impressive display in front of his home town fans, but expect a similar showing from crow-eater, Daniel Falzon on the second of the Yamaha Racing Team R1Ms. The paramedic is eighth on the championship ladder (behind the absent Wagner in seventh), on 65-points, 31-points off his championship-leading team mate, Halliday, and 10-points behind Maxwell and Staring.
Daniel Falzon – Image by TBG
Falzon has been within tenths-of-a-second a lap from fighting for the lead in the opening rounds, and with a huge contingent of fans in attendance this weekend he will be digging very deep to ensure he is fighting for the lead.
He gives 100 per cent every time he jumps on the bike but the situation is sure to provide him with a little more incentive and cunning. Besides, what more motivation do you need than when your team-mate is so far in front of you?
The Bend Motorsport Complex
Over qualifying and three races there are 76-points on the table for the main courses of the weekend. Around the table a bunch of rapid riders are poised to savage the offerings. A pack of screeching and screaming hyenas devouring a zebra carcass may be better behaved!
The Bend ASBK Round 2018 – TBG Image
Live coverage of the third round will be telecast on the weekend
Fox Sports Australia
LIVE coverage on Saturday and Sunday from 12:00-5:00pm (AEST)
Kayo Sports
LIVE coverage on Saturday and Sunday from 12:00-5:00pm (AEST)
SBS Australia
LIVE coverage of ASBK races on Sunday from 3:00-5:00pm (AEST)
Online streaming live at ASBK.com.au
LIVE extended coverage of Friday, Saturday and Sunday available free, with no geo-blocking and no paywalls, via ASBK.com.au HERE
Australian Superbike Entry List
Australian Supersport Entry List
Australian Supersport 300 Entry List
The Bend ASBK Schedule
