Mike Jones smashes Winton lap record for ASBK pole

2019 Motul Pirelli Australian Superbike Championship

Winton – Round 5 – Saturday Report

Dark menacing clouds loomed large on the horizon above Winton Motor Raceway as competitors readied for final qualifying in the Kawasaki sponsored Superbike class. 

Suzuki’s Wayne Maxwell had topped proceedings on Friday (Link), where riders only got one dry session all day, but it was Cru Halliday (Yamaha) that topped the Saturday morning ‘Timed Practice’ session (Link).  Troy Herfoss suffered a hefty tumble during the morning session but escaped injury in the fall.

The new look Saturday format for 2019 sees Superbike competitors out for a 35-minute ‘Timed Practice’ session. The times from that session decided the nine riders that automatically qualified for the Q2 session. The riders from tenth back in the Timed Practice session then had to fight it out in a Q1 session, with the top three in that session then being promoted into Q2, making for a final 12-rider tussle over the first four rows of the grid.

While the ambient temperature had only notched up another two-degrees, to 13-degrees, the track temperature had come up a little more, from 18-degrees this morning to a still cool, but much more amenable 23-degrees when Superbike riders hit the track for the final qualifying sessions. A brief shower 60-minutes earlier during the closing stages of the Supersport qualifying session had dampened the track, but the surface had cleaned up nicely when riders filed out of pit-lane at 1500 for the 15-minute Q1 session. 

Alex Phillis topped the session early on and was never headed. Aaron Morris then mounted a late charge to push himself inside the crucial top three and managed to displace not only Kyle Buckley but also Matt Walters. Thus Phillis, Morris and Walters progressed through to the Q2 session in their quest for a top-ten grid position. 

Superbike QP1 Results

Superbike QP2

Daniel Falzon was the first man out on track in Q2 closely followed by Troy Herfoss.

But the Penrite Honda man went down once again! Herfoss went down at turn 10, losing the front and sliding all the way into the tyre wall without even completing a lap. It was a strange crash, and the image above shows you why… Check out the lever hanging off the bars in that shot above…

The defending champion was quickly up and made his way across the main straight with a slight limp in order to get back to the pits and his spare bike. I am not sure if any penalty will be levied on him for crossing the hot track during the session… 

Wayne Maxwell was the early leader in Q2 with a 1m20.828s and that time stood until their was five minutes left in the session, when Daniel Falzon came from being nowhere all weekend to catapult his #25 into provisional pole!

Maxwell responded though, dropping in a 1m20.422s to move back up in to the #1 spot. Halliday then put in a 1m20.501s to push Falzon back to third.

Herfoss exited pit-lane on the spare bike with less than three-minutes remaining in the session. He would get only one or perhaps two flying laps to try and propel himself up from 12th in the order… He couldn’t manage it and will start tomorrow’s 16-lap races from 12th on the grid. It will be take no prisoners into turn one tomorrow with an angry Herf’ out to make amends when the lights go out! 

Jones cranks out a 1m19s!

Jones goes to the top of the charts with a stunning 1m19.994s on the 1299 Panigale Final Edition, the fastest ever lap by a motorcycle around this Winton Motor Raceway circuit. 

Maxwell will start alongside him in P2 with Cru Halliday rounding out the front row.

Daniel Falzon heads the second row ahead of Mark Chiodo and Josh Waters.

Arthur Sissis front the third row alongside Bryan Staring and Alex Phillis.

The key to a fast lap here seemingly coming in the final sector of the circuit. So many times today riders have put in storming first and second sectors, but fast final sectors were few and far between. 

That single point earned for pole position today by Jones could prove crucial if this series goes down to the wire.  After this fifth round at Winton the series moves to Phillip Island for the penultimate contest in early October, before the championship decider at Sydney Motorsports Park over the first weekend in November. 

The opening 16-lap bout for this Winton round is scheduled to get underway at 1125 on Sunday morning, followed by the second and final bout at 1335 Sunday afternoon. 

Glenn Allerton has withdrawn from the event, his wrist still not up to the pace of competition, thus he deemed it safer to sit out proceedings rather than put himself, or others, at risk. 

Superbike Qualifying Results

Supersport

Tom Toparis did not need to turn a wheel in Saturday’s afternoon’s QP2 session, his 1m23.503s from QP1 was looking very safe but the Goulburn teenager headed out of pit-lane as the 25-minute final qualifying session entered its second half. Toparis then reeled off another couple of 1m23.5s to underline his pace.

Reid Battye improved his time markedly in the second session to move up to P2, demoting Nic Liminton to third place on the grid. The South Australian though reclaimed that P2 late in the session just before rain started falling, putting paid to the chance of any further improvements. Chandler Cooper a victim of the rain, putting his YZF-R6 into the fence late in the session. 

Supersport Qualifying Results

YMI Supersport 300 Race One

Max Stauffer capitalised on his pole position to lead the 30-rider field through the challenging Winton esses for the first time in the opening nine-lap bout for the YMI Supersport 300 category. 

Stauffer built a small gap early on and stretched that out to a full-second over the first couple of laps. As the race progressed though the chasing horde slowly reduced that gap and with five laps to go Yannis Shaw and Seth Crump had closed right onto the tail of Stauffer’s YZF-R3. 

Shaw hit the lead for the first time as they started the fourth-from-last lap. Crump then pushed Stauffer back to third later on that same lap and the three-way tussle was on in earnest. In previous battles Stauffer had proven to have some wily racecraft that belies his tender years, would he come out on top once again and extend his championship lead?

At the last lap board it was Shaw leading from Crump and Stauffer with only three-tenths covering that triumvirate. Hunter Ford then joined the party early on the final lap and Zac Levy came along for the ride! Lapped traffic was also becoming a factor in what was turning into a very exciting final lap.

Shaw with the advantage into the final double right-hander and it is Shaw on the 400 Kawasaki that gets to the chequered flag first, Seth Crump second and Max Stauffer rounded out the podium by a bike length over a late charging Hunter Ford. 

YMI Supersport 300 Race One Results

YMI Supersport 300 Qualifying Results

YMF R3 Cup Race One

Max Stauffer blotted his copy book in the opening Supersport 300 race of the weekend when the youngster went down at turn three in what could be costly for his championship chances.

Ben Baker was tussling with Hunter Ford and Brandon Demmery for the lead before a red flag put an early brake on proceedings.

After a delay a full re-start got underway and this time around it was Hunter Ford and Locky Taylor the chief protagonists throughout the opening stages of the six-lap race. Brandon Demmery swaggered through to the front of the pack with four laps to go and was out to celebrate his 22nd birthday with victory!

Out to deny him victory though was Hunter Ford and he did exactly that. Ford the victor by three-tenths at the chequered flag from Demmery while Locky Taylor rounded out the podium. 

YMF R3 Cup Race One Results

YMF R3 Cup Qualifying

bLU cRU Oceania Junior Cup Race One

Angus Grenfell ran away with the opening bLU cRU Oceania Junior Cup bout on Saturday afternoon. Sprinting away from the field right from the off and then pulling away every lap on his way to a clear five-second victory.

Left to contest the minor spoils were Archie McDonald, Tom Drane and Carter Thompson. Jacob Roulstone joined that party late in the race but it was McDonald and Drane that scored the final two steps on the rostrum in what was a photo finish across the line.

bLU cRU Oceania Junior Cup Race One Results

bLU cRU Oceania Junior Cup Qualifying

Sidecar Race Results

2019 Motul Pirelli Australian Superbike Championships Calendar

• Round 5: Winton Motor Raceway, VIC – 6-8 September 2019
• Round 6: Phillip Island GP Circuit, VIC – 4-6 October 2019
• Round 7: Sydney Motorsport Park, NSW – 1-3 November 2019

Motul Pirelli Australian Superbike Championship Standings