Spriggs and Menzies hunt Supersport success

Callum Spriggs and Robbie Menzies hunt Supersport success at Morgan Park

Cube Racing duo Callum Spriggs and Robbie Menzies will line up for the team’s home stop on the 2016 Australian Superbike Championship calendar this weekend as Morgan Park Raceway’s hosts round five.

Spriggs enters the weekend third in the ASBK Supersport class standings after finishing third overall at Barbagallo Raceway, the Western Australian venue hosted the previous round back in June.

Spriggs is currently 18.5 points behind series leader Sam Clarke, with two rounds and 102 points still up for grabs in the race for the Motul Supersport Championship.

“Being my home round I will be able to carry some home track advantage going into this weekend, which is always good to have, as I know the track really well,” Spriggs commented. “I should be able to do some fast times, but in saying that, I just have to stay consistent.

Sam Clarke leads Callum Spriggs at Wanneroo

“In regards to being a home round, it’s always nice to have friends and family coming out to support you, which revs you up a bit more I suppose. I’m really looking forward to seeing how the weekend goes.

Michael Blair sprays 2015 Supersport Champion Callum Spriggs with the champagne - 2015 Swann Insurance Australasian Superbike Championship - Image by YRD — Michael Blair sprays 2015 Supersport Champion Callum Spriggs with the champagne – 2015 Swann Insurance Australasian Superbike Championship – Image by YRD

“In terms on the championship, I know its crunch time, so I have to try and stay ahead of Sam [Clarke] and Troy [Guenther]. My main goal is to win, but at the same time I have to make sure I bring home as many points as I can and stay in front of the main two guys in the title fight and hopefully take the fight to Winton in October.”

ASBK 2016 - Round Four Wanneroo - Supersport - Callum Spriggs, Luke Mitchell, Troy Guenther — ASBK 2016 – Round Four Wanneroo – Supersport – Callum Spriggs, Luke Mitchell, Troy Guenther

Supersport rookie Menzies has steadily been gaining experience and momentum this season under the Cube Racing banner alongside Spriggs, buoyed by his outright speed and is determined to finish off the season with some consistently strong results. He sits ninth in the point standings.

“I’m really looking forward to this weekend,” Menzies said. “We came out here a few weeks ago and tested, which was pretty positive for the team. It was my first time at Morgan Park, so I really wanted to try and get my head around the circuit.

Australian Superbike Test - February 2016 - Phillip Island - Image by Mark Bracks - Robbie Menzies with Troy Bayliss — Australian Superbike Test – February 2016 – Phillip Island – Image by Mark Bracks – Robbie Menzies with Troy Bayliss

“We have the Cube Racing ZX-6R set up pretty well from the test, which is a positive thing entering any round. Ideally I would like to finish inside the top 10 this weekend, but as close to the front as possible would be fantastic.”

New to the team for 2016 has been Goulburn-based revelation Tom Toparis in the Up To 300 Production ranks, piecing together a string of podiums in recent race appearances. After finishing second at Wanneroo, he’s in the mix for a first-career ASBK Production overall this weekend and is fourth in the title race as a result. Toparis also took a race victory and battled hard all weekend with Broc Pearson at the recent Swann Superbikes Ninja 300 Cup round at Queensland Raceway.

Tom Toparis - Image by Keith Muir — Tom Toparis – Image by Keith Muir

The penultimate round of the 2016 Australian Superbike Championship including the Supersport and Production categories will take place at Morgan Park Raceway, Queensland, on 5-7 August.