Glenn Allerton clean sweeps ASBK 2016 season opener at Phillip Island
After an absolutely action packed race one of the Yamaha Motor Finance Australian Superbike Championship presented by Motul Pirelli on Saturday, a bumper crowd was on hand to witness the second and third bouts of ASBK action on Sunday.
When the Yamaha Motorcycle Insurance Australian Superbikes left the grid for the second time of the weekend it was Yamaha Racing Team’s Wayne Maxwell who led the field away.
Maxwell continued to lead the hard charging group throughout the opening lap, followed by Crankt Protein Honda Racing’s Jamie Stauffer in second, who showed that despite his spectacular crash on Saturday, his speed on track remained unaffected.
Two laps down, and the running order showcased Yamaha dominance, with Maxwell holding the top position, followed by teammate Glenn Allerton, Stauffer in third, while DesmoSport Ducati’s Jones and Honda’s Troy Herfoss completed the top five.
With the Superbike riders quickly approaching the halfway mark in the race, less than a second separated the lead group, Allerton eventually finding his way around his team mate Maxwell to take the race lead.
When rider’s exited turn ten on lap four Ducati mounted Jones began his charge to the front, slipping past Maxwell and setting his sights on the rear wheel of Allerton.
With four laps remaining the star studded field looked in no way to be separating, Allerton continuing to lead from Jones, while Maxwell and team mate Cru Halliday held down third and fourth respectively.
Fans were treated in the closing stages of the race, Jones sticking it up the inside of Allerton to secure the race lead with three laps remaining.
Maxwell then began to make his move back to the front with two laps to run, passing team mate Allerton and piling the pressure on race leader Jones.
Through turn 12 towards the final lap, Maxwell briefly moved in to the lead before Jones reclaimed the top position, only to have it snatched away by Allerton again in the blink of an eye.
At the chequered flag Allerton did exactly what was required, holding on for his second Australian Superbike race win of the weekend, ahead of DesmoSport Ducati’s Jones in second, while Yamaha Racing Team’s Maxwell concluded the race in third.
Race Three
Daniel Falzon shot in to the early race lead in the final of the three Australian Superbike races ahead of Jones, Herfoss and Maxwell.
Falzon got away from his pursuers a little in the opening stages of the race but Jones managed to reel the South Australian in and took the lead with eight laps to go. Jones’ lead was short lived, with Falzon snatching back the top spot through Gardner straight, with Herfoss moving in to second, and Jones then slotting in behind the Honda.
At the halfway mark, the top six riders were virtually neck and neck, Allerton coming from behind and shuffle his way past that trio.
From there the battles just got more intense, with lapped traffic also becoming a factor, Allerton leading a group of eight riders separated by just over a second.
With three laps to go, the running order was Allerton, Jones in second, while Herfoss and Maxwell battled for third.
Jones then moved in to the race lead with only two laps remaining.
When riders were shown the last lap board, no one could have prepared the crowd for what they were about to see, Goulburn’s Herfoss snatched the lead with only turns remaining, Jones was relegated all the way back to fourth, as Allerton and Maxwell chased the tail of Herfoss’ Fireblade SP.
Allerton was determined to make it a perfect three-from-three weekend and did exactly that, snatching victory by three-hundredths of a second over Herfoss, Maxwell third
Glenn Allerton leads the series by 18 points ahead of Mike Jones who in turn has a three-point buffer over Wayne Maxwell. Troy Herfoss took 52 points away from the weekend while Michael Blair finished an impressive fifth overall for the weekend while Ben Burke was the highest finishing Kawasaki rider and is sixth on championship points.
ASBK 2016 – Round One – Phillip Island – Championship Points
- Glenn Allerton 75 points
- Michael Jones 57 points
- Wayne Maxwell 54 points
- Troy Herfoss 52 points
- Michael Blair 45 points
- Ben Burke 41 points
- Daniel Falzon 39 points
- Robbie Bugden 35 points
- Cru Halliday 34 points
- Matt Walters 32 points
- Jamie Stauffer 27 points
Glenn Allerton
“I am so excited! To get three from three is pretty unreal, and great to have those going points towards the championship. As I always say a lot of work goes in from the team, the hard work to put the bikes together,” he said.
“I have been working hard in the off-season trying to stay fit, which can be pretty hard to do when you’ve got two kids. I’m lucky that I have a supportive family that allows me the time to do the things I need to do to be fit and ready. A big thanks to everybody involved, I am just really, really happy to come out on top!
“I was getting a few spits on the visor during the race but nothing to worry about. I was really thankful that it didn’t rain because that would have ruined a good run that we had going. It was awesome to get three race wins, with overcast good conditions, and the bike worked great and the tyres held up awesome. I am looking forward to the next ASBK round and getting stronger.”
Wayne Maxwell
“We were close every race but not close enough. Glenn rode well this weekend and deserved his win so congratulations to him. It would have been nice to pinch a race win or two but it was a good start to the year and it’s always important to get a good result at the opening round of any championship.
“There are a couple of things to work on before the next round but thank you to the team for what has been a busy couple weeks and we can look forward to the next round.”
Cru Halliday posted two impressive fourth places finished and within sight of the leaders in a strong return to form. Unfortunately, some of that good work was undone through no fault of his own when in race three a rider in front of him fell and Halliday was forced off the track and then fell as a result. He was unable to finish the race and the overall result doesn’t reflect the improvement in Halliday’s performance.
Cru Halliday
“I was determined to do better here as I have struggled in the past, It’s been a track that has always got the better of me and I’m not sure why, so I came here with a really positive attitude and wanted to get off to a good start for the year.
“The first two races were good and I felt that there was still some room for improvement so that is also positive. In the final race I just wanted to finish the weekend strongly and gain some good points but in the hustle and bustle of the opening lap, I had a rider go down in front of me and I had no option but to run off the track to avoid him. Overall it was a better weekend here for me and I can take some confidence from those first two races.”
ASBK 2016 – Round One – Phillip Island – Championship Points
- Glenn Allerton 75 points
- Michael Jones 57 points
- Wayne Maxwell 54 points
- Troy Herfoss 52 points
- Michael Blair 45 points
- Ben Burke 41 points
- Daniel Falzon 39 points
- Robbie Bugden 35 points
- Cru Halliday 34 points
- Matt Walters 32 points
- Jamie Stauffer 27 points
