ASBK 2018 – Round Six – Winton
Supersport 300
Images by TBG
Hunter Ford took the overall victory in the Australian Supersport 300 class at the Winton Motor Raceway, collecting a second place, third place and win to take out the penultimate round of the season.
Ford was happy to grab the overall victory, but it wasn’t all smooth sailing for the #20.
Hunter Ford
“Its great to get the overall win, but in race three I was on a borrowed bike so it was tough to ride and I found it hard to stay with the front guys, but we found a win and got the result.”
Oli Bayliss returned to form here at Winton, after a few tough rounds Bayliss looked at home on his Kawasaki and the results showed. The current Australian Supersport 300 Championship leader Tom Bramich took out third overall for the weekend and takes the points lead into the final round of ASBK at Phillip Island on October 12-14.
Max Stauffer had a breakout weekend here at Winton, claiming two of the three race wins, but a crash in race two put him outside the podium for the overall. Look for Stauffer to continue this form at Phillip Island.
Supersport 300 Race 1
Max Stauffer (Rock Oil, Yamaha YZF-R3) has put together the perfect race at Winton Race 1, after topping qualification and starting from pole position, then never looking back, leading from start to finish, showing a real liking for the circuit.
Stauffer has been building throughout the season and in Race 1 it was a break out performance. The #127 was challenged midway through the race by Hunter Ford (YRD, Yamaha YZF-R3) but he saw that off to take his first 300 class victory by just over three seconds.
Max Stauffer
“It’s indescribable to get my first win on a 300! I’ve just wanted to win so bad and I’m so proud of myself to take the steps towards a race victory.”
Ford would once again be on the podium here in the Supersport 300 class, this time in second position as he just couldn’t find consistent race speed of Stauffer. Ford has the quickest lap of the race but would have to settle for second.
In third position is current championship leader Tom Bramich (JLT, Yamaha YZF-R3) who was consistent throughout the race but would be disappointed to not battle out the front with Stauffer and Ford. In saying that, his third position gives him handy points in the race for the championship.
Oli Bayliss (Cube Racing, Kawasaki Ninja 300) just missed out on the podium and enjoyed a good battle with Bramich, collecting fourth position in the first race of the weekend.
Rounding out the top five was Zac Levy (Puma RV’S, Yamaha YZF-R3) who continues his consistent season in the Supersport 300 class.
The Australian Supersport 300 field will be back on track for two more race tomorrow, the first of the two races kicks off at 9:40am and then race three at 2:35pm.
Winton Saturday Classification Supersport 300
- Max STAUFFER (NSW) 1:31.416
- Hunter FORD (NSW) 1:31.969
- Oli BAYLISS (QLD) 1:32.035
- Tom BRAMICH (VIC) 1:32.319
- Locky TAYLOR (QLD) 1:32.499
Supersport 300 Race 1 Provisional
- Max STAUFFER (NSW) 12:18.752
- Hunter FORD (NSW) +3.091
- Tom BRAMICH (VIC) +4.682
- Oli BAYLISS (QLD) +4.836
- Zac LEVY (QLD) +5.144
- Locky TAYLOR (QLD) +5.417
- Tayla RELPH (QLD) +15.148
- John LYTRAS (QLD) +26.853
- Luke POWER (VIC) +27.689
- Joel KELSO (NT) +27.715
Supersport 300 Race Two
In another absolute classic, the Australian Supersport 300 class once again put on a show, with an eight-lap epic between Ford, Bayliss and race one winner Stauffer. The trio went back and fourth with a pass made in almost every corner of the Winton circuit, but it would be Ford who prevailed taking out race two.
The Yamaha rider ended up taking the victory by just under a second, but on the final lap the battle for second between Bayliss and Stauffer saw both riders pushing it to the limit. Sadly, for Stauffer he pushed it just a little to far and crashed out trying to make a move on Bayliss.
Bayliss would cross the line in second, whilst Stauffer would end up not finishing the race after his crash. Championship leader Bramich was the beneficiary of the Stauffer crash as he moved up to the final spot on the podium, and his third position saw him extend his points lead to 38 points.
Zac Levy (Puma RV’S, Yamaha YZF-R3) would just miss the last spot on the podium, claiming fourth position behind his Yamaha team-mate Bramich. Rounding out the top five in race two was Locky Taylor (Shark Leathers, Yamaha YZF-R3) who had good speed throughout the race, but just didn’t have the consistent race pace of the lead group.
Continuing her consistent season in 2018 was Tayla Relph (Earmold Australia, Yamaha YZF-R3) who grabbed sixth position in race two and will be looking to move herself into the top five in race three.
Supersport 300 Race Two Provisional Results
- Hunter FORD (Yamaha, Yamaha YZF-R3) 12:21.824
- Oli BAYLISS (Cube Racing, Kawasaki Ninja) 12:22.428
- Tom BRAMICH (JLT, Yamaha YZF-R3) 12:23.492
- Zac LEVY (Puma RV’s, Yamaha YZF-R3) 12:23.548
- Locky TAYLOR (Shark Leathers, Yamaha YZF-R3) 12:24.010
- Tayla RELPH (Earmold Australia, Yamaha YZF-R3) 12:29.176
- John LYTRAS (Caboolture Yamaha, Yamaha YZF-R3) 12:39.325
- Zane FORD (Yamaha, Yamaha YZF-R3) 12:42.998
- Seth CRUMP (Rock Oil, KTM RC) 12:45.001
- Troy RYAN (Taree M-cycles, Yamaha YZF-R3) 12:45.642
Supersport 300 Race Three
Stauffer has taken out race three of the Australian Supersport 300 class here at Winton, it was a clinical display to bounce back after a crash in race two. Stauffer lead a close contingent of six riders throughout the eight laps here, but he held his nerve over the last lap to be first across the line.
Bayliss would have to settle for second, but he didn’t leave anything in the tank, during that last lap every corner Ford was looking for away around Stauffer and, but just couldn’t get the move done and won the sprint to the line behind Stauffer.
Taking the last spot on the podium was Ford, another one who was a part of that lead group throughout the eight laps, he even led at different stages of the race. A drag to the line with Bayliss, saw Ford fall short of second by the smallest of margins.
Just missing the podium was Levy who grabbed fourth, but a positive for Levy is that he gained point on Bramich in the race for the Championship. Speaking of Bramich he would finish only one position behind Levy in fifth.
Taylor would be the next rider to cross the line in sixth and be at the back of that lead group. Taylor was unlucky to finish in sixth as he was only .300s off the back of Bramich in fifth, as the riders at the front were all so close, which is usual with the 300’s class.
In seventh position was Relph who would be happy with her race, but she needs to find extra speed to jump into that top five consistently.
Supersport 300 Race Three Provisional Results
- Max STAUFFER (Rock Oil, Yamaha YZF-R3) 12:24.095
- Oli BAYLISS (Cube Racing, Kawasaki Ninja) 12:24.497
- Hunter FORD (Yamaha, Yamaha YZF-R3) 12:24.506
- Zac LEVY (Puma RV’s, Yamaha YZF-R3) 12:24.636
- Tom BRAMICH (JLT, Yamaha YZF-R3) 12:25.265
- Locky TAYLOR (Shark Leathers, Yamaha YZF-R3) 12:25.525
- Tayla RELPH (Earmold Australia, Yamaha YZF-R3) 12:28.680
- John LYTRAS (Caboolture Yamaha, Yamaha YZF-R3) 12:33.169
- Joel KELSO (JDS Moto, Kawasaki Ninja) 12:33.341
- Luke POWER (G. Williams Eng, Yamaha YZF-R3) 12:44.640
Supersport 300 Overall at Winton
- Hunter FORD Yamaha 63
- Oli BAYLISS Kawasaki 57
- Tom BRAMICH Yamaha 52
- Max STAUFFER Yamaha 51
- Zac LEVY Yamaha 50
- Locky TAYLOR Yamaha 46
- Tayla RELPH Yamaha 43
- John LYTRAS Yamaha 40
- Troy RYAN Yamaha 27
- Zane FORD Yamaha 27
Supersport 300 Standings after Winton
- Tom BRAMICH Yamaha 359
- Zac LEVY Yamaha 322
- Hunter FORD Yamaha 295
- Oli BAYLISS Kawasaki 290
- Locky TAYLOR Yamaha 243
- Seth CRUMP KTM 243
- Harry KHOURI Yamaha 229
- Tayla RELPH Yamaha 221
- Max STAUFFER Yamaha 197
- Travis HALL Kawasaki 158
