Yamaha Australia’s championship winning road racing team, YRT, will field an impressive four rider outfit for season 2014 to contest the Australasian Superbike Championship (ASC) starting in March.
New comer Robbie Bugden will join 2013 members Kevin Curtain, Rick Olson and Cru Halliday in a very strong line up with all riders to compete on the thundering Yamaha R1 in the ASC Superbike category.
Queensland based Bugden will take the seat vacated by 2013 champion, Broc Parkes, who has moved to Europe to contest the Moto GP in 2014. Bugden finished third in the 2013 Australian Superbike Championship (ASBK), will make the move to YRT and the ASC series for 2014 and will be an exciting addition to the powerhouse Yamaha team.
The retention of Kevin Curtain and Rick Olson, both winners of the Formula OZ and FX600cc class in 2013, as well Cru Halliday who shadowed Olson on the 600cc last year, also means the team have a high platform to start their 2014 campaign as the riders and teams are extremely well acquainted with the race bikes and the team personnel.
“We have an exciting line up for the upcoming season and I look forward to another great year of racing,” states team owner, John Redding. “The balance of youth and experience in the team is right and also the relationships the riders have with the team is strong.
“Robbie is new to the team, but he has raced Yamaha previously and being based in Queensland, where the race team is housed, will mean he can quickly form a bond with the crew and come out firing at the first round.
“The 2013 season will be hard to top as the team won every major class at the ASC but we will again be working hard in 2014. With all riders in the Superbike class, we can focus all our time and development into the Yamaha R1 and hopefully produce a season as rewarding as 2013.
“Again we have amazing support from our team partners and Yamaha Australia has again shown their support for road racing in Australia. Yamaha Australia are huge supporters of all aspects of racing in this country and it is an honour to represent the brand in road racing. The R1 and R6 are high quality road bikes that can easily be upgraded to championship winning road race machines.
“With the revamped ASC and our single focus on the Superbike category, 2014 promises to be a great season for YRT,” Redding concludes.
2014 ASC Calendar
Rd 1 – March 14-16 – Wakefield Park, NSW
Rd 2 – May 16-18 – Mallala Raceway, SA
Rd 3 – June 27-29 – Queensland Raceway, Qld
Rd 4 – August 1-3 – Winton Raceway, Vic
Rd 5 – September 12-14 – Wakefield Park Raceway, NSW
Rd 6 – November 21`-23 – Sydney Motorsport Park, NSW
