— FX 2013 – Round Two – Winton
— Curtain in control at Winton
— Yamaha Report
Yamaha Racing with Ipone’s Kevin Curtain stamped his authority on the 2013 FX Superbike Championship with an impressive performance at round two of the series held at Winton in Victoria.
Competing in both the head FX Superbike class and the Formula Oz division, on board different performance spec Yamaha R1’s, Curtain used his vast talent and experience to take the class win in both divisions and take control of the championship table.
He won all three races in the Formula Oz machine in emphatic fashion ahead of Yamaha stable mate, Broc Parkes. After two rounds, Curtain has racked up six wins from six starts and holds down a 32 point lead already in the series.
The FX Superbike class proved to be a Yamaha R1 freight train with Curtain, team mate Rick Olson and Broc Parkes all involved in some close racing. Curtain took the round win on the back of his 1-1-3 race results and now leads the championship by 14 points.
“I had a good time racing today,” Curtain said. “Both Rick and Broc were riding really well and it was a tough race as any mistake would cost not just time but positions as well.”
“I never get tired of winning races and today put us in a good position in both championships,” he ended.
Rick Olson matched Curtain every step of the way with a dominant performance in the FX600cc class and he shadowed Curtain in the Superbike division.
Olson took a perfect three from three on the R6 after some spirited battles with fellow Yamaha racer, Cru Halliday. He backed that up with some ultra-consistent racing on his Yamaha Superbike with 2-2-2 results. Over six races on Sunday Olson finished with 1-1-1 / 2-2-2.
He now leads the FX600cc class by six points and is second in the Superbikes.
“It was important for me to string some races together and not doing anything silly and lose touch in the championships. Crashing instantly means not finishing and in a six round championship, not finishing one race is costly, so today was all about being consistent and racking up some points,” said the maturing Olson.
The strong showing from both riders left team manager, John Redding, excited about their performance and that of his YRT crew.
“Both the riders and the team acquitted themselves well and we made real progress in the championship. Kevin was in top form and Rick really impressed with his smart approach to racing today and both set some extremely fast times throughout the day.”
“We still have four rounds to go and a lot can happen, but we have started the season off well and are well placed as we head towards the halfway mark,” Redding said.
Round two Results – Winton
FX Superbike
1st Kevin Curtain – 70 (Yamaha)
2nd Rick Olson – 66 (Yamaha)
3rd Broc Parkes – 65 (Yamaha)
FX600cc
1st Rick Olson – 75 (Yamaha)
2nd Callum Spriggs – 58
3rd Justin Di Giandomenco – 52
Formula Oz
1st Kevin Curtain – 75 (Yamaha)
2nd Broc Parkes – 66 (Yamaha)
3rd Russell Holland – 53
Championship Standings – After Round 2
FX Superbike
1st Kevin Curtain – 137
2nd Rick Olson – 123
3rd Broc Parkes – 121
FX600cc
1st Rick Olson – 122
2nd Callum Spriggs – 116
3rd Cru Halliday – 116
Formula Oz
1st Kevin Curtain – 150
2nd Broc Parkes – 128
3rd Brett Kitchin – 82
— KTM Report
Angus Reekie predicted a month ago that it was possible crack the top ten in FX Superbike on the V-twin KTMRC8R Racing Team bike, but it took only until the second round of the Formula X-Treme series at Victoria’s Winton Raceway to back it up.
Reekie proved the KTM1190RC8R has much more than just a radical look as he continued his David v Goliath story with three ninth place finishes for a stunning eighth on the day.
The haul brings the distinctive orange bike into 10th place in the overall standings.
The 26-year-old, six-time Australian Supermoto champion grabbed the attention of those in the know very early in the weekend when he sizzled round the twisty circuit to qualify the V-twin sixth fastest in a field of four-cylinder superbikes – most of those with a whole heap more top-end horsepower!
“I had a great qualifying,” said Reekie, “put a good tyre on and rode a hottie actually to put it on the 2nd row which was awesome, but I struggled a little with my conditioning and my speed on worn tyres. It’s taking a little while to get up to speed after 10 months off the bike.”
The 2011 Pro Thunder Champion, Reekie was “in the box seat” in last year’s Pro Thunder title chase when a dirt bike accident ended his season and necessitated a shoulder reconstruction, but now says Reekie, “it’s time for a new challenge.”
“My speed was really good at times on the Winton track, but at race pace my arms pumped a few times and I had a couple of moments that shook me up, so I missed out on a few places.
“My starts were shocking so I had to come through, which is difficult at Winton; fortunately the bike is so good under brakes and into the corner.
“It was a positive weekend for us; we ended up with good points and cracked the top ten which is what I wanted to do. We had people coming up and saying how good it was being the only V-twin in the field of 1000cc 4-cylinders and it shows how good a bike the KTM really is.
“Of course I’d love to be up the pointy end battling but I have to remind myself to be realistic – we’re racing some very serious teams with big name riders and big testing schedules. We’re on a tiny budget for the year and we race the bike just how we buy it.
“A lot of people understand that and give us a lot of encouragement, so it’s nice to get the recognition.
“So, a good step forward for us and motivation to try to get a bit further up the front.”
The next round of the FX series takes place at Wakefield Park, Goulburn on May 4th and 5th.
For more information on KTM motorcycles visit www.ktm.com.au or www.facebook.com.KTMAustralia
AUSTRALIAN FX SUPERBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP Round 2:
1. Kevin CURTAIN (NSW) 70
2. Rick OLSON (NSW) 66
3. Broc PARKES (NSW) 65
4. Chris TROUNSON (VIC) 52
5. Corey SNOWSILL (NSW) 46
6. Lachie THOMAS (NSW) 42
7. Paul BYRNE (IRE) 37
8. Angus REEKIE (QLD) 36
9. Joel HUGHES (NSW) 35
10. Matthew WALTERS (NSW) 34
2013 YMF LOAN YAMAHA AUSTRALIAN FX SUPERBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP
Points after two rounds:
1. Kevin CURTAIN (NSW) 137
2. Rick OLSON (NSW) 123
3. Broc PARKES (NSW) 121
4. Matthew WALTERS (NSW) 104
5. Chris TROUNSON (VIC) 97
6. Lachie THOMAS (NSW) 80
7. Paul BYRNE (IRE) 73
8. Corey SNOWSILL (NSW) 67
9. Dustin GOLDSMITH (NSW) 66
10. Angus REEKIE (QLD) 63
