Staring moves closer to maiden SBK Title with successful Island outing
Cougar Bourbon Honda Racing rider Bryan Staring edged closer to his goal of becoming 2010 Australian Superbike Champion with a solid points haul and second overall at the weekend’s Phillip Island event.
Round 6 of the championship proved pivotal, with the 23-year-old Gold Coast rider scoring a race win and a hard-fought second place across the two, 10-lap races.
Staring finished equal on points with his closest championship challenger, Wayne Maxwell, who was awarded the spoils by virtue of a higher finish in race 2.
The incredible streak of five consecutive race wins may have ended, but Staring, who leads the championship by 18.5, is focused on the bigger picture.
“We didn’t get too much dry track time on the Friday which made things a little tough heading into Superpole on Saturday morning,” explained Staring.
“I put in a fairly safe lap to ensure I’d start from the front row and the bike came into its own during the race despite some tyre wear.
“The second race was tough, there was a group of around 6 or 7 bikes locked together for the first few laps and it was only towards the end that we were able to pull away.
“Jamie (Stauffer) made a mistake while leading on the last lap and ran wide. I was positioned to take advantage of any mistakes that he and Wayne (Maxwell) may have made and was able to squeeze through for second.
“Wayne and I came away with equal points which was the second-best scenario behind being able to extend my lead.
“The team delivered an incredible bike to me this weekend and we are now well on track with one round left to run at Symmon’s Plains in a few months time.”
Bleak conditions improved across the course of the weekend, with a mixed wet session early in the piece making setup difficult.
Staring set the third-fastest time in Superpole, and battled Jamie Stauffer for much of race 1 before taking the win.
Locked in a six-way battle for position in race 2, Staring sat tight until the mid-point before moving forwards and settling in behind the duel for first place between Stauffer and Honda rider Wayne Maxwell.
The Cougar Bourbon Honda rider pounced on a mistake from Stauffer in the dying stages to grab second in front of a huge trackside crowd on hand for the 500km V8 Supercar endurance race.
Both races were broadcast to viewers on Channel 7 who were fortunate enough to witness undoubtedly the most exciting round to date in 2010.
The championship wraps up at Tasmania’s Symmon’s Plains Circuit on November 12-14, with Staring in the box seat to deliver Cougar Bourbon Honda Racing and its sponsors a maiden Superbike title.
| Viking Australian Superbike Championship, Round 6 Results 1. Wayne MAXWELL (NSW), 45 | Viking Australian Superbike Championship Points 1. Bryan STARING (QLD), 211 |
| Insure My Ride Supersport Championship, Round 6 Results 1. Troy HERFOSS (VIC), 46 | Insure My Ride Supersport Championship Points 1. Troy HERFOSS (VIC), 224 |
SBK Podium
— Motologic Ducati
The Ducati Motologic Racing Team departs Phillip Island this afternoon with heads held high if a little disappointed at the final result for Round 6 of the Australian Superbike Championship.
#27 Jamie Stauffer finished Race 2 of the event in 3rd place today despite recording the fastest lap of the day and indeed leading for much of the race. Stauffer recorded a lap time of 1:35.123 seconds as he took the lead in lap 4 and even as he battled with Wayne Maxwell each lap he appeared comfortable and in control.
The Ducati team watched with baited breath as Stauffer held the lead lap after lap. However, it just wasn’t his weekend as towards the end of the race his 1198R was unable to find the grip it needed for him to push to the checkered flag and Bryan Staring passed the Ducati as Stauffer had a moment at the exit of Siberia.
Stauffer is understandably disappointed about coming so close to a race win all weekend and watching it slip from his grasp.
Stauffer: “I didn’t get a great start, but I got into the lead early on in the race and tried to set a good pace. Wayne was keeping me honest and we had a good battle, but on the final lap I got out of the seat coming out of Siberia and Bryan passed me and that was my race done again. It was a good effort from the whole team and it is just disappointing that we didn’t get the win. Again.”
The developing team will look to the final round at Tasmania in November and hope their season will end on a high with the elusive race win.
Team Manager, Paul Free: “We have put in a lot of effort this weekend and are really disappointed not to have come away with a race win. Jamie is the fastest on the track yet again and led for most of the race, however sometimes it just doesn’t go your way. We chose the same setting for the 1198 as we used in Superpole and it was all looking good for Jamie during the race, but once he lost the grip in the final lap it was all he could do to stay upright as Bryan passed him and he had to settle for 3rd place. Hopefully the stars align at the final round and we can achieve a win.”
The next round for the Ducati Motologic Racing Team will be in October at the GP which does not form part of the Australian Superbike Championship, but will provide another opportunity for the team to gain valuable information about the Ducati 1198R.
— Valvoline Honda
Valvoline Superbike Team rider and 2008 Superbike titleholder Glenn Allerton maintained third position overall in the fight for the 2010 ASBK title with a third position in the penultimate round held in conjunction with the V8 Supercar L&H 500 endurance event held at Phillip Island over the weekend.
Friday’s first qualifying session saw Allerton comfortably recording the second fastest time on a wet Phillip Island surface beaten narrowly out of the top slot by Demolition Plus/Gas Honda mounted Wayne Maxwell. With the inclement weather clearing, the Valvoline Superbike Team technicians reverted to the “dry” CBR1000R for the remaining qualifying session. Final qualifying saw Motologic Ducati mounted Jamie Stauffer on top with Allerton on the pace thorough the final qualifier holding the down second slot until a late charge by fellow Honda mounted Wayne Maxwell thus relegating Allerton to third with Team Suzuki’s Shawn Giles and Cougar Bourbon Honda and current championship leader Bryan Staring rounding out the top five.
With the rear tyre issues experienced at Phillip Island early in 2010 fresh in his mind Allerton commented “We have tried different settings each session, in the hope of finding a balance between grip and rear tyre longevity”.
Superpole saw Allerton maintain his front row position but slip one position to put his Valvoline CBR1000R in 4th position joining fellow Honda racers Staring and Maxwell and Jamie Stauffer (Motologic Ducati)
Saturday’s Race 1 saw Honda racers Allerton, Maxwell and Staring joined by Jamie Stauffer in a torrid handle bar to handle bar battle from the green light until lap four when Stauffer had a lucky escape after running off track at Phillip Island’s ultra fast first turn leaving the Honda trio to fight for the podium positions with Staring emerging the victor after both Maxwell and Allerton faded in the final laps with disintegrating rear tyres completing a Honda dominated race 1.
Race two of the Viking Group Superbike championship again saw Allerton, Maxwell, Staring and Stauffer this time joined by Racer’s Edge Suzuki rider Scott Charton and KTM’s Shannon Johnson fight for the honours. Valvoline’s Allerton had the “bit between his teeth” and led the race in the opening laps until his rear tyre again disintegrated dropping him to fifth place, Ahead of Allerton found Stauffer, Maxwell and Staring sharing the lead between them in what could only be described as a thriller. After 10 laps of desperate racing Maxwell met the chequered flag followed by Staring, Stauffer, Charlton and Allerton.
Allerton’s 5th place race 2 finish combined with the 3rd position from race one totalled to a 3rd position for the round completing a Round 6 Honda whitewash and solidified the Valvoline Superbike racers grip on an overall podium 2010 Viking Group Australian Superbike Championship.
“Aside from being plagued by tyre issues, the Valvoline Honda and our team worked well all weekend, my aim this weekend was to maintain third position in the overall ASBK Championship and we have achieved that” said Allerton at a post race interview.
The final round of the 2010 Viking Group Australian Superbike Championship will be held at Tasmania’s Symmonds Plain Raceway on in November alongside the V8 Supercar Falken Challenge.
— Team Suzuki
Team Suzuki rider Troy Herfoss has extended his points lead to 31 in the Australian Supersport Championship after two hard-fought races at the penultimate round of the series at Victoria’s Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit on 10-12 September.
Herfoss, who started from pole position on his Team Suzuki GSX-R600, was engaged in two thrilling 10-lap races with Christan Casella and Suzuki rider Brodie Waters.
Twenty-three-year-old Herfoss, who is only in his second full season of Supersport racing after swapping from Supermoto at the end of 2008, went elbow-to-elbow with his two adversaries in each race at a meeting run in conjunction with a round of the V8 Supercar Championship Series.
The Team Suzuki rider recorded the fastest lap in race one on his way to a 2.340sec victory over Waters, with Casella third. Waters had led the opening two laps, but Herfoss proved too strong in the latter part of the race.
“I had a couple of scary moments in race one when I nearly hit some seagulls, but I wasn’t sure how close Brodie was behind so I didn’t want to back off,” said Herfoss.
“Then when I came around Turn 12 there was a tortoise trying to cross the track. I was pretty glad to see the chequered flag, that’s for sure.”
In race two Herfoss was engaged in another titanic battle with Casella and Waters, with Waters leading the opening four laps, then Casella the next three, before the Team Suzuki rider forced his way to the front for the next two laps.
But a minor error at Turn 10 on the final lap saw Herfoss run slightly wide with Casella eventually winning a drag race to the finish line to take a 0.003sec win in a photo-finish. Waters was 0.967sec back in third.
“I’m disappointed with my small mistake, but happy to have won the round and extended the championship lead,” said Herfoss.
With one round remaining, Herfoss leads the Australian Supersport Championship on 224pts from Casella 193 and Waters 179.
In the Australian Superbike Championship Team Suzuki riders Shawn Giles and Robbie Bugden finished fifth and eighth overall after chasing a set-up they were comfortable with on the fast and challenging 4.45km Victorian circuit. The round was won by Wayne Maxwell from current championship leader Bryan Staring.
Giles, a three-time Australian Superbike Champion, finished fourth and seventh in each race after starting from the second row of the grid. The 40-year-old won an engaging battle with Suzuki rider Scott Charlton and Shannon Johnson in race one by just 0.770sec, but was unable to repeat the result in race two after getting away to a bad start.
Giles’ 31-point haul from the two races sees the Team Suzuki rider just 6.5pts off third overall in the championship.
Bugden, a three-time New Zealand Superbike Champion, finished sixth and eighth in the two 10-lap races in his first outing on the Phillip Island circuit in 2010. Bugden missed the opening round of this year’s Australian Superbike Championship at Phillip Island in February as he was defending his 2009 New Zealand Superbike title.
With one round remaining Bryan Staring leads the series on 211pts from Wayne Maxwell 192.5, Glenn Allerton 149, Scott Charlton (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 143 and Shawn Giles 142.5.
Missing from the grid for Round Six’s two Superbike races was the Team Suzuki
GSX-R1000 of reigning Australian champion Josh Watters, the 23-year-old still recovering from an accident in early July in the USA when testing for the US Suzuki Superbike team. Waters is expected to return for the final round in November.
The series now heads to Tasmania’s Symmons Plains circuit on November 12-14 for the final round, to be run in conjunction with the V8 Supercars.
PHIL TAINTON – TEAM MANAGER
“Troy’s performance this weekend again showed maturity beyond his years. For someone in just his second full season of road racing his results have been exceptional.
“Pole position, a win and a second this weekend have put Troy in a strong position for the 2010 Supersport championship as we head to the final round in Tasmania in November.
“It was a challenging weekend finding a set-up for the Superbike guys, especially with the changeable weather conditions.
“Phillip Island is a circuit that puts big demands on the rear tyres of the Superbikes, and the heat generated through the fast corners is the highest we encounter on any circuit.
“It was great exposure for the team and our sponsors to be racing in front of a large crowd with the V8 Supercars, and to have television coverage on Seven in prime time viewing. Team Suzuki is now looking forward to doing it again at Symmons Plains in Tasmania at the final round.”
TROY HERFOSS
“I’m pleased with the overall weekend result, and it’s good to win the round, but I’m disappointed with the small mistake I made in race two that cost me the win.
“It would have been good to win in front of the big Sunday crowd, although I’ve increased my points lead so I am happy with that because our focus is the championship.
“It was a close battle between Brodie (Waters), Christan (Casella) and myself in race two and I was sitting back planning my move. I wanted the win, not just to ride for the points. But I ran wide at Turn 10, and that allowed Christan to close up and then get by.
“The bike was awesome and the team did a great job. I’m looking forward to Tassie.”
SHAWN GILES
“I was happy with the opening race, and winning the battle for fourth was a good result.
“Phillip Island is one of my favourite tracks, but it really punishes the tyres because of the high speeds. It’s always a balancing act between grip and making the tyres last the distance.
“We made some set-up changes for race two and I was confident of getting on the podium. But I got a bad start and got caught up in the pack in the early laps.
“The team worked non-stop all weekend, and kept making set-up changes until I had the confidence to push harder. I can’t thank them enough. I had one of the fastest bikes through the speed trap at 307km/h.”
ROBBIE BUGDEN
“It was a challenging weekend for me as I haven’t raced at Phillip Island since the final round in November last year, so it was my first time here on the new control tyres.
“Finding a good set-up on such a fast circuit is always a challenge, and losing a session on Friday because of the wet conditions didn’t help. But we made good progress every time we went out on the circuit.
“It’s just a pity the meeting wasn’t starting Sunday afternoon, as I feel I could have challenged for the podium.”
JOSHUA WATERS
“It’s obviously disappointing not to be racing, but it’s important that I’m fully fit before I get back on the bike. Suzuki won’t let me rush my return because they are focussed on my long term racing goals.
“Team Suzuki and Suzuki Racesafe have been monitoring my progress and making sure I’ve been getting regular medical attention.
“I expect to be back on the bike for the final round at Symmons Plains in Tasmania.”
— Demolition Plus Gas Honda
Honda riders dominated the podium at round six of the Australian Superbike Championships held at a rainy Phillip Island, with Demolition Plus GAS Honda’s Wayne Maxwell taking away a hard earned round win after an intense on track battle with compatriot rider Bryan Staring (Cougar Bourbon Honda).
Maxwell retained his position in the series with a 2-1 race finish, opposite to Staring’s 1-2 finish, ultimately putting the two riders in exactly the same overall position as when they fronted for the event.
Series 2008 Champion Glenn Allerton pulled up the rear with 34 points to make it an all Honda podium.
Maxwell and his Team hit their pace early on showing incredible speed on the CBR1000RR during a wet qualifying session.
“We were about three seconds ahead of everyone else early on in qualifying, and we were in good shape for race one,” said Team Manager Geoff Winzer.
“Unfortunately we had some issues with grip and Wayne had to pull out all stops to finish where he did.”
“We softened the bike up for Sunday’s race but still didn’t get the grip we had hoped for. I could see the determination on Wayne’s face though. That was some incredible racing on Sunday with the lead constantly changing, and we could just tell he wasn’t going to settle for anything other than first.”
Maxwell who said he was hoping the weekend would have put him closer to the pointy edge of the championship, goes to the final round at Symmons Plains, Tasmania, November 12 -14, 2010 on 192.5 points to Staring’s 211.
“We didn’t have the opportunity to test at the Island prior to this weekend so we missed out a bit there on valuable track time,” Wayne said.
“Things improved as the weekend went by though. It just took us to the second race to get where we needed to be and I knew I had to win to keep the Championship alive.”
— Shannon Johnson
Our weekend started similar to previous race meetings this year, stressful and very busy for the team. Our first qualifying session was wet, we set the #1 bike up for those conditions so we could collect data. We ended the session in tenth place, just outside top eight for Superpole. Thankfully the track dried up for the second session. Although I never managed to complete a full lap before having a problem that forced me out. This was to be our final session but due to earlier delays this session was cut short and they gave us another short twenty minute session at the end of the day. Which was very lucky as my time in the wet session meant I would not have qualified for the races! So we all quickly turned the spare bike back into a dry bike, even I got in and spun the spanners with my leathers still on as we had very little time.
With only four minute left in the session I was sitting in tenth, as we still had a new tyre left I said to the boys put that new tyre in and be ready for anything. As I left the pits there was two minute left in session I had a new rear slick tyre and it had just started to lightly sprinkle rain. I had only one option, close my eyes and open the gas. My lap was enough to put me well inside the top eight in sixth. Superpole here we come.
We made some changes for superpole some worked some didn’t, but at least I was able to entertain the crowd and managed to improve one position to fifth.
Race one I made a decent start, I was pinched for a jump start but was unable to be shown video proof, so I had to take it on the chin. Which was a shame as throughout the race for the first time this year we managed to get stronger as the race went on. We were down on speed but were able to look after the tyres better I went in to the last lap in sixth but crossed the line in fourth. Other than the 10 seconds penalty it was a great result for us and nice to see some smiles.
Race two I had different rear tyre that wasn’t as consistent as race one. However in the early stages I managed to barge my way into second place, by far the closest to the front I have been all year. I was doing all I could to stay with the leaders but was losing out in areas I could do nothing about. The last few laps I was lapping quicker than the riders in front but was unable to get in front so got stuck at their pace. Finishing in sixth place was still an improvement and we made steps forward with the bike. We now have a few weeks off which the team desperately needs to get on top of a few things.
I on the other hand am in the final stages of finalizing a deal to race at the Phillip Island round of Moto 2, so fingers crossed everything falls into place and I will be on the grid racing with the best riders in the world.
Massive thanks to the sponsors and partners that have helped get me to this stage for the Moto 2 ride and of course assisting me throughout the entire 2010 season.
— CJC Racing
CJC BMW Racing set for championship showdown at final round
Craig Coxhell and the privateer CJC BMW Racing team once again took the honours, with pole position and two race wins on the all-new BMW S 1000 RR as the ASBK shared the limelight with the V8 Supercars at Phillip Island this weekend. The result moves the team to within 24 points of the championship lead despite missing the first two rounds of the series, with only the final round left to run at Symmonds Plains.
This was the team’s first outing at Phillip Island, having missed round 1 earlier this year and the team’s hard work enabled Craig to come away with the win in notoriously variable Phillip Island conditions that started wet on Friday and finished cloudy but dry on Sunday.
Craig Coxhell: “We’re making progress all the time and we’ve learnt a lot about the bike this weekend. We resolved a couple of little things that had been niggling us in the wet on Friday and then made improvements across the whole weekend with our dry setup. Even though the final setup wasn’t perfect, it was good enough for the win – the team have done another great job this weekend, especially considering the reduced track time here compared to our normal stand alone rounds.
I would have liked to be a little higher up outright, but the tyre just wasn’t there in the end. Everyone struggled with tyre wear this weekend, Phillip Island is such a killer track for tyres and we’re a bit behind the eight ball development-wise with the new bike so this is a great result, I’m really happy for the team and for BMW.”
The racing was close, 7th and 10th outright was OK but we really want to put more of the superbike spec machines behind us. The pit lane was constantly filled with race fans, many interested to see the new BMW. Luckily on Sunday the weather was cooperative, so it made for a great show both on and off the track.
Rob Coxhell: “What a great weekend, we’ve had a great time here again and came away closer to the championship lead. We haven’t really been thinking about the championship so far to be honest, this is a development year for us, but its mathematically possible now if a couple of things go our way. That would be a bit of a fairy tale for CJC BMW given we missed the first two rounds so we’ll just have to see how we go. Symmonds Plains is a lot like Queensland Raceway in terms of setup and we had the bike working really well up there so hopefully we can have our best result of the year there and finish on a high.“
— Aark Triumph
Aark Racing / Peter Stevens Motorcycles / Triumph Daytona 675 had another hugely successful meeting at Phillip Island this past weekend, at Round 6 of the Viking Group ASBK, which was run as a 2 + 4 meeting with the V8 Super cars.
Christan finished 3rd in race 1, held on Saturday, then topped this off with a win on Sunday in race 2, resulting in 2nd overall for the round on 43 points. This was Christans’ 2nd win too date in the series.
The second race was a real nail biter, with only .003 of a second separating Casella from Herfoss, with Brodie Waters only .970 behind
in 3rd position. Christan also set his fastest lap of the race on the last lap at 1:37.568.
“We are thrilled with the result” commented team owner Andrew Offer. “Christan came back in after race one and requested a small change with the set up, confident that he could improve on his result in race 2, which as we all now know…he did.
To be able run with the factory bikes at the ‘pointy end’ of the field is a huge achievement and very satisfying for all involved with the team. This weekend’s results have all of us over the moon”.
Christan is currently sitting in 2nd position in the series on 193 points and 1st overall in the privateers’ cup on 46 points.
