 2014 Swann Australasian FX Superbike Championship – Round Five – Wakefield Park – Preliminary Report
Superbike
Team Honda Racing rider Wayne Maxwell claimed round honours at the fifth round at Wakefield Park on Sunday, after posting a race win and two second placings across his three races to extend his championship lead over teammate Jamie Stauffer to 21 points with only three races remaining in the 2014 Swann Australasian FX Superbike as it heads to its conclusion at Sydney Motorsport Park late in November.
Teammate Jamie Stauffer finished second for the round after a consistent day on the track, where he finished on the podium in all three races with a second and two thirds.
Despite a disappointing sixth in the final race, NextGen Motorsports’ Glenn Allerton finished the round in third place just ahead of Josh Hook, and Troy Herfoss. Herfoss took two race wins but a spectacular crash in race one, his Fireblade somersaulting itself to complete destruction, saw Team Honda scramble to prepare the only spare machine across the four-rider team to get Herfoss back on track for the final two bouts where Herfoss repaid their faith with two wins.
Race 1
There was a sea of red at the front of the grid when the opening race of the day commenced, and off the line it was Stauffer who burst into the lead ahead of teammates Troy Herfoss and Maxwell.
By the end of the opening lap, Herfoss had moved to the front, while Allerton pressed the Honda riders in fourth place.
Maxwell passed Stauffer on lap three of the race and with a mere 1.25 seconds separating the top three riders through three laps, the racing was intense.
Allerton was riding comfortably in fourth and had gained a comfortable lead of more than four seconds from fifth in Mike Jones (Crazy Dogs Kawasaki).
Jones was soon passed by Josh Hook (Team Honda Racing), while Cru Halliday (Yamaha Racing Team) was faring the best of the blue bikes back in eighth spot.
Up front Herfoss and Maxwell put a nice gap to Stauffer, with Maxwell just holding back and waiting for the right time to make his move.
On lap nine disaster struck for Herfoss as he came off the track at turn four and onto the infield – ending his race, and giving him a DNF.
That opened the door for Maxwell, and the experienced pilot knew all he had to do was ride smart over the final two laps – cruising his way to a comfortable race win.
Stauffer ended the race in second spot continuing his good weekend form, while Allerton took the minor podium placing in third.
Race 2
As the lights turned green for race three, it was again Wayne Maxwell who stormed to the lead at turn one, ahead of teammates Stauffer and Herfoss with Allerton holding fourth.
Herfoss had made his way into second by the end of the opening lap, and looking for redemption from race one, he closed the gap to be right on the back of Maxwell.
The quartet settled into a comfortable race rythym before a huge off on turn eight saw the race red flagged and forced the riders back to the pits.
When the second part of the race got up and running, Maxwell moved around the outside of turn one and took the lead again from Stauffer and Herfoss.
Hook moved himself up into fourth when Allerton went over one of the corner ripple strips before both Bugden and Allerton moved back in front of him.
Allerton then made his way into fourth, but it was once again a battle of the Honda’s with Maxwell, Herfoss (who moved into second on lap two) and Stauffer streaking clear.
Heading through six laps there were no changes of positions at the front, with the gap between first and third just over half a second, and Allerton nearly three seconds behind in fourth.
On the penultimate lap Herfoss took the lead and rode on to win the race with Maxwell forced to settle for second, Stauffer a whisker behind in third and Allerton holding on to fourth.
Race 3
As race three got underway, it was Stauffer taking the lead from Herfoss, Maxwell and Hook – the later having a great start off the line forcing Allerton back into fifth.
Maxwell passed Herfoss on turn nine after the pair had touched a couple of times on the opening lap before a red flag was raised forcing a full restart.
At the restart it was Stauffer, Maxwell, Herfoss and Hook with Allerton again dropping back from the front row of the grid – this time back into seventh.
With nothing to lose, Hook made a wonderful pass on Herfoss into third and the race then became a battle between the four Honda’s.
Maxwell moved his way past Stauffer and into a lead that he quickly set about building on while Herfoss moved back past Hook on the final corner of the third lap.
Half a lap later the hometown hero was in second position as he made his way past Stauffer and eyed down race leader Maxwell.
Behind the Honda foursome was Allerton, Bugden and Jones – all battling it out for a top-five finish.
Herfoss moved into the lead with a lap to go before Maxwell came back past him on the straight heading into the last lap.
But Herfoss got himself back in front and held on to take the race win, with Maxwell and Stauffer split seconds behind in second and third.
Hook finished the race in fourth while Jones took out fifth place.
In the overall championship, Maxwell now holds a 21-point lead from Stauffer heading into the final round, with Herfoss a further 36 points adrift in third.Â
Superbike Round 5 Results:Â
- Wayne MAXWELL (VIC) 69
- Jamie STAUFFER (NSW) 62
- Glenn ALLERTON (NSW) 53
- Josh HOOK (NSW)Â 51
- Troy HERFOSS (NSW) 50
- Robert BUGDEN (QLD) 44
- Glenn SCOTT (NSW)Â 43
- Mike JONES (QLD)Â 42
- Cru HALLIDAY (NSW) 36
- Sean CONDON (NSW) 32
Overall Superbike Championship Standings:
- Wayne MAXWELL (VIC) 317
- Jamie STAUFFER (NSW) 296
- Troy HERFOSS (NSW) 260
- Glenn ALLERTON (NSW) 254
- Cru HALLIDAY (NSW) 220
- Josh HOOK (NSW)Â 211
- Robert BUGDEN (QLD) 206
- Sean CONDON (NSW) 193
- Glenn SCOTT (NSW)Â 178
- Mike JONES (QLD)Â 160
Supersport
Aiden Wagner (Wagner Soil Testing) completed his fairytale weekend at Wakefield Park on Sunday, taking all three race wins in the Supersport class at the 2014 Swann Insurance Australasian Superbike Championship.
By sweeping the day Wagner moved to within one point of the series leader Aaron Morris (Maxima Yamaha) who could only manage three, third-place finishes for the day.
Allsite Concrete Cutting’s Callum Spriggs finished all three races in second to finish second overall on the day.
Race 1
As the lights turned green in the opening Supersport race, Wagner got a poor start from pole position and ended the first turn in fourth spot.
Spriggs got the perfect start from third on the grid to take the lead from Morris at the first turn.
A couple of corners into the race Wagner pushed up into third, and the top three streeted clear of the rest of the field, that was lead in fourth by Jay Presepio.
Less than 1.5 seconds separated the top three by the end of the second lap, and as they settled into the race Spriggs looked extremely comfortable in the position of race leader.
But on the third lap the red flag came out after Cam Russell crashed at turn ten, forcing riders back to the pits and the race to be restarted with eight laps remaining.
When the race resumed, Spriggs again got a great start to take the lead while Wagner moved into second and Morris third at the first turn.
The trio again pushed clear from the field, and coming down the straight at the end of the first lap, Wagner moved into the lead.
Again less than two seconds separated the top three through four laps of the race, as Wagner then set about extending his lead at the front.
Morris tried desperately hard over the final two laps to catch Spriggs, but it was to no avail – the series leader having to settle for third, Spriggs finishing in second, and Wagner recording a well-deserved race win.
Race 2
In race two it was again Spriggs who fared best off the line, taking the lead into turn one from Morris and Wagner.
Wagner passed Morris and moved into second on the opening few turns and began to put the pressure on Spriggs, before passing him on the straight at the end of the opening lap.
Just .288 of a second separated the pair at the end of lap four, while the gap to Morris had pushed out to 2.310 seconds, with Michael Blair (Campbell Home Timber and Hardware) in fourth and Presepio in fifth.
The gap to Morris increased significantly over the next few laps and the only question left to answer was whether or not Spriggs had the speed to catch Wagner.
He didn’t – Wagner super impressive in claiming his second race win on the trot, leaving Spriggs to take second and Morris with third.
Blair and William Davidson (Thomas Brother’s Toyota) finished in fourth and fifth respectively.
Race 3
In the final race of the day Morris was forced back into seventh after a horrid start, while Wagner and Spriggs took up their usual positions at the front of the field.
Morris managed to claw himself back up to fifth by the end of the opening lap and into fourth by the end of lap two.
Up front Wagner and Spriggs swapped the lead four times on the opening lap, before Wagner took control of the race and working himself into a comfortable rhythm.
While Spriggs was never too far behind, Wagner kept him at bay from lap three for the remainder of the race recording a wonderful race win to make it three from three on the day.
Spriggs’ second placing gave him a trifecta of seconds at round five, while Morris did well to move up into third spot by the time he reached the finish line.
Wagner and Morris will now be battling for the title at Eastern Creek at the final round in November, and with just one point separating the pair, who will come away as champion is anyone’s guess.
Round 5 Supersport Results:
- Aiden WAGNER (QLD) 75
- Callum SPRIGGS (QLD) 66
- Aaron MORRIS (NSW) 60
- Michael BLAIR (NSW) 54
- Aaiden COOTE (WA)Â 45
- Luke MITCHELL (NSW) 41
- Jay PRESEPIO (SA)Â 40
- Brayden ELLIOTT (NSW) 38
- Cambridge OLIVIER (ACT) 37
- Michael KNIGHT (NSW) 30
Overall Supersport Championship Standings:
- Aaron MORRIS (NSW) 305
- Aiden WAGNER (QLD) 304
- Callum SPRIGGS (QLD) 240
- Aaiden COOTE (WA)Â 176
- Daniel FALZON (SA)Â 165
- Jay PRESEPIO (SA)Â 162
- Luke MITCHELL (NSW) 146
- William DAVIDSON (NSW) 125
- Mason COOTE (WA)Â 123
- Brayden ELLIOTT (NSW) 118
Formula Oz
In the opening race of the day, Paul Byrne (LTR Honda) left from pole position and flew into the first corner, taking the inside line and the lead of the race.
He was hotly pursued by Ben Nicolson (NextGen Motorsports) and Brayden Carr (Fastaway Couriers), with Gas Honda Racing’s Chris Trounson back in fourth.
On the second lap of the race, Nicolson dropped back to fourth as Carr moved his way into second and Trounson worked his way into third.
But up front Byrne took control of the race – increasing his lead over Carr to nearly three seconds through six laps of the eight-lap race.
With one lap remaining a crash at turn eight saw the red flag produced and the race declared – Byrne taking a well-earned win ahead of Carr, Nicolson and Trounson.
Trounson got a great start in race two to take the early lead, with Byrne moving into second, Nicolson into third and Carr into fourth.
By the end of the opening lap Byrne had moved into the lead, while Carr had passed Nicolson into third.
Coming down the straight on lap number three, Carr moved into second spot and set about putting the moves on Byrne, looking at every opportunity to get past as the riders battled wheel to wheel.
Carr finally made the pass on lap six to take the lead and ended up riding away to a comfortable win from Byrne, with Nicolson in third, Matthew Harding in fourth and Trounson in fifth.
In the final race Byrne got of to a flying start – riding on the inside at the opening corner to take the lead.
It didn’t last very long however as Carr displayed an incredible turn of speed to zip past him on his way to turn two.
Behind Byrne, Nicolson, Trounson and Harding battled for position, while up front Carr went about extending his lead.
By the half-way point of the race his lead was over a second to Byrne who was fighting hard to shake off a determined Nicolson.
With Nicolson forced off the track on lap six, Harding pressed his case for second spot, and on the final lap he managed to pip Byrne on the like to finish second on the podium.
Carr ended up winning by more than five seconds – doing enough to take the overall round win from Byrne with Harding in third.
In the overall championship points, Tounson holds a slender 14 point lead from both Carr and Harding heading into the final round at Eastern Creek in November.
Kawasaki FX300 Ninja CupÂ
The first race began in antil-climactic fashion when a rider when down on the opening lap, forcing the red flag to come out and sending riders back into the pits.
When the race was restarted it was Brandon Demmery (Noise Guard Racing) taking the lead from Kyle Buckley (Bcperformance Motogo), while usual suspects Rennie Scaysbrook (Kawasaki Motors Finance) and Kiwi Bailie Perriton were also in the mix.
It became a battle of two as Scaysbrook was forced out of the race when he crashed at turn ten on the third lap, while Perriton was handed a 15-second penalty for a jump-start.
Demmery and Buckley swapped positions for the lead multiple times throughout the race, but when they crossed the line to the chequered flag, it was Buckley with his nose in front taking the win.
Although Perriton was the third bike across the line, his penalty meant that Sophie Lovett (Lovetts Earthmoving) was able to grab a podium finish.
In the second race of the day it was again the combination of Demmery and Buckley out the front, with Demmery taking the lead and looking to ride clear.
Behind the pair were Lovett and Perriton and by the end of the second lap Perriton had moved into third place.
The gap between each of the top four began to expand and after three laps there was more than a second between each of the riders.
Demmery was not going to have it all his own way however, and over the next couple of laps Buckley stepped up the pressure
But his efforts were in vain – Demmery setting a new 300cc lap record on the final lap of the race to take the win to reverse the standings from race one.
Perriton finished in third, with Lovett holding onto fourth from a fast-finishing Scaysbrook.
In the final race of the day, Demmery again got to the front with Buckley, Perriton and Scaysbrook in arrears.
The battle between the top two was intense once again, and Demmery and Buckley tested each other out throughout the race.
While it looked as though Demmery would hold onto his lead, Buckley again forced himself into the lead with a great passing move on the final lap to take the race win.
Buckley finished in second, while Perriton rounded out the top-three.
Buckley’s three point round win over Demmery has given him a two-point championship lead heading into the final round, while Lovett is a fair way behind in third.
Pro Twins
James Arnold (The Little Red Grape) got off to a great start in the opening race, shooting off the grid into the lead from Michael McMillan (McMillan Criminal Law) and Simon Galloway (Cessnock Motorcycles).
McMillan pushed Arnold and on lap three made the pass to move his Aprilia into the lead – a lead that he comfortably held onto for the rest of the race.
In the end he finished 1.699 seconds clear of Arnold, while Galloway was a further 3.445 seconds behind in third.
In the second race it was McMillan taking the early lead, with Arnold and Galloway in second and third.
The trio had a fair gap between each other for most of the race, and McMillan pulled away to record a 1.461 second win over Arnold, with Galloway a further 6.121 seconds behind in third.
He couldn’t complete the trifecta however, as the final race saw Galloway claim the narrowest of race wins.
He finished the final race lass than a second ahead of Arnold and McMillan to take the chequered flag in first, while his third placing was enough to hand McMillan the round win.
In the overall series points, Galloway holds an 11-point buffer over Arnold heading into the final round.
Nakedbikes
Adrian Pierpont and Richard Draper (Sugar Plum Racing) were the only two Nakedbike riders to take the field in race one, after a crash in practice on Friday ended series leader Angus Reekie’s (KTM Racing) weekend.
Pierpoint had a comfortable lead over Draper in the race until lap three when he came off the track and re-entered behind the Honda rider.
A lap later he was back in front and by the end of the race was nearly 15 seconds clear of Draper, taking an impressive race win.
Race two in the Nakedbikes saw Pierpoint in front of Draper at the first turn, and it was a lead that he never surrendered.
Pierpoint finished a lengthy 26 seconds ahead of his rival taking his second class win for the day.
He backed that up in the final race beating Draper by nearly 45 seconds tin race three.
As each rider was competing in separate Nakedbike classes they effectively each won their respective classes for the day.
Pierpoint now holds a 13-point lead over Reekie heading into the final round.
FX Challenge Cup
Just one race was held for the day in the FX Challenge Cup with three riders competing, and it was BikeBiz pilot Sean Condon who crossed the line first.
He received 25 points to extend his lead in the A&B grade of the class, while Kiwi Ryan Hampton claimed maximum points in the C&D grade.
Hampton finished ahead of Jason Ivkovic, who now holds a slender six-point lead over his New Zealand rival heading into the final round.
eFXCÂ
Four riders took to the track for the opening Electric Bike race at Wakefield Park, and it was Danny Pottage (O’Hanlon Electric Motorsports) who lead the way in early.
Pottage opened up a fair gap on his rivals, and by the time the chequered flag was raised he had built up an 11.328 second gap on second place finisher, Daniel Ripperton (Ripperton Racing).
Craig White finished in third ahead of Jason Morris (Varley Electric Vehicles).
The second race of the day finished with riders in exactly the same order, with Ripperton six seconds behind Pottage.
The result gives Pottage a 31-point lead heading into the last round.
