Yamaha Racing Team look towards ASBK Round Three at SMP
The Yamaha Racing Team burst out of the blocks at Round 1 of the Yamaha Motor Finance Australian Superbike Championship presented by Motul Pirelli, however at Round 2 at Wakefield Park Raceway, things didn’t go exactly to plan for the factory Yamaha racing team.
There is no denying that at round one, no one was able to catch the lightening fast Yamaha rider Glenn Allerton, and as a result the man was undefeated – plus teammate Wayne Maxwell also shared a position on the podium at the conclusion of the ASBK season opener. However, three short weeks ago it was a different story, with the Yamaha machines left absent from the overall round two podium.
So now, as the ASBK prepares for Round 3 at Sydney Motorsport Park this weekend, the YRT boys Allerton, Maxwell, and Cru Halliday are out for redemption. We caught up with the Yamaha trio to find out exactly what happened at Round 2, and why fans will be treated to action packed racing at Round 3 this weekend.
Glenn Allerton
“Round two obviously didn’t go as planned, I came off in that one particular corner that I had crashed at in testing prior to round two. After the crash I had to get on the spare bike, so to get third in the second race is still good the way I see it.
“We just have to put it down to ‘that’s racing’. To come away from Wakefield Park still only two points off the championship lead is still a good result. There is such a strong field in the Superbike class this year, and round two really put it in to perspective how important it is to finish races and keep scoring championship points. At Round 3 I am still going to go out there and try and win as many races as I can.
“Being able to test before this weekend at SMP, I feel like we have achieved a lot. I was able to work with the bike and was able to find something. We were also able to work on areas of the track where previously I struggled and managed to pick up times. I am excited about getting on the bike again, I love riding the Yamaha, so it’s going to be great to be able to race in front of my friends and family at my home round, and to be in a race situation again, which is where I do my best work. “
Wayne Maxwell
“At round two we had good speed all weekend, we were always in the top three in each of the sessions, I just probably wasn’t aggressive enough at the start of race one and as a result I got swamped and had to make my way forward. Then I saw my teammate Glenn fall off and I thought ‘there’s not many laps to go’, and next thing I knew I was on the ground myself in the exact same part of the track. It was an area that we knew was possibly going to be a problem, and it caught us both out but that’s just racing and it’s the way it goes sometimes. We’re on two wheels and sometimes the bikes fall over. We have learnt a lot though and we’re in a better position now.
“We had a test at Sydney Motorsport Park a few weeks ago, and we really worked hard when we were there and I think we’re in a good position. Sydney is a very different track to Wakefield Park and the Yamaha does work well around Sydney. If we stay on top of things and the weather is good, then I think we can come out and be competitive. It’s still only round three and by Sunday we will be at the halfway point in the championship. So much has already happened in the first three rounds and so much can change between now and the finale at Winton in October. We are feeling good, and we’re all exciting to get back into it.”
Cru Halliday
“I don’t think there was much of a change to our form at round one to round two. I think it was just that we had a bit of bad luck come our way, especially me getting tangled up with riders, but as far as the team goes we have some awesome pace which you can see through Wayne’s win at Wakefield Park and Glenn’s wins at Phillip Island. I think the crashes were just bad luck more than anything. I was happy going to Wakefield but I sort of expected myself to be on the podium. I really needed some more points because of where I’m at in the championship.
“This weekend at round three I really need to gather some more points and stay consistent. We have tested at Eastern Creek and we tested quite strong, so this is a track that we all know, and it’s a track that we’ve had some good results at. I don’t see why we can’t go Yamaha 1,2,3 this round. The bike really suits the track and all three of us know the circuit like the back of our hands. I really want to get an overall win, I went there and did it years ago and there’s no reason why I can’t do it again.”
Round 3 of the 2016 Yamaha Motor Finance Australian Superbike Championship presented by Motul Pirelli, will be held this weekend April 16-17 at Sydney Motorsport Park.
