Lap records tumble as Stauffer takes controversial Hidden Valley round win Team Honda Racing’s Jamie Stauffer has won Round 6 of the QBE Australian Superbike Championship amidst controversy, after teammate Josh Hook and Team Suzuki rider Wayne Maxwell were both handed 10 second penalties for jumping the start in today’s final 17-lap race. Stauffer, who finished second to Maxwell in Race 1, set a new lap record of 1.06.802 in Race 2 and took the round win ahead of Maxwell and Team Volvo Suzuki rider Robbie Bugden. “This weekend we really needed to turn it around it hasn’t been that good all year to be honest,” Stauffer explained. “We definitely made some headway but we are still behind Wayne (Maxwell) a bit. He still has a few tenths on us a lap here and there, so we still need to refine a couple of things and get some more speed out of the bike on a worn tyre. “It is unfortunate to beat Wayne like this with a 10 second penalty, but I am sure it will happen to me one day, so I will take the win for now,” he added. Hook ended the round fourth but was handed a second penalty for passing under yellow flag at the Turn 6 hairpin. In the Motul Supersport class, championship leader Daniel Falzon enjoyed the perfect weekend, taking pole position, winning both of today’s 17-lap races and shaving eight-tenths of second off the lap record. “This is awesome for my championship,” Falzon said. “We came into the round with a nine point lead and got pole then two race wins which gave me an 11 point advantage. We are 20 points ahead going into the last round. “To take eight-tenths out of the previous Supersport lap record is a significant amount and I did not expect it. Kawasaki rider Matt Walters secured the Prostock championship with his fifth consecutive round win and hopes his dominant performance in this years series will lead to a move to the Superbike championship in 2014. “It is a great feeling,” Walter said. “We have put in all the hard effort throughout the year and now it has paide off. I couldn’t be happier “We have won every round but I was beaten once by Sean Condon in QLD he pushed me all the way. “Haven’t had it easy it has been hard. We had a great couple of rounds we have done everything right and that is all we could do “I really want to head to the Superbike championship next year. I would love to do it on a Kawasaki, I love the bikes so that would be the ultimate,” he added. The final round of the QBE Australian Superbike Championship will be held at Phillip Island on October 5-6. Top Ten QBE Australian Superbike Round 6 Results – Hidden Valley Raceway, Darwin 1. Jamie STAUFFER (NSW) 45, 2. Wayne MAXWELL (VIC) 44, 3. Robert BUGDEN (QLD) 37, 4. Josh HOOK (NSW) 34, 5. Glenn ALLERTON (NSW) 33, 6. Linden MAGEE (QLD) 30, 7. Beau BEATON (NSW) 28, 8. Phil LOVETT (NSW) 24, 9. Ben HENRY (WA) 24, 10. Cameron BOWMAN (NT) 20 Top Ten QBE Australian Superbike Championship Standings (After Rd 6 of 7) 1. Wayne MAXWELL (VIC) 224, 2. Robert BUGDEN (QLD) 193, 3. Glenn ALLERTON (NSW) 189, 4. Jamie STAUFFER (NSW) 180, 5. Josh HOOK (NSW) 167, 6. Glenn SCOTT (NSW) 132, 7. Linden MAGEE (QLD) 129, 8. Beau BEATON (NSW) 127, 9. Phil LOVETT (NSW) 103, 10. Ben HENRY (WA) 89 Top Ten Motul Supersport Round 6 Results – Hidden Valley Raceway – Darwin 1. Daniel FALZON (SA) 512. Aaron MORRIS (NSW) 403. Callum SPRIGGS (QLD) 354. Mike JONES (QLD) 355. Michael BLAIR (NSW) 316. Mason COOTE (WA) 287. Aaron GOBERT (NSW) 268. Ryan TAYLOR (VIC) 269. Aiden WAGNER (QLD) 2410. Chris QUINN (NSW) 23 Top Ten Motul Supersport Championship Standings (After Rd 6 of 7) 1. Daniel FALZON (SA) 209, 2. Aaron MORRIS (NSW) 189, 3. Michael BLAIR (NSW)166, 4. Chris QUINN (NSW) 153, 5. Callum SPRIGGS (QLD) 147, 6. Aiden WAGNER (QLD) 136, 7. Ryan TAYLOR (VIC) 135, 8. Aaron GOBERT (NSW) 117, 9. Mason COOTE (WA)97, 10. Kyle BUCKLEY (QLD) 86 More, from a press release issued by Team Honda Racing: Team Honda Racing Win at Darwin! 15th September 2013 – Team Honda Racing have taken the overall Round 6 win today at Hidden Valley Raceway with Jamie Stauffer also setting a new lap record in Race 2 with a lap time of 1:06.802 sec. Stauffer finished 2nd in Race 1 this weekend and also recorded the fastest lap of the race, a 1:07.376 sec with team mate Josh Hook in 3rd place. Hook’s day was mixed on the track, receiving a jump start penalty in both races, yet still finishing the races strongly; 3rd in Race 1 and 4th in Race 2 to place 4th overall for Round 6. Team Honda Racing Team Principal, Paul Free could not be more impressed by the entire team this weekend and is pleased to have both riders on the podium. Free: “This was a terrific weekend for Team Honda Racing after a massive amount of hard work by the whole team and it paid off for us with a race win in Race 2 and the overall Round 6 win for Jamie. Disappointing for Wayne with the jump start, I think we’ve all been there. It was fantastic to see Jamie set a new lap record in Race 2. It shows the strength of both the Honda CBR1000RR and the rider. We’ve made some massive steps forward this weekend which I am really pleased and proud to say as the team has worked so hard this year and we have just not quite been there so to finish with the Round 6 win and a new lap record is terrific. Young Josh had a fantastic ride today also; he raced very well in both races. I just can’t say enough about that young rider; he is doing an outstanding job. It was awesome to see Josh have a good go in Race 2, he really pushed hard and did overtake Robbie Bugden on that last lap, however it was under a yellow flag so Josh took 4th place for the race. I couldn’t be more proud of him. For some reason Josh got a jump start penalty in both races so we will debrief on that and see what he may be doing off the start so that it doesn’t happen again. It really was an outstanding weekend for Team Honda Racing. In the past it has not been a happy hunting ground for us and I’m pretty happy to say we turned that right around. We have had trouble off the start at Hidden Valley in previous years and just not been able to be strong off the line. Today for both races, both CBR1000RRs got terrific starts and were strong going down the straight to Turn 1 which really set the Hondas up well on the first lap. I am extremely proud of the whole team today and pleased that the hard work has turned into positive results.” Josh Hook is happy with the event overall despite some hiccups and is focused on the progress made since the previous round. Hook: “This weekend was overall pretty good. We started the weekend just a few tenths off the fastest guys so we’ve come a long way since the last round. The Honda has been working really well all weekend and it is great to see some results with the team having worked so hard. I finished 3rd in the first race which was ok, but we had a few issues with the bike so the team worked on it before Race 2 and the improvement was clear. I would like to thank the team for all their efforts; they are doing a fantastic job. I can’t wait for the next round!” The Round winner for Darwin, Jamie Stauffer is clearly happy with his results from the weekend. Stauffer: “Today’s races and really the entire weekend have been a major step forward for us and it was terrific. We started off not too bad and got faster as the weekend went on. It was great to get a race win and a round win, even though it was by default. We’ve lost race wins before for the same reason so it does happen to us all. I also recorded a new lap record in Race 2 which is great and I have to say the Dunlop tyres were really good this weekend in the Darwin heat so thanks to Dunlop. I think we’ve got a couple of areas we can improve in before the next round and the team will be hard at work before then so I’m looking forward to chasing a win again at Phillip Island. I would like to thank Team Honda Racing for the huge effort they have put in. It has been a bit of a hard year so to see things turn around for everyone here at Hidden Valley is fantastic and a good boost for the team.”