Staring moves closer to maiden Superbike title with successful Phillip 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 Group Australian Superbike Championship, Phillip Island Round 6 Results 1. Wayne MAXWELL (NSW), 45 2. Bryan STARING (QLD), 45 3. Glenn ALLERTON (NSW), 34 4. Scott CHARLTON (VIC), 33 5. Shawn GILES (VIC), 31 6. Jamie STAUFFER (NSW), 29 7. Shannon JOHNSON (VIC), 29 8. Robert BUGDEN (QLD), 28 9. Craig McMARTIN (NSW), 25 10. Cru HALLIDAY (NSW)22 Viking Group Australian Superbike Championship Standings 1. Bryan STARING (QLD), 211 2. Wayne MAXWELL (NSW), 192.5 3. Glenn ALLERTON (NSW), 149 4. Scott CHARLTON (VIC), 143 5. Shawn GILES (VIC), 142.5 6. Jamie STAUFFER (NSW), 127 7. Shannon JOHNSON (VIC), 119 8. Robert BUGDEN (QLD), 115 9. Joshua WATERS (VIC), 105.5 10. John ALLEN (QLD), 77.5 More, from a press release issued by TwoThree Public Relations: Waters rises for return to podium at Phillip Island V8 round Victorian Brodie Waters has returned to podium form with a superb third place finish at round six of the InsureMyRide Australian Supersport Championship, contested alongside the V8 Supercars Championship Series’ L&H 500 at Phillip Island on 10-12 September. The 18-year-old Waters Racing/Sunstate Racing Suzuki rider put the disappointment of an 11th place finish at Queensland’s most recent round behind him to score third overall behind Team Suzuki’s Troy Herfoss and Triumph’s Christan Casella with 2-3 results for the weekend. Waters rounded out the front row of the grid after qualifying in fourth position on Friday afternoon with just minimal practice time on his GSX-R600, before racing to a hard-fought second place in the opening 10-lap affair on Saturday afternoon. A titanic bout with Herfoss and Casella during Sunday’s final race of the weekend resulted in a third place finish, albeit just 0.970sec off the lead after 10 nail-biting laps around the world famous 4.445-kilometre Island circuit. “I’m not happy with where I’ve finished because I would have really liked to get a 1-2 finish for Suzuki behind Troy,” Waters commented. “But third position is still quite good considering I was battling for the top 15 at Queensland, so I’ve been able to bounce back well and I’m pretty happy with being able to do that. Now we can look toward Tasmania’s final round and see if we can climb to second in the series.” In an added reward for his efforts at Phillip Island, Waters also clocked the fastest lap of the entire weekend in race two of the Supersport category with a 1:37.492sec set in the closing laps of the round. Waters placed third overall for his fourth national podium appearance of the year in what has been a breakthrough season for the Mildura local, now holding down a comfortable third position in the series heading into the season finale at Symmons Plains in Tasmania on 12-14 November. With just two races remaining in the season at the seventh and final round, Waters will be focusing on securing second place in the series as he sits just 14 points in arrears of Casella, also maintaining a slim mathematical shot at the championship crown entering the round. PHILLIP ISLAND 2+4 SUPERSPORT RESULTS: 1. Troy Herfoss 2. Christan Casella 3. Brodie Waters (Sunstate/Waters Racing Suzuki GSX-R600) 4. Ben Burke 5. Aaron Gobert 2010 SUPERSPORT CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (after six of seven rounds): 1. Troy Herfoss 224 points 2. Christan Casella 193pts 3. Brodie Waters (Sunstate/Waters Racing Suzuki GSX-R600) 179pts 4. Aaron Gobert 129pts 5. Chris Quinn 128pts More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki News Service: 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 at the weekend. 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. The 23 year old, 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 Waters, 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 Budgen: “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.” Superbike Overall Results – Round 6: 1 Wayne Maxwell; 2 Bryan Staring; 3 Glenn Allerton; 4 Scott Charlton (Suzuki GSX-R1000); 5 Shawn Giles (Suzuki GSX-R1000); 6 Jamie Stauffer; 7 Shannon Johnson; 8 Robbie Bugden (Suzuki GSX-R1000); 9 Craig McMartin; 10 Cru Halliday. Superbike Championship Points (after 6 of 7 rounds): 1 Bryan Staring 211pts; 2 Wayne Maxwell 192.5; 3 Glenn Allerton 149; 4 Scott Charlton (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 143; 5 Shawn Giles (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 142.5; 6 Jamie Stauffer 127; 7 Shannon Johnson 119; 8 Robbie Bugden (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 115; 9 Josh Waters (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 105.5; 10 John Allen 68.5. Supersport Overall Results – Round 6 : 1 Troy Herfoss (Suzuki GSX-R600); 2 Christan Casella; 3 Brodie Waters (Suzuki GSX-R600); 4 Ben Burke; 5 Aaron Gobert; 6 Michael Jones; 7 Dylan Mavin; 8 Ryan Taylor; 9 Blake Leigh-Smith (Suzuki GSX-R600); 10 Des Darby. Supersport Championship Points (after 6 of 7 rounds): 1 Troy Herfoss (Suzuki GSX-R600) 224pts; 2 Christan Casella 193; 3 Brodie Waters (Suzuki GSX-R600) 179; 4 Aaron Gobert 129; 5 Chris Quinn 128; 6 Ben Burke 119; 7 Ryan Taylor 104; 8 Blake Leigh-Smith (Suzuki GSX-R600) 85; 9 Des Darby 85; 10 Sam Heath 80.