Successful start for 2009 Australian Superbike Championship After months of hard work and a huge build-up, the Woodstock Bourbon 2009 Australian Superbike Championship (ASBK) finally got underway on the weekend at Phillip Island. Tight racing was the order of the weekend in all categories and classes, and the feeling amongst riders, officials and spectators was one of genuine excitement. The opening round has truly set the scene for what will be one of the best Superbike Championships seen in years. Mildura rider Josh Waters took the first round honours ahead of 2008 champion Glenn Allerton and Wayne Maxwell, while Bryan Staring and Christopher Beck lead in the respective Supersport and Superstock classes. “I’m really happy with the outcome of Round One,” Event promoter Yarrive Konsky said. “Managing the event this weekend has been reasonably easy, everyone has been really positive…I have to say a special thanks to Woodstock Bourbon and Motorcycling Australia… we’ve put this Championship together in the space of three months and what we see here is a credit to everyone involved. “One thing we definitely want to do is [not only] improve the Championship, but also improve the Championship status in the eyes of Australians”. Konsky, who rode in the 2008 Championship, was greatly impressed with the quality of racing on offer in Round One. “The race teams are so professional these days, they’re definitely on par with anything else around the world…and as much as it hurt me to sit by the sidelines and watch this year, it’s been some of the closest racing we’ve seen in a long time,” Konsky continued. The first round of the ASBK series took place in conjunction with the opening round of the World Superbike Championship, and Konsky is hopeful that the ASBK series can elevate itself to a point where Australian riders on the world stage will make a return. “I’d love to see some of those guys come back and race in our Championship,” Konsky explained. “I think our level of racing is great, and our lap times proved it this weekend. “One of our key objectives over the next 12 months is to ensure the calendars don’t conflict, and hopefully we can get the likes of Troy Corser competing at an Australian Superbike no different to Chad Reed competing at an Australian Supercross.” Konsky was also delighted at the prospect of the new series appearing on television screens around Australia in the near future. “We’ve done a great deal with Channel Ten we’re going to be on their new 24-hour analogue sport channel as well as on regional TV via Southern Cross Ten so we’re really happy with the exposure we’re going to be able to provide Australian Superbike racing this year,” Konsky said. The second round of the Woodstock Bourbon Australian Superbike Championships will take place at Symmons Plains Raceway near Launceston, Tasmania, on 3-5 April. More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki Australia: KRT’s BEN ATTARD TAKES ALL NEW NINJA ZX-6R STRAIGHT TO THE PODIUM New KRT recruit, Ben Attard, has piloted the all new Ninja ZX-6R to the podium during the new model’s Australian racing debut in front of a large crowd at the first round of the Australian Supersport Championships (as part of the opening round of the World Superbike Championships) at Victoria’s Phillip Island. Ben finished the series opener on the podium taking 3rd place. Ninja ZX-10R rider, Kevin Curtain, had a weekend he’d rather forget in the Superbike class with small hiccups ending his chances of finishing up the front for the round. Attard was in fine form for the opening round, qualifying fifth fastest with a time of 1-min 37.988 seconds. A great effort considering the limited amount of track time available. The opening 8-lap race saw Attard away well with the leaders, settling into 4th place and quickly establishing himself as a serious contender in this years’ championships. Ben kept his 4th place secure until the end of the race. Race two saw Attard off to another great start from the second row of the grid, holding 2nd on the opening lap. Ben then slipped into a battle with newcomer, Troy Herfoss, during the closing laps to take fourth place. Race 3 was to bring the Ninja ZX-6R its first podium finish in Australia and Ben’s first podium with KRT, as they crossed the line in 3rd place. Ben’s two 4th place finishes followed by his race three 3rd place finish secured the KRT rider 3rd place overall for the round and the series. Ben says, “Being able to be third overall at the end of the round says a lot for the team we have this year as they worked extremely hard with little track time to get things right, so that is a result the guys can enjoy for sure. It’s also been a nice return to Kawasaki for me. Radar has put a strong crew together and I feel very comfortable at this early stage. There are still a lot of things we need to work on and develop with the new 2009 ZX-6R, but I can see the potential it has and feel we can be with the lead group regularly this year. To finish as close to the leaders as we did is encouraging as the gap isn’t that great, so once we refine the chassis and suspension to suit me we’ll be even closer.” While Attard was enjoying three strong debut rides, teammate Kevin Curtain was frustrated by bad luck. Kevin was on the pace and came away with a top ten finish in his first race on board the Ninja ZX-10R, however his 6th place finish in the first race was to be his best result for the weekend due to small race ending factors that were to follow. Starting from ninth on the grid in race two, Curtain had his visor fog so severely that even desperate efforts to stay on track weren’t enough, eventually being forced out of the race. The third race was shaping up to be a good result for Kevin and the Ninja ZX-10R, however a collision on lap four with the rear of Robbie Bugden’s machine resulted in Kevin running off the circuit. He got back on the track shortly after, but had to stop at turn four to pull his brake lever back into position. Rejoining in twentieth, Kevin rode extremely well to find his way back into the points, finishing just outside the top ten in twelfth place. Kevin says, “The team arrived here with high expectations, but unfortunately ended with some frustrating results for us. We chased a front end set up for the bike that I was comfortable with, but the track varied so much between sessions that it was extremely difficult to evaluate the changes. I had a visor fog badly on the sighting lap on race two even though I had a Fog City fitted but it was too dangerous to continue as I just couldn’t see. The final race was looking good, but a collision ruined my chances of a strong finish but I got back up to twelfth and scored some points which may prove valuable as the season rolls on. Aside from those frustrations, the bike feels good and I can see that we will be able to work our way forward and be challenging for podium finishes quite soon.” KRT manager Dave Cullen was happy overall with the weekend’s racing, saying, “I’m very happy with how Ben rode this weekend as he made progressive steps forward each time out with the new bike. We’ve had little time to test with the new parts and have more to come, so his results are very encouraging. For Kev it’s been a frustrating end. Having a visor fog and then the collision in the final race was just bad luck that he didn’t deserve. I know Kev will become even more determined to show that he and the ZX-10R are capable of being regulars in the lead pack. There are a lot of positives to take away from here and we are looking forward to the next round.” In other Kawasaki news from the Island, eighteen year old Zac Thackeray got his 2009 season off to a fl ying start with a flag to flag win in the third and final race of the Australian Superstock Championships opener, on board his Kawasaki Connection Ninja ZX-6R. Qualifying second fastest, Newcastle’s Zac Thackeray was in a spirited mood over the weekend. Zac led the opening laps of race one before running wide on a corner and slipping down the order. Zac climbed back up to eleventh. Race two saw Zac ride a strong race, fi nishing 3rd before his inspiring ride to victory in the final five lap sprint. The results leave Thackeray fourth overall in the Championship. The Kawasaki Racing Team is now focusing on the second round of the Australian Superbike and Supersport Championships to be held at Tasmania’s Symmons Plains on April 3-5. After the impressive start the team enjoyed at Phillip Island, KRT heads to Tasmania confident and optimistic of being regular podium achievers this season.