The weather conditions where changeable in Timaru for qualifying at round two of the Castrol Power 1 New Zealand Superbike Championships today. The majority of qualifying was held in dry conditions but steady rain set in late in the day during the Superbike qualifying session Young Queenslander Garth Jones topped the Superbike leader board just 0.138 seconds ahead of Hamilton’s Andrew Stroud (Suzuki), with series leader fellow Australian Robbie Bugden another 0.230 seconds adrift in third on another Suzuki.The top five qualifiers were just .739 seconds apart. In the second half of the Trans-Tasman battle, Jones had to settle for second position on the grid in the 600 Sports production class, behind Christchurch’s James Smith (Suzuki), with Hamilton’s Nick Cole (Kawasaki) third fastest. Sunday will see two races for all classes and the racing promises to be fantastic. Provisional Results Round Two Castrol Power1 Superbike Championships Levels Raceway, 17 January 2009. NZ Superbikes: Qualifying: 1, Gareth Jones (Australia) Yamaha, 1:04.665 secs; 2, Andrew Stroud (Hamilton) Suzuki, 1:04.804 secs; 3, Robbie Bugden (Australia) Suzuki, 1:05.034 secs; 4, Hayden Fitzgerald (New Plymouth) Honda 1:05.275 secs; 5, Craig Shirriffs (Feilding) Honda, 1:05.404 secs. 600 Sports Production: Qualifying: 1,James smith (Christchurch) Suzuki, 1:05.781 secs; 2, Gareth Jones (Australia) Yamaha, 1:05.783 secs; 3, Nick Cole (Hamilton) Kawasaki 1:06.314 secs; 4, Sam Smith (Pukekohe) Yamaha, 1:06.561 secs; 5, Jay Lawrence (Wellington) Yamaha 1:06.752 secs. Formula Three: Race One: 1, Glen Williams (Palmerston North) Suzuki; 2, Jason Easton (Foxton) Tigcraft Aprilia; 3, Terry Fitzgerald (New Plymouth) Suzuki. Pro-Twins: Race One: 1, Sam Love (Tauranga) Suzuki; 2, Geoff Booth (Dannevirke) Suzuki; 2, Patrick Jones (Christchurch) Suzuki. 125cc Grand Prix: Race One: 1, Kenneth Jones (Hamilton) Yamaha; 2, Tim McArthur (Dunedin) Honda; 3, Jaden Hassan (Auckland) Yamaha. Sidecars: Race One: 1, Steve Bron/Dennis Simonsen (Wanganui) LCR Suzuki; 2, Chris & Ritchie Lawrance (Auckland) Anderson Yamaha; 3, Stacey Sellar/ Louise Blythe (Australia) LCR Suzuki.
Jones On Pole Position At Round Two Of New Zealand Superbike Championship
Jones On Pole Position At Round Two Of New Zealand Superbike Championship
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