The 2010 season of the Australian Superbike Championship is heating up going into Round 2 as the Ducati Motologic Race Team heads north to compete at Hidden Valley Raceway in Darwin on the 10th and 11th April. The team are ready to race again after an extremely successful Round 1 which was held in conjunction with the World Superbike event at Phillip Island in February where the newly formed factory team achieved a podium on its first outing. Jamie Stauffer raced his Ducati 1198R with apparent ease to take 3rd position overall and his team mate, Jordan Burgess, being but a rookie on a Superbike, impressed all involved by taking 9th place overall. It has been 10 years since the Superbikes competed in the Northern Territory and only a select few in the field have experienced the searing heat out on the track. Ducati Motologic Racing team owner and manager, Paul Free has himself raced at Hidden Valley and knows only too well the toll it can take on an unsuspecting rider. Free: “One thing I can remember from ’98 and ’99 when I raced at Hidden Valley is that it was exceedingly hot out there on the bike, and we competed there in July. It is going to be of utmost importance that the riders get the appropriate rest and cooling off periods throughout the race event, or there will be some guys that will really struggle come Sunday’s races. The Motologic workshop has been a hive of activity since Round 1. The knowledge gained from the first races of the year has given us a much greater understanding of the 1198R; we have since carried out a test session at Winton Raceway to gain information from a stop/start type circuit which was extremely beneficial for both our staff and riders. Technically, the bike will be very similar to how it was run at Phillip Island during the 1st round, and I am more than comfortable with the outright performance of the Ducati going into Darwin.” The Ducati Motologic Racing riders, Jamie Stauffer and Jordan Burgess are communicating with their trainer constantly in the lead up to the event at Hidden Valley in order to be in peak condition to withstand the gruelling heat at the circuit. Stauffer: “I am really looking forward to racing at Darwin after having a great first round at Phillip Island in a new team and on a new bike. It is exciting going to a track we have never raced at before and I am looking forward to rolling the Ducati Motologic 1198R out of the truck and putting in as many laps as possible to be in a strong position to win some races! We have had time to make some changes to the bike since Phillip Island so we are moving forward in developing the 1198R to be a race winner.” Jordan Burgess is equally as ready to race after some strong testing. Burgess: “I am really excited coming into the second round of the series for this year up in Darwin. Round 1 at Phillip Island was my first as a Superbike rider and my maiden run as a factory rider; so I’m happy to have that under my belt now! I kept improving over the weekend which was very encouraging for me and the team. Our test at Winton last week was extremely positive and we gained some good ground in terms of handling and set-up. We now move into the second round at Hidden Valley feeling confident of strong results. My training regime has stepped up a notch to handle conditions which will be thrown at us in the Top End. It’s going to be pretty steamy so both Jamie and I will be employing some good techniques to keep us on top of our game for all the races. I’ve never been to the Northern Territory and we are expecting a good turnout so I can’t wait to turn up the action for our Northern friends!” With the heat intensifying both on and off the track, it will be interesting to see who can keep their cool at Hidden Valley Raceway on April 10th and 11th, one thing is for sure the Ducati 1198R is red hot and ready to race.