The mi-bike Australian Superbike Championship began for 2023 with Josh Waters and the McMartin Racing Ducati V4 R setting the standard, recording maximum championship points and leaving his rivals with plenty of soul searching to do. Despite a crash in practice, Waters had lowered his own qualifying record to 1m31.100s. The obvious goal was to break through the 1m31s barrier, which Waters believes is only a matter of time.
The Yamaha Racing Team duo of Mike Jones and Cru Halliday were showing some fight, both recording personal-best times. Several laps into the opening race though, it was apparent who was in control with Waters almost five seconds clear of Penrite Honda’s Troy Herfoss. Arthur Sissis (Unitech Racing – Yamaha) had made his customary stunning start, but an engine glitch that lasted a fraction of a second pushed Jones wide at Turn 3, forcing Halliday off track and into a heavy crash, thankfully largely unscathed. With Waters lapping in the 31s, he then raised his hand to signal rain and the red flags were promptly shown. After a short stoppage, riders had to gamble on either wet tyres or slicks. A mechanical issue forced Sissis onto his wet bike and, with the track drying after the five-lap sprint restart, he dropped back, as did Bryan Staring, who had been looking very competitive in his maiden outing aboard the MotoGo Yamaha after qualifying fourth.
Max Stauffer (Motostars Yamaha) went down with Jack Davis (SA Motorcycles Suzuki) at Miller corner, but not before posting times that confirmed he had progressed to be a genuine top-five contender. Out front, a tentative Waters let Herfoss and Glenn Allerton (BMW) test the conditions before he pushed through and seized the victory. Jones finished just behind in fourth with Mark Chiodo (Honda) fifth. Ted Collins (Livson Racing BMW) took sixth in his ASBK return, while Matt Walters (Australian Motorcycle Marine Finance) was seventh on debut with the Aprilia RSV4 1100.
The following morning on a dry track, Waters blasted away again, but the red flags were out early, this time for two Cape Barren geese. The restart saw Waters take control again, but rocketing from the third row was a sharp Allerton who formed the front group with Herfoss and Jones. Chiodo looked to be bumped wide at Turn 2 before flicking into a violent crash and while unhurt, damage to his Fireblade meant his weekend was over. Stauffer was another early casualty, coming down at Turn 4.
At half-race distance, Waters had stamped his authority out front. Behind him, Jones had been joined by Halliday who had shrugged off any injury from the previous day. Halliday looked confident, but pushed his limit to pass Jones at Turn 3, almost came unstuck, but managed to complete the move. The podium order remained that way until the flag, Waters limiting his own television time with a three-second victory gap, while Halliday showed the unrealised potential from Race 1, pulling a similar gap to Jones.
Behind them the battle was well and truly on. Herfoss, Sissis and Allerton traded blows for much of the race with Staring close behind. Here was the reality: Waters lapped in the low 31s when he wanted, which is respectable WorldSBK pace. Halliday could lap in the 31s, but not consistently, while Jones was running mid 32s. The chasing pack were high 32s.
Waters maintained his focus for the final race, once again taking the holeshot and reeling off a series of fast laps that broke the opposition. The pace was slower in the warmer afternoon conditions, but that didn’t deter Sissis and Allerton from making cracking starts. A similar chasing pack emerged, with Halliday having to fight through even though he started from the front row.
Herfoss was always in contention but, like Allerton, was unable to match the pace of the factory Yamahas. Staring kept himself in the mix, admitting the team was still working on setup. Halliday worked through the field, making the pass for second on his teammate Jones at Miller corner with four laps remaining. It was a fitting reward for the Sydney-based rider, however nobody could match Waters who won by over four seconds.
The McMartin Racing Ducati V4 R was faultless the entire weekend, with Waters mentioning the positive effect of the retired Wayne Maxwell in an already cohesive garage. Reigning champ Jones consolidated with third, remarking that he relished the challenge now in front of him.
“If you came here and it was easy, it wouldn’t be worth it, would it? We’ll see by the end of the year how bad I want it!”
Winner’s Words
Josh Waters
“There were obviously high expectations before this round with a lot of media following our form after testing at SMSP. I’m just glad we could get the season started how I aimed to.
If you look at the history of the team and the bike here, it really does speak for itself. We’ve already been looking how we can improve as a team for the next round, but with weekends like this with all my family here, it’s really easy to enjoy a day like this!”
Results
Alpinestars Superbike Round 1
1 J Waters Duc 76
2 M Jones Yam 53
3 T Herfoss Hon 53
4 G Allerton BMW 50
5 C Halliday Yam 40
Michelin Supersport Round 1
1 T Lynch Yam 54
2 H Voight Yam 51
3 J Passfield Yam 47
4 J Lytras Yam 46
5 O Simpson Yam 37
Supersport 300 Round 1
1 J Russo Yam 58
2 B Demmery Yam 57
3 H Snell Yam 53
4 C Swain Yam 51
5 L Jhonston Yam 51
Supertwins Cup Round 1
1 C Bourne Apr 75
2 P Nerlich Yam 58
3 B Bolster Suz 55
4 D Hughes Yam 52
REPORT MATT O’CONNELL PHOTOGRAPHY ROB MOTT
