Rivalry Between Championship Contenders Set to Reignite at Morgan Park
After the annual northern trek to Hidden Valley Raceway (NT), for the previous round of the mi-bike Motorcycle Insurance Australian Superbike Championship, presented by Motul, the memories of the brilliant on-track duels, and the controversy have all but subsided, but it has setup a salivating prospect of what lies ahead.
The events of Darwin have ensured the fifth round of the premier Alpinestars Superbike class at the tight, twisty and demanding Morgan Park layout, this weekend (14-16 July) will be chock full of drama, intrigue and more intense on-track shenanigans, and maybe even off-track dramas!
Adding to the action, after nearly the mid-year break, all the support classes are eager to be let off the chain and head out on track. Leading the way of the support acts will be the Michelin Supersport category, with the Supersport 300s, the Yamaha Finance R3 Cup and the bLU-cRU Oceania Junior Cup set to provide plenty of entertainment.
A full program with two races for the Supersport and three races each for the other classes ensures there will be plenty of on-track activity to have fans flocking to the fences.
Tensions were cranked up a notch or two in Darwin with protests and counter-protests in the pits while the action on track was red-hot. The drama on and off the track has set the scene for a tantalisingly exciting climax to the season with six races to go over three rounds.
Heading to Warwick, the Alpinestars Superbike class is on a knife edge – on and off the track – with just eight points now separating title leader Waters and the rejuvenated Herfoss, with defending champion, Jones now in third place after leapfrogging Glenn Allerton and Cru Halliday after his strong showing in Darwin. After dominating the opening pair of rounds, Waters looked to be in complete control of the series but the previous two meetings have seen Herfoss win four of the last five races (and claim second in the other) to claw his way back from a 35-point deficit after the second round at Sydney Motorsport Park to now be only eight points adrift from Waters heading to a track that Herfoss has thrived on the past.
A man on a mission, Troy Herfoss and Penrite Honda will be looking for more success
Herfoss is on a roll, and he has no intentions of backing off, especially at Morgan Park. Morgan Park has similar features to his old home track of Wakefield Park, where he thrives on the tight bumpy nature of the track, and it brings out the best in him. In Darwin he proved that he could win from the front when normally he likes to follow and put the pressure on. With added zest in his attitude, Herfoss will be extremely determined to take the lead in the title. Out of the current riders he is the most successful at Morgan Park with a brace of pole positions, four wins and three podium placings from 10 starts. A man with a similar record is Wayne Maxwell, but unfortunately, he’s retired! With his double win last year Maxwell took his tally to four wins, four podiums and a pole position but he is on the sidelines overseeing his old team that now has Waters in the saddle.
Morgan Park hasn’t been kind to Waters and out of six starts there, he has only been on the podium once. Last year he didn’t compete in the corresponding round, but this year he is in the box seat to replicate what his good mate and team member Maxwell did last year, and consolidate his lead in the championship. This will be a weekend where Waters will be aiming to do what Maxwell did last year.
For defending champion Jones, this is his home track having done circles around this piece of blacktop since he was a prepubescent teenager. He can lay claim to a pair of pole positions, three wins and a further three podium finishes from six starts and now that he has found form to jump back on the podium in Darwin for the first time this year, he will be aiming to grab his first win since the final race of at Tailem Bend, last year to claw his way up the championship points-table in his title defence as he – like Waters and Allerton – aims for his fourth ASBK title.
Mike Jones is yet to score a win in season 2023 but has stood on the podium 3 out of 4 rounds thus far
The angriest of them all will be Jones team-mate in the YRT outfit, Cru Halliday. Up until Darwin, Cru hadn’t been off the podium since being an innocent party in a first lap incident of the first race of the year at Phillip Island in February. In Darwin, his charge unraveled after 8-4-DNF results. He was a dejected and battered man after the round. In the final race, at half race distance he had a coming together with Arthur Sissis in a typical racing incident in their battle for fifth position, coming off the worst. Sissis stayed upright but the luckless Halliday tumbled out of the race and to add to his woes copped a knock from the bike. Halliday has scored a win, three podiums and a pole position at Morgan Park and will have the mongrel on for the weekend. Cru’s biggest downfall is getting the Yamaha R1 M. If he can nail a couple of flyers on the weekend, there’s no reason to think he won’t move right back into championship contention, from his present fifth position, after being in third place overall heading to the previous round. .
There are plenty of others to watch out for in the hunt to be in the leading pack.
Glenn Allerton can never be overlooked on the GT Racing BMW. Presently he sits in fourth spot overall a solitary point behind Jones. He had a frustrating start to the season with plenty of unfulfilled promises. Thankfully he has plenty of supporters and good backers that has seen him return to the BMW that has garnered two of his three ASBK titles. Bryan Staring on the MotoGo Yamaha, is getting more competitive as he gets more and more out of his steed. He has something to prove too, as he grabbed his first podium finish in the second leg last year and was in front of the man who was his teammate for half a season in 2022, Broc Pearson. Since being released from the DesmoSport Ducati Team Staring has been using that disappointment as extra motivation.
It was a welcome return to the grid for the #61 in Darwin
Arthur Sissis, (Unitech Racing Yamaha) should be almost back to full fitness after recovering from his broken left wrist that he injured before the round at Queensland Raceway back in April. He battled through the pain barrier in Darwin and scored 7-8-7 results but was right in the battles of the second bunch. Max Stauffer on the GTR MotoStars Yamaha was up to fourth place in Darwin in one race and is gaining more confidence and speed at every outing. He has certainly proved to be a chip off the block, and at Darwin managed to claim the family bragging rights after setting a faster lap time that his multi-Australian Champion father, Jamie.
Broc Pearson on the DesmoSport Ducati will be keen to improve on his performance at Darwin and is another one that calls Morgan Park his home track. Pearson also produced his best results of the year in Darwin and there is no doubt some pressure on him to perform this weekend in front of home fans. One never to be discounted is Anthony West. Over the years he’s had more gigs than the Rolling Stones and like the legendary rockers, he just keeps on keeping on. He seems to have settled into the Addicted to Track Team in Darwin and gelling well with the team – if it is wet Westy is your man.
Like a well-oiled machine, West and Addicted to Track continue to make strides towards the front
Preview written by Mark Bracks, imagery by Endorphin Media.
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