Epic Grand Finale Expected In The bLU cRU Oceania Junior Cup Class
Such is the talent and super competitive and tight racing in the bLU cRU Oceania Junior Cup that any number of riders in the class could be crowned Champion at next weekend’s season Grand Finale, mi-bike Motorcycle Insurance Australian Superbike Championship, presented by Motul, at Wakefield Park Raceway, Goulburn, NSW.
In only the second year of competition, Australia’s premier junior road racing program, officially supported by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM), FIM Oceania, and endorsed by Dorna Sports sl, as part of the Road to MotoGP program, has been nothing short of epic with fierce racing.
Next weekend for rounds 2 and 3 of the Championship, riders will compete in 5 races over three gruelling days of competition to see who will be crowned Motorcycling Australia’s 2020 bLU cRU Oceania Junior Cup Champion.
1st to 19th place are only covered by 65 points and with 125 points on offer at the tight and technical Wakefield Park Raceway, the Championship could come down to the last lap, final corner drag race to the finish line.
As we saw at round 1 Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit earlier this year, less than one second separated the top 15 riders in a photo finish and with the Championship on the line, racing in the OJC will be just as fierce.
Many of the OJC riders will also be competing in both the YMI Supersport 300 and YMF R3 Cup classes, adding more mental and physical strain to their Grand Finale weekend. They could be on track up to 38 times over the four days with practice, qualifying, warm-up and racing in the three Championship classes.
Current OJC points leader Lucas Quinn had the perfect round 1 scoring three wins and sits on 75 points and will be the one to beat.
Hard charging Marianos Nikolis is 2nd on 49 points, Cameron Dunker 3rd with 48 points, Tom Drane 4th on 46 points and rounding out the top five is Hayden Nelson on 45 points.
Cameron Swain sits in 6th with 45 points, Lincoln Knight 7th on 41 points, Angus Grenfell 8th with 39 points, Clay Clegg 9th with 38 points and completing the top ten is Henry Snell on 35 points.
Those outside the top 10 have a little extra work to do if they want to be crowned OJC Champion, but as we have seen in previous OJC races, anything is possible with the depth of talent and skill of the riders in this class.
The bLU cRU Oceania Junior Cup (OJC) is also the springboard into international championships. OJC riders Jacob Roulstone, Cormac Buchanan, Max Gibbons and Carter Thompson have made the jump to the Asia Talent Cup, Red Bul Rookies Cup, and FIM European Talent Cup and Moto3 Junior World Cup.
Each of the five Championships at the Grand Finale – Oceania Junior Cup, YMF R3 Cup, YMI Supersport 300, Motorsports TV Supersport and Kawasaki Superbike class – will be decided at the Grand Finale.
Race fans can catch all the drama and action from the 2020 ASBK Grand Finale at Wakefield Park Raceway, December 3-6, live via ASBK live streaming, and through ASBK TV partners SBSHD, Fox Sports Australia and Fox Sports Asia on both Saturday and Sunday.
Keep up to date with the latest news on the mi-bike Motorcycle Insurance Australian Superbike Championship, presented by Motul, via www.asbk.com.au and following ASBK on Facebookand Instagram.
2020 bLU cRU Oceania Junior Cup
Championship Points Table after Round 1
Photos by Russell Colvin and Andrew Gosling
