Executing The Perfect ASBK Lap At Winton Motor Raceway 

Winton Motor Raceway has decided past ASBK Championships, and as the first race of 2021, riders will be extremely keen to finish next weekend in the points to kickstart their mi-bike Motorcycle Insurance Australian Superbike Championship, presented by Motul, title chase.

The Northern Victoria 3km circuit, considered by many as a tight and technical circuit, is actually deceptively fast.

Winton is a physically demanding circuit for riders, and they will need every ounce of strength and fitness they have developed over the Christmas break to get the best out of their machine and body come March 12-14.

Winton is also hard on tyres, so while the riders will be keen to get ahead of the pack, they must have a good bike set-up and master the track conditions to ensure their tyres last race distance.

Qualifying well is crucial to ensure you are up the front of the grid when the light turns green.

TURN ONE
It is really important to get into turn one – Spokes.com.au – in a good position, because it bottlenecks down as you change direction into turn two. It is one of the most critical corners on the circuit to get right. Winton management have also removed the marshal barrier between 1 and 2, a positive move which could see riders risk the outside line more.

TURN TWO
Turn two is a great place to spectate because you will see the bikes sliding out of that corner – it is one of the most spectacular spots to see these high-powered Superbikes spinning the rear wheel while also battling to keep the front end down.

TURN THREE
Heading into turn three – Motul corner, it is a little bit off camber, downhill, and a bit of a blind entry too. Since we were last at Winton there has been an upgrade extending the width of the exit which will obviously allow the bikes to power out of the corner even harder. Riders can overtake at turn three as long as they are brave enough and dedicated to chuck it down the inside of their opposition, while also having enough brakes to take the corner and not end up in the sand trap.

TURN FOUR
It is a squirt on the throttle out of turn three, and then into turn four – Pirelli corner. You will need to keep the pace as opponents will try to duck down the inside and any loss of momentum into four harms your exit speed and acceleration on the short straight between turn four and the sweeper into five.

TURN FIVE
Is the longest corner – Alpinestars corner – on the circuit and riders need to be aware of the bumps on entry, but it is also a corner where riders can make up a lot of time. During Friday’s practice session riders will spend a lot of time perfecting their corner speeds through turn five.

TURN SIX
Turn six – Yamaha Financial Services corner – is tricky as there is only one line into that turn, so it is really critical to get that right. Get it wrong, and you will easily be mowing the grass.

TURNS SEVEN, EIGHT AND NINE
All these turns flow together. Into turn seven – Dainese corner – it looks tighter than it is, so you need to breath on the brake lever and try not to wash as much speed as you’d like. It is cambered, and it does help you, but you need to keep that corner speed through there heading into the next ‘left-hander’.

On turn eight – AGV corner – you need to be careful because competitors can nip-up the inside of you, so it is definitely an over-taking opportunity. Also, it is critical to exit that turn tight, which gives you a good entry into nine – Dunlop corner, because the most important part of that complex is getting onto that back straight as upright as possible to get as much power on the ground.

TURN 10
AMMF corner is the hardest left-breaking corner on the circuit. It is really easy to run-on there, and if you do run-on, you’re in trouble – because that’s the end of your race. So, you should spend time at practice pushing the limits in that corner, so you don’t make a mistake during the race.

TURN 11
You build up a lot of speed going from 10 along Ducati straight into 11 – Motorcycling Australia corner, and it’s another good opportunity to overtake, but also a little bit bumpy as you tip-in, so you have got be really careful that you don’t tuck the front. But at the same time, you cannot leave a gap because someone could dive up the inside of you.

If you can string your laps together right, and have the perfect exit out of Yamaha corner onto the mi-bike straight, you will be greeted by the chequered flag first, crowd cheering and 25 glorious points towards your title chase.

See you at Winton, Round 2 of the mi-bike Motorcycle Insurance Australian Superbike Championship, presented by Motul, March 12-14.

There are still tickets available for what will be a spectacular weekend of racing. But you better be quick as tickets are limited and available at HERE

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 Facebook and Instagram. You can also join our ASBK mailing list at www.asbk.com.au

Pictures by Andrew Gosling and Karl Phillipson/Optikal