Ford Ramps it up at the Island for YMF R3 Cup
Qualifying took place today for Round 1 of the Yamaha Motor Finance Australian Superbike Championship presented by Motul Pirelli (ASBK), with Hunter Ford (Yamaha South Sydney Commercial, YZ-R3) setting the Phillip Island Circuit alight with a time of 1:50.394 to snatch pole position in the YMF R3 Cup.
Friday’s qualifying for the YMF R3 Cup was the final session of an action packed day at Phillip Island, with Ford managing to secure the coveted pole position from Tom Bramich (Yamaha JLT, YZF-R3) 1:50.443, who was the quickest in Thursday’s Free Practice.
Ford is happy with how the weekend is shaping up; “I’m feeling really good about how I’m riding, I’m excited to get out there and continue riding like this, and the set up is exactly how we want it so hopefully we can get a good start from pole tomorrow.”
Locky Taylor (Yamaha LTR Racing, YZF-R3) rounded out the podium with a time of 1:50.858 and joins the front of the grid for Saturday’s opening race.
Zac Levy (Yamaha Puma RV, YZF-R3) snuck in for fourth position after stopping the clock at 1:51.860, whilst the fastest qualifier from the Australian Supersport 300 class Harry Khouri (Yamaha Acid Racing, YZF-R3) had to settle for fifth position after crossing the line with a 1:52.362.
The top ten was rounded out by Max Stauffer (Yamaha Chris Watson M-cycles, YZ-R3), Laura Brown (Yamaha WNR, YZF-R3), Callum O’Brien (Yamaha Banhams WA YZF-R3), Ross Beames (Yamaha YZF-R3) and Travis Hall (Yamaha YZF-R3).
Saturday’s two races for the YMF R3 Cup will take place at 8:45 AM and 17:15PM and if qualifying is anything to go by we can expect a tight battle from start to finish.
YMF R3 Cup Top 10 Qualifying:
1. Hunter FORD (Yamaha South Sydney Commercial, YZ-R3) 1:50.394
2. Tom BRAMICH (Yamaha JLT, YZ-R3) 1:50.443
3. Locky TAYLOR (Yamaha LTR Racing, YZ-R3) 1:50.858
4. Zac LEVY (Yamaha Puma RV, YZ-R3) 1:51.860
5. Harry KHOURI (Yamaha Acid Racing, YZ-R3) 1:52.362
6. Max STAUFFER (Yamaha Chris Watson M-cycles, YZ-R3) 1:52.886
7. Laura BROWN (Yamaha WNR, YZF-R3) 1:53.044
8. Callum O’BRIEN (Yamaha Banhams WA YZF-R3) 1:53.772
9. Ross BEAMES (Yamaha YZF-R3) 1:53.975
10. Travis HALL (Yamaha YZF-R3) 1:54.017
2018 ASBK Calendar
Round 1- WSBK, Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, VIC February 22 – 25
Round 2- Wakefield Park Raceway, Goulburn NSW March 16 – 18
Official ASBK Test, The Bend Motorsport Park, Tailem Bend, SA April 3-4
Round 3- The Bend Motorsport Park, Tailem Bend, SA April 19 – 22
Round 4- Hidden Valley Raceway, Darwin NT June 28 – 1 July
Round 5- Morgan Park Raceway, Warwick QLD August 17 – 19
Round 6- Winton Motor Raceway, Benalla, VIC September 7 – 9
Round 7- Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, VIC October 12 – 14
Photos courtesy of Andrew Gosling – tbg sport
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