Halliday Unstoppable at The Bend
Cru Halliday (Yamaha Racing Team, YZF-R6) has taken a convincing victory in the Kawasaki Supersport class but it wasn’t without a challenge from Tom Toparis (Cube Racing, Kawasaki ZX-6R). The two battled it out for the fair majority of the race but the race pace of Halliday was simply unmatchable. The Yamaha took the race victory by close to three seconds. The action will continue tomorrow for the Yamaha Motor Finance Australian Superbike Championship presented by Motul Pirelli (ASBK) with races two and three.
At the start of the race it was actually Max Croker (Mat Mladin Racing, Suzuki GSX-R600) who took the lead into turn one but he was soon overtaken by Halliday and Toparis. Surprisingly, Toparis was right on Halliday’s tail and was able to identify the lines Halliday was taking throughout the track.
Toparis used the sheer grunt of his ZX-6R to full effect to pass Halliday down the start finish straight and take the fight to him. Halliday had superior corner speed however, and it was only a matter of time before he would pass. After taking the lead again, Halliday made a mistake into turn five and lost the lead.
Eventually Halliday reclaimed the ascendency to cruise to victory by almost three seconds in front of Toparis. Broc Pearson (1800 Approved Cairns, Yamaha YZF-R6)
had a very successful but lonely third place finish on the podium.
Croker and Damon Rees (Tony Rees M-cycles, Honda CBR600RR) had a great battle for fourth, with Croker coming out on top and Rees having to settle for fifth.
Winner Halliday stating after the race; “I went into turn five and I think I clicked into a false neutral. I was trying to get away from Tommy but the more aggressive I rode the more mistakes I made. I managed to regather myself and I knew I could get myself over the line. Its proven that we have better race longevity. I just have to relax at the start.”
As a result of the win, Halliday now enjoys a two-point lead in the championship ahead of Toparis. With two more races tomorrow, it will be fascinating to see if he can maintain his form tomorrow.
Race two will take place at 9:25am and race three at 12:00pm. Make sure to tune in to see what happens!
Kawasaki Supersport Provisional Race One Results
1. Cru HALLIDAY (Yamaha Racing Team, YZF-R6)
2. Tom TOPARIS (Cube Racing, Kawasaki ZX-6R)
3. Broc PEARSON (1800 Approved Cairns, Yamaha YZF-R6)
4. Max CROKER (Mat Mladin Racing, Suzuki GSX-R600)
5. Damon REES (Tony Rees M-cycles, Honda CBR600RR)
6. Zac JOHNSON (Rebuilder, Yamaha YZF-R6)
7. Scott NICHOLSON (NextGen Motorsports, Suzuki GSX-R600)
8. Dallas SKEER (Ron Angel Classic Racing, Suzuki GSX-R600)
9. Luke MITCHELL (YRD, Yamaha YZF-R6)
10. Jack PASSFIELD (Stay Upright Australia Rider Training, Yamaha YZF-R6)
ASBK Live
SBS Australia LIVE from 1130 – 1330 Local Time on Sunday 22nd April.
FOX Sports Australia LIVE from 1130 – 1330 Local Time on Sunday 22nd April.
ASBK.com.au Saturday and Sunday all day live stream
Make sure to attend Round 3 of ASBK at The Bend Motorsport Park tomorrow by purchasing tickets at ASBK.com.au.
ASBK Digital Program
ASBK is pleased to announce the arrival of the digitalised Official ASBK Round 3 Program.
The program can be found on the website ASBK.COM.AU.
2018 ASBK Calendar
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
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