Hern at the double – Elliott our new champ
Chas Hern (Chas Hern Racing) has had an unforgettable weekend at Phillip Island, claiming both race wins in the Supersport class at the final round of the 2015 Yamaha Motor Finance Australian Superbike Championship presented by Motul Pirelli.
Hern finished the round ahead of 2015 Champion Brayden Elliot (Brayden Elliott Racing) (second and third in the two races) with Aaiden Coote (YRD) taking the final spot on the podium (fifth and second).
But the day belonged to Elliott who wrapped up the 2015 Yamaha Supersport Title in emphatic fashion.
Race 1
Elliott took full advantage of his Superpole placing in the opening race, leading off the line to pull a big gap heading into the first corner from Hern and Chris Quinn (YRD).
Kane Burns (GJ Gardner Homes) worked his way up the field in the early stages of the race to settle into seventh position, trailing Thyron Van Vuuren (GB Racing) and Sam Lambert (Sam Lambert Racing).
Coote moved into second spot on the opening lap, while Burns slipped past Van Vuuren and into sixth before a huge move past both Lambert and Quinn put him in fourth.
Through two laps it was Elliott onboard his Suzuki looking most comfortable, though fellow Suzuki rider Hern was not going away without a fight.
The gap between the pair was a mere 0.108 of a second on the second lap – while Burns continued his move from 13th into third to challenge at the front.
On lap four Hern made his move to take the lead, offering Burns some hope given he needed to finish ahead of Elliott to keep his championship hopes alive.
Over the next couple of laps the gap between Elliott and Burns widened – and after six laps it was out past three seconds.
On lap seven Elliott moved into the lead ahead of Hern, with Burns 3.673 seconds behind and Coote, Quinn and Lambert further adrift.
Hern kept right on the rear tyre of Elliott in a great battle at the front while through ten laps Burns had slipped back to 6.201 seconds behind.
The Victorian veteran moved into the lead on lap 11 – a lead that lasted one corner, before he again took the lead off Elliott with two laps to go.
Hern rode a beautiful final two laps to take an emphatic race victory from Elliott with Burns claiming third and Quinn and Coote rounding out the top-five.
The win put Elliott 23 points ahead in the championship – needing just to finish the second race of the day to claim the title.
Race 2
Elliott got the perfect start again in the second race to take the early lead, with Coote moving into second position off the second row of the grid.
Van Vuuren, Hern and Quinn rounded out the top five off the line, with Burns moving up from 13th into ninth spot.
On lap two Coote moved into the lead – pushing his Yamaha to the limit to be nearly half a second ahead of Elliott to the end of the lap.
Hern was holding strong in third place, Burns moved up into fourth spot with Ryan Taylor (YRD) in fifth.
With ten laps to go Hern moved past Elliott, and then incredibly a few corners later Hern passed Coote into the lead.
On lap five the Suzuki pilot put in a 1:37.569 – the only sub 1:38.00 lap of the race at that point, while Elliott moved up past Coote and back into second position.
Hern was determined to make it back-to-back wins for the day, but on lap eight Coote first moved into second and then passed Hern into the lead.
With a three second gap between Elliott and Burns, the title race looked done and dusted, while all eyes were on the battle between the leading pair.
Hern tried everything to get past Coote and it all looked to be in vain, before Coote ran wide handing Hern the lead.
Hern then did the double – finishing on top to take back-to-back wins while Elliott’s third placing behind Coote handed him the title.
ROUND 5 RESULTS:
1 Chas HERN (NSW) – Suzuki (25, 25) 50
2 Brayden ELLIOTT (NSW) – Suzuki (1, 20, 18) 39
3 Aaiden COOTE (VIC/WA) – Yamaha (16, 20) 36
4 Kane BURNS (NSW) – Suzuki (18, 17) 35
5 Chris QUINN (NSW) – Suzuki (17, 16) 33
6 Sam LAMBERT (NT) – Triumph (15, 15) 30
7 Ryan TAYLOR (VIC) – Yamaha (11, 14) 25
8 Ben BLYTH (VIC) – Yamaha (13, 12) 25
9 Nicholas LIMINTON (SA) – Yamaha (14, 11) 25
10 Cam RUSSELL (VIC) – Yamaha (12, 10) 22
OVERALL CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS:
1 Brayden ELLIOTT (NSW) – Suzuki 200
2 Kane BURNS (NSW) – Suzuki 176
3 Aaiden COOTE (VIC/WA) – Yamaha 150
4 Chris QUINN (NSW) – Suzuki 130
5 Sam LAMBERT (NT) – Triumph 111
6 Nicholas LIMINTON (SA) – Yamaha 109
7 Thyron VAN VUUREN (WA) – Kawasaki 101
8 Ryan TAYLOR (VIC) – Yamaha 90
9 Cam RUSSELL (VIC) – Yamaha 70
10 Alex PHILLIS (VIC) – Kawasaki 62
For a full listing of results head to www.asbk.com.au.
IMAGE: TBGSPORT
