Jones and Eliott claim Pirelli Superpole Awards
Mike Jones (Australian Outdoor Living Cube Racing Team) and Brayden Elliott (Brayden Elliott Racing) have claimed the respective Superbike and Supersport Pirelli Pole awards at the 2015 Yamaha Motor Finance ASBK presented by Motul Pirelli.
Despite fierce competition fro JD Racing’s Daniel Falzon, Jones proved that he would be the rider to beat at round three, while Elliott was flawless in his Saturday at Barbagallo.
Yamaha Motorcycle Finance Superbikes
Riders headed out for the opening 30-minute qualifying session in perfect conditions at Barbagallo, and they certainly did not disappoint the growing crowd.
Daniel Falzon (JD Racing) set the pace early with a handy lap time of 56.950 as he looked to put the trouble he had on Friday behind him.
Mike Jones (Australian Outdoor Living Cube Racing Team) cut that time by nearly half a second soon after – clocking a 56.424 while his teammate Ben Henry also came inside the 57-second mark with a 56.981.
Sitting outside the top three was local rider Cameron Stonach with a 57.106 posted on his sixth lap, while brother Ben landed inside the top-five with a 57.235 on his 10th lap.
The top three riders put in 19 laps throughout the session but were unable to improve on their early lap times, and there was no change in standings when a red flag was drawn with a couple of minutes remaining.
Adam Chambers, who was in sixth place at the time, came unstuck at the opening turn at the end of the home straight, forcing the session to end prematurely.
In the second qualifying session there was not too much to report, with only two riders inside the top seven posting a faster time than they did in the opening session.
It was no surprise that that rider was Falzon – coming to grips with his bike and posting a super quick 56.456 to shoot into second spot overall.
Anthony McFadden (MCB Sports) also impressed throughout, climbing up the leaderboard before landing in fifth spot – courtesy of a 57.377.
Jones only put in a few laps – saving himself for the Pirelli Superpole that followed.
With the top-10 riders out on the circuit for the Superpole, all eyes were on Jones and Falzon to see who could get the advantage heading into Sunday.
Falzon landed the first blow with a 56.442 on the third lap of the session, before Jones fired back with a lightening quick 56.174.
Falzon then hit back with a 56.139, before Jones flew past with a 56.068 and looked to have all the answers.
It was enough to hand him the Pirelli Superpole award and claim pole position on the grid for Sunday, with Falzon in second, Stronach in third and McFadden in fourth.
Ryan Hapmton (Next Gen Motorsports) rounded out the top five.
Yamaha Supersport
Less than two laps into the opening qualifying session for the class, a red flag was produced after oil spilled onto the track from Leigh Boujos’ bike.
Things didn’t get much brighter when a few laps into the session resumption, Livio Zampieri came unstuck on the final corner nearing the end of his seventh lap.
Zampieri, who was a revelation in practice on Friday and on top of the qualifying charts at the time of the accident, was treated by Racesafe as another red flag was drawn.
At that point the session was reduced from 30 minutes to 12 minutes, and when the riders got back onto the track it was Brayden Elliott (Brayden Elliott Racing) who showcased his talent.
Elliott grabbed the top time in the session with a 58.235, recording the time with just eight laps completed.
Despite his accident Zampieri still managed the second fastest time, while Sam Lambert (Sam Lambert Racing), Thyron Van Vuuren (SP Racing) and Victorian Alex Phillis (Phillis Racing) rounded out the top five.
In the second qualifying session it was again Elliott with the fastest time, although it was just a fraction outside of the time he posted in the opener.
Despite not taking part in the second session, Zampieri still held onto the second fastest time overall, with Lambert settling for third.
Aiden Coote (Yamaha YRD) moved up into fourth overall with a 58.422 while Phillis improved on his opening session time to claim fifth on the grid with a 58.555.
For a full list of results from Saturday at Barbagallo, head to http://www.computime.com.au/meetings/index.aspx?MeetID=2015/asbk3/.
For the latest photos, news and information from the round head to www.asbk.com.au.
Images: tbgsport
