Maxwell Breaks His Own Qualifying Record and Secures Pole

In tricky track conditions Wayne Maxwell has broken his own qualifying lap record to put himself on pole for tomorrow’s first race of the 2020 mi-bike Motorcycle Insurance Australian Superbike Championship, presented by Motul.

While morning showers hampered timed practice, the sun came out just in time for the Kawasaki Superbike class, and Maxwell again proved he and his machine are one with a time of 1:31.942 and ready for the championship battle.

“Massive thanks to the Boost Mobile K-Tech team, and to break our qualifying record first outing with the bike is fantastic,” Maxwell said.

“A massive thanks to everyone.”  

Yamaha Racing Team’s Cru Halliday was only a fraction behind Maxwell and showed he and his new 2020 Yamaha have gelled well and will also be in the championship fight.

“I always knew Wayne was going to be fast and to be honest I tried to hard and over rode it, hats off to the team this new bike is unreal, I love riding it and it’s so smooth.”

New team, JW Racing’s Josh Waters aboard a Suzuki, gave Suzuki fans something to celebrate, posting third fastest.
“It’s fantastic to be on the front row, I honestly didn’t know we would be there,” a very happy Waters said.

Another surprise of qualifying was Glenn Allerton landing in fourth aboard his Maxima BMW, showing there is still life in the old dog yet, and 2018 ASBK Champion Penrite Honda’s Troy Herfoss secured 5th and current ASBK Champion Mike Jones in 6th and no doubt will be battling up the front tomorrow.

The Superbikes hit the track tomorrow morning at 11.05am for their first race and one thing fans can be sure it will be an epic battle, so book your tickets and get down to the Island for two spectacular days of racing including the Motul FIM Superbike World Champion.

2020 ASBK Calendar
Round 1: WorldSBK – Phillip Island, VIC February 27-March 1
Round 2: Wakefield Park, NSW March 27-29
Round 3: The Bend, SA May 7-10
Round 4: Barbagallo Raceway, WA May 15-17  
Official ASBK Test – Morgan Park, QLD July 28-29
Round 5: Morgan Park, QLD August 7-9
Round 6: Winton VIC September 11-13
Round 7: Phillip Island GP Circuit, VIC October 2-4

Head to www.asbk.com.au for more info about the mi-bike Motorcycle Insurance Australian Superbike Championship, presented by Motul. For the latest updates from the ASBK, follow us on Facebook and Instagram. 

Photos by Russell Colvin