SATURDAY
ALPINESTARS SUPERBIKES QUALIFYING
The dominance commenced in the morning’s qualifying session when Waters went within one-thousandth of a second of equalling the fastest-ever recorded lap by a motorcycle of the Hidden Valley circuit set by Wayne Maxwell last year. He was the only rider in the 15-minute session to record a sub-65 second lap with defending champion Mike Jones (Yamaha Racing Team) second fastest and Troy Herfoss (Penrite Honda) rounding out the front row. Josh Waters scored his second pole of the season and scoop up the AMX Superstores Gift Card

Alpine Superbikes Queensland Raceway Front Row (Full Results Here)

1 Josh WATERS (VIC) / McMartin Racing with KTech / Gotzinger Smallgoods Ducati V4R 1:04.963
2 Mike JONES (QLD) / Yamaha Racing Team Yamaha YZF-R1M 1:05.067
3 Troy HERFOSS (QLD) / Penrite Honda Racing Honda CBR RR 1:05.108

RACE ONE
Hidden Valley provides a massive 440-metre drag to the first turn from the front row of the grid so it was vitally important for his rivals to attempt to beat Waters to the turn but it was not to be. Herfoss and Glenn Allerton (GT Racing BMW) managed to be side-by-side, but Waters on the outside managed to hold the corner entry to take the lead from Allerton, Herfoss in third, and defending champion Mike Jones in fourth.

The quartet quickly gapped the rest of the field but after five laps Waters had carved out nearly a second lead as Allerton muscled him trying to force the “Mildura Missile” into a mistake, but Waters responded by breaking the lap record (also held by Maxwell) twice in two laps to set the bar at 1:05.307 and demoralise the opposition.

Waters set up an unassailable lead to establish a race-winning buffer of 2.435 seconds after 13 laps, as Herfoss, Jones and Allerton fought over the scraps. Allerton tried everything to stay in touch with Waters and held onto second spot until the start of the sixth lap when Herfoss overtook him charging into turn one. Jones followed soon after with a very brave, ballsy and committed move on the BMW rider going through the daunting Turn 3.

Behind the leading four, an entertaining battle ensued between Bryan Staring (MotoGo Yamaha), Cru Halliday (Yamaha Racing Team) who will rue another shocker of a start, with Anthony West, (Addicted To Track). Halliday after being eighth early in the race muscled his way to the front of the trio but no sooner had he succeeded that he ran off at turn one and dropped back to an extremely disappointing eighth place.  It was undoubtedly not the result he was after and Cru cut a dejected figure after the race.

Waters increased his championship lead 24 points over Herfoss with Allerton now in a clear third position 29 points adrift of Herfoss with Halliday’s lackluster result putting him a further five points behind with his teammate, Mike Jones clambering his way up the points table to be in sixth, seven points behind Cru.

Alpinestars Superbikes Race One Podium (Full Results Here)

1 21 Josh WATERS (VIC) / McMartin Racing with KTech / Gotzinger Smallgoods Ducati V4R
2 17 Troy HERFOSS (QLD) / Penrite Honda Racing Honda CBR RR
3 14 Glenn ALLERTON (NSW) / GT Racing / Macarthur Motorrad / Spectro Oils BMW M RR

SUNDAY
Race Two
In race two when the drama transferred to the track, Waters repeated his effort from Saturday to lead into turn one from Allerton, Herfoss and Jones. Unlike the day before, Halliday got a halfway decent start to be in fifth after the first lap as Waters led Jones Herfoss and Allerton across the line. Waters accelerated to a two-bike length lead but approximately 440 metres later as the quartet peeled into turn one, Waters was in too hot, had a moment and was forced to run off track allowing the following trio to inherit the lead.

Waters re-joined the race in 16th position to begin his battle through the field and lowered his lap record he set the previous day to be now 1:05.178 – just 0.116 sec off the all-time fastest lap set by Wayne Maxwell last year on the McMartin Racing Ducati. As Jones led Herfoss and Allerton, Jones and Herfoss were all over each other as Allerton faded with brake problems with Herfoss passing Jones when he ran slightly wide at turn six.

Jones regained the lead with six laps to go but a fired-up Herfoss was not to be denied and reclaimed the lead. With just a couple of laps to go, Jones put a move on Herfoss at turn five but Herfoss pinned the throttle on the exit as the pair were side by side heading into the hairpin. In the powder keg of the final few laps, the defending champion tried everything to deny Herfoss but the Honda rider would have none of it as he rebuffed the challenge and reclaimed the lead to take the win from Jones by just 0.169 sec with Allerton a distant third a further five seconds adrift.

Halliday had a better result in race two as he finished fourth five seconds in from Waters in fifth. There were a number of personal best results through the field with Broc Pearson (DesmoSport Ducati) in sixth place putting in his best lap of the weekend on the last lap as he chased Waters. Anthony West in seventh was another improver with Arthur Sissis fighting through the pain of his still-healing broken left wrist in eight. Rounding out the top ten was Max Stauffer who at one stage was in fourth place but ran wide on the ninth lap and finished ninth and Ted Collins tenth.

The drama didn’t take a rest as immediately the bikes returned to Parc Ferme, a protest was lodged by the Penrite Honda Team against the McMartin Ducati regarding an alleged unauthorised part on the front forks of the Ducati Panigale V4 R. Due to the time of the protest and with another race to run, the protest hearing was postponed until a Post-Race Technical inspection of the McMartin machine after the final race.

Alpinestars Superbikes Race Two Podium (Full Results Here)

1 17 Troy HERFOSS (QLD) / Penrite Honda Racing Honda CBR RR
2 1 Mike JONES (QLD) / Yamaha Racing Team Yamaha YZF-R1M
3 14 Glenn ALLERTON (NSW) / GT Racing / Macarthur Motorrad / Spectro Oils BMW M RR

Race Three
With the tit-for-tat protests it was a very tense affair heading into the final race on Sunday afternoon as the track temperature nudged 50 degrees celcius under the blazing blue skies of the Nothern Territory.

The field blasted down the straight and the riders were five abreast. Herfoss was on the inside, Sissis almost went into pit lane as he made his charge from the third row as Allerton cut through the middle of them with Waters beside. Allerton moved into second on the fourth gear flat-out charge to turn five but lost the front and crashed out. He managed to remount but had to reset the electronics as the bike would fire up again. The three times champion managed to restart the bike, but he re-joined the race over half a lap down in last place.

The extremely hot track temperature took away the chance of any lap records as the pace was slowed by about a second a lap, but it sure didn’t detract from the action. As they crossed the line to start lap two, Herfoss led Jones and Waters from Sissis and Staring, Stauffer and Halliday the seven riders 1.8 seconds apart.

The usual suspects of Jones, Herfoss and Waters quickly gapped the rest, but it wasn’t long before Waters lost touch slightly to be over a second off the as the Honda and Yamaha pitched at each other in the battle for supremacy. The lead between Herfoss and Jones swapped a few times during the 16 laps, but Herfoss led across the line on every lap as Waters stayed well clear of the slipstream in an effort to keep the V4’s engine temperature down as well as aiming to have a better corner speed entry into turn one but it didn’t make any difference.

Halliday was on the charge to be up to fifth behind Sissis but as they negotiated turn one on the seventh lap Halliday attempted to go underneath Sissis on the exit, but they clashed, with Halliday coming down and tumbling to the outfield with the frightening sight of the bike hitting the back of Halliday but so fortunately he was not too badly injured. As such Staring inherited fourth and hung onto the position to improve his race two result to gain the confidence that the MotoGo Yamaha is getting closer to the front.

Broc Pearson put in a similar effort to again improve his finishing position to cross the line in fifth. Anthony West also improved for his best result of sixth, to gain some valuable points and put a smile on his face as Sissis was seventh from Stauffer, Collins and Matt Walters on his Aprilia to round out the top ten.

Last year was the turning point in the season for Jones when he took two wins and a second. Twelve months later, Herfoss did the same to well and truly bury the ghosts of two years ago and head to Morgan Park in a very strong position. It was a very heart-warming sight and quite emotional for many in parc ferme as Herfoss celebrated his win.

Alpinestars Superbikes Race Three Podium (Full Results Here)
1 17 Troy HERFOSS (QLD) / Penrite Honda Racing Honda CBR RR
2 1 Mike JONES (QLD) / Yamaha Racing Team Yamaha YZF-R1M
3 21 Josh WATERS (VIC) / McMartin Racing with K-Tech / Gotzinger Smallgoods

The next round of the mi-bike Motorcycle Insurance Australian Superbike Championship Presented by Motul takes place at Morgan Park Raceway on the 14th to 16th of July.

ASBK Round 4 Gallery, Hidden Valley

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Read all the race reports here…

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Friday
Early on it was Bryan Staring aboard the frankly stunning indigenous-round-liveried DesmoSport Ducati who banked the fastest lap. Staring looked and sounded afterward very comfortable aboard the 2021 race winning team bike. Staring bristled at suggestions that he was losing touch with the leading pair of Maxwell and Jones and his early form- and indeed pace across the day- indicates that the Western Australian is well in the hunt not only for the top step this weekend, but championship contention.

The 2021 champion has a theory- and we all know it, and he’s done it for years- post a ludicrously fast time and make the other riders work for it. Sure enough, he nailed the fasted time in FP1 and then left it to Staring and Mike Jones to duke it out for second and third respectively.

Mike Jones would not be denied. A few clever changes in both bike setup and mindset saw the familiar Yamaha hit the top of the table for FP2 and indeed bank the fastest lap of the day. While FP2 didn’t provide conditions as conducive to fast laps as FP1, the reality was the riders found a little more and all progressed. For FP2 it was Jones- who not only managed a race simulation, but then went to a softer tyre and banged out a succession of fastest laps. One rider confided afterward; “This weekend is his for the taking”. Maxwell and Staring rounded out the top three for FP2.

Bryan Staring cleverly countered the Jones phenom by getting out early in Free Practice 3 and posting a fast time to again challenge the field to “come at me”. The track temperature was now fifty-hell-no and after a few solid sessions from everything from Supercars to Porsches and Hyundai Excels, the track had “gone away”. Bryan Staring would later admit he wasn’t sure if it was the cars or the temperature that had slowed things, but it was certainly not as fast as it was earlier in the day.

And while earlier sessions had been all about lap times and tuning, the early running in FP3 was apparently “who would like to crash?” with a multitude of riders – mercifully largely uninjured- finding themselves off track. Josh Waters, Luke Macdonald, Marc Chiodo and Ant West all crashed, and it was clear that there was a high level of pressure and expectation.

The day ended with combined times giving the nod to Jones from Maxwell and Staring. A much-improved Glenn Allerton – in his 100th ASBK event – found some time hidden deep in the M 1000 RR followed by Yamaha’s Cru Halliday who ought to be pleased with yet another consistent performance.

Former Darwin race winner, Honda’s Troy Herfoss and on-the-improve Arthur Sissis were sixth and seventh, with Lachlan Epis keen to make up for lost time in eighth, Daniel Falzon in ninth and Josh Waters down in tenth after his crash in FP3.

Saturday morning brings things to a head early with the first 20-minute qualifying session at 9:10am. The second session sees them back on track at 9:35am for the top 12 and at 1:20pm the best Superbike racers in the country will be unleashed for 16 laps. With no more practice sessions and a lot to play for, Saturday will be as fascinating as it could be pivotal for season 2022.

ASBK Darwin Friday Combined Top 3 (Full results here)
1 Mike Jones-  Yamaha YZF-R1 1:05.506
2 Wayne Maxwell- Ducati V4R 1:05.591
3 Bryan Staring- Ducati V4R 1:05.772

Satruday
The qualifying sessions for the Merlin Darwin Triple Crown were one of the best and most exciting sessions seen in many years. While the early session just saw top riders do enough to avoid missing Q2, for the second session the top 12 riders in the country put on a show.

Qualifying
Mike Jones did enough in Q1 to ensure he would be there for Q2, whereas Wayne Maxwell did a Wayne Maxwell and of course topped the sheets when that was not required. But when it really mattered in the second qualifying session, Jones got down to business and hit a 1:05.411 that he followed a while later with a 1:05.333 and then a fastest-for the-weekend 1:05.213.

While it wasn’t into the 1:04s that various pundits had predicted, the feeling in the paddock was that Maxwell would need to keep it together and his early qualifying laps- that included a short off circuit excursion- indicated that perhaps the reigning champion would not be able to have a solid dip in the last few minutes.

And then everyone else had a dip. With a few minutes to go a glance at the timing monitors was eye popping as a multitude of riders mid-lap were dipping into the fastest lap, lap record and personal best territory. As has been often the case, the longest and hardest sector- three- would be the undoing of many …except for Wayne Maxwell, who just pushed through to take not only the pole position, but get into the 1:04s, the qualifying record time and – but for Mike Jones’ emphatic race simulation times on Friday- warm favouritism for the opening race.

ASBK Darwin Grid (Full results here) 

1 Wayne Maxwell – Ducati V4R 1:04.962
2 Mike Jones – Yamaha YZF-R1 1:05.213
3 Bryan Staring – Ducati V4R 1:05.330

Race One
One could not ignore the achievement of Troy Herfoss fighting his way out- not only from sixth place on the grid- but out of a Darwin Hospital where he was 12 months ago to the day after his worst ever crash- a crash that many thought would see the end of his career.

That Mike Jones was out front reeling off lap after consistent lap was impressive- and frankly might be the start of a critical and definitive run to the 2022 Championship- but it was hard to get past not only the Herfoss result, but also the battle that he and Bryan Staring had to get to the line.

The race started off at the expected frenetic pace with the magnificent DesmoSport Ducati in its one-off indigenous livery, firing off the line from third into first for turn one. Bryan Staring wisely didn’t go too deep into the opening turn and that spooked then-second placed Arthur Sissis who had also had a huge start from seventh.

After leading for five laps, Staring found himself second to the number 46 Yamaha after Mike Jones decided that he had the pace and tyres to go to the line. As soon as he hit the lead, Jones focused on smooth, consistent laps and eked out a small, but noticeable gap.

While it was not immediately obvious to anyone off track, early in the race, 2021 Champion Wayne Maxwell was in trouble. His electronics were not on song, and he was losing power and drive in places where there was no need to drop power. Riders around him pounced as the big Ducati popped and burped its way around the Hidden Valley layout. Fourth in race one was a good outcome given the circumstances.

Glenn Allerton had been relegated from eight to tenth after a track limits breach in qualifying and apparently that situation had fired him up as he took the BMW M 1000 RR from tenth to fourth. In his 100th ASBK round, Allerton was not in the mood for a mid-pack finish.

In his 100th ASBK round, Allerton was not in the mood for a mid-pack finish…

Glenn found himself in a group that were all looking to work their way back into podium contention and while he was unable to get by Maxwell, fifth on the day was a good outcome on a weekend where the Maxima Oils Racing Team appear to be making significant steps forward.

Allerton’s teammate Josh Waters also had a great start but some timing glitches with his transponder made it difficult to establish just exactly how he was going. For all the issues with his timing, he did in fact nail the fastest lap of the race with a 1:05.499 and after a difficult Friday eighth was not what he wanted…

Cru Halliday had a poor start and went from sixth to eighth. While he would work his way past a few riders, on the day the best he could manage was a return to sixth by the checkered flag.

For the leading group, it was all panning out to Mike Jones’ liking as he stretched his lead a little each lap. Herfoss had passed Maxwell and while you could not see his face, the attitude of the Honda and Herfoss’ body language showed he was absolutely looking to bridge the multi second gap to Staring.

And he did. With just two laps left, Herfoss arrived for what would be the battle of the day. With respect for each other, but a championship and the day’s honours to battle for, they traded positions multiple times and nearly sent themselves off track on the last lap. It was nail biting, exciting and brilliant dicing with Herfoss coming out the winner- albeit for second place on the day.

While the Staring/Herfoss fight was holding the attention of the TV directors and fans, Jones quietly took the Championship by the scruff of the neck as he took race one. He might have missed the bonus point for pole, but the 25 points for the win was ample compensation. With nominal non-title contender Herfoss second, the stretch in Jones’ Championship points lead over Maxwell and Staring was an added bonus.

ASBK Darwin Race One Podium (Full Results Here)

1 Mike Jones – Yamaha YZF-R1
2 Troy Herfoss – Honda CBR RR +3.260
3 Bryan Staring – Ducati V4R +3.616

Sunday
For Wayne Maxwell and Arthur Sissis, they found themselves as the yin and yang of Race Two. Arthur repeated his good start of yesterday but with a little greatness thrown in this time round, taking his Yamaha from seventh to first into turn one. For Wayne Maxwell, short of crashing, he could not have had a worse start. “Like a kid trying to pop a wheelie on a BMX” was the call from the track announcer and it was hard to argue with that analysis, as the reigning champion effectively swapped grid places with Sissis.

It felt like a pivotal moment for both men. For Sissis it was the realisation that he could not only get to the front, but he could box on with the likes of Herfoss, Jones, Halliday and Allerton. For Maxwell, it appeared to be the moment he conceded more points to Jones and with it potentially the title.

Up front, for five solid laps Arthur Sissis contested the lead and was P1 every time over the finish line. The South Australian Sissis gave as good as he got, showing that a good start was not all he had. In a field of wily, older racers, it was gratifying to see a twenty something serving up a hot bowl of quality race craft to the olde brigade. Staring had to use everything he had at his disposal- including the mighty DesmoSport Ducati’s straight-line advantage- to squeeze into the lead.

Championship leader Mike Jones just did that thing he does; circulating steadily and without fanfare while everyone else dropped bombs and occasionally banged fairings. It was easy to get suckered into an MMA-style battle for position, but the blue 46 Yamaha of Jones sat comfortably in fourth. While Sissis was conceding the lead to Staring on lap five, the formerly serene Jones found himself being passed by man-on-a-mission Wayne Maxwell. There was no dicing, the #1 Ducati just blew by him as Maxwell had eyes only for the front of the field.

Herfoss barged his way past Sissis and kindly left a Mike Jones sized gap and then Arthur out braked himself into turn one, running wide and just like that, a podium chance went begging. Maxwell remained fixated on his mission and despite the Pirellis having great grip for the whole distance thus far, it was hard to believe he hadn’t somehow set them afire with his relentless pace that included a lap record (1:05.407).

As the race drew closer to the checkered flag, it was a race between two warring parties: Maxwell and Staring, Jones and Herfoss. With the usual benefit of hindsight, they ought to have called a ceasefire to get away- or catch up- as their dicing was slowing their pace and the leading pair could not get away allowing the chasers to stay within a shot. Jones pulled out all he had and was able to get past Staring on the last lap.

But it was Maxwell at the flag who had been able to bang out some solid laps to deny Jones any chance of a tow to the line and take the win. Staring came home in third with Herfoss in fourth, unable to match his heroic second from Saturday. He later conceded that his pace is his pace and there’s not much left. 

The top four completed the 16-lap journey inside Jones’ winning time from Saturday, a fair indication of how the track was perhaps better, but also that the riders and teams found a little more to close the gap to Mike Jones. One rider noted it was a “good old-fashioned race with battles everywhere” and that was evident from the provisional lap chart.

ASBK Darwin Race Two Podium (Full Results Here)

1 Wayne Maxwell – Ducati V4R
2 Mike Jones – Yamaha YZF-R1 +0.249
3 Bryan Staring – Ducati V4R +0.734

Race Three
Early on, it wasn’t funny, but it was certainly entertaining as the leading duo in the championship were also the leading duo in race three. They swapped the lead a few times and then a resurgent and confident Glenn Allerton found himself back close to the front again. On lap four Allerton pushed past longtime rival Maxwell and with all the self-confidence we know Glenn has, he clearly began to think about winning the race. 

Maxwell, however, fell into the clutches of Staring and Herfoss, and coming out of turn six he just twisted the throttle a little too much and had the easiest, slowest and costliest low side. He knew what the stakes were and did not let go of the bike, preferring to spin to a slow stop while gripping onto the bike and his title chances with both hands. Maxwell remounted, but there would be no repeat of his race two heroics, the front runners were gone and the gap to season-saving points was half a lap up the road.

This middle phase of the race made it clear that it’s time Mike Jones retired the “Mad Mike” moniker. Mad has too many aggressive and wild connotations. His performance this weekend and particularly in race three was not mad. Some said it was robotic, and if this is true, then he is the Terminator. He just did everything needed to execute the mission. Solid laps, a bigger gap and then eyes were just on the battle for second as the blue R1 with the familiar 46 on it loudly drew away from the field.

The battle for second was on in earnest with the trio of Allerton, Staring and Herfoss all rightly laying claim to the spot while Halliday and Sissis drove their Yamahas hard to stay in contact. Allerton found himself down as low as fourth, Herfoss as high as second, but also as low as fourth. With three laps to go, Staring had both Allerton and Herfoss push past and set sail for the line. Their battle would come down to the last corners and when Herfoss tried his usual up-the-inside move, Allerton placed himself decisively in his way and Herfoss was unable to perform his favorite move. That was how they ran to the line. Jones – Daylight- Allerton– Herfoss– Staring.

Wayne Maxwell was able to move up to 11th for ten points and salvage something from the low side disaster at turn six, but now finds himself some 40 points (162) behind Jones (202). It is not insurmountable, but every time Jones has a round where he stretches his lead, Maxwell has one less round to catch him. The maths look difficult with three rounds, six races remaining and a maximum of 153 points on offer.

For the other top contenders- Staring (155) is now within 7 points of second in the Championship, while Halliday, Herfoss and Waters find themselves – incredibly – on the same points in fourth (136). That will be some kind of battle for the rest of the season. Allerton and Sissis are next and also sit together on 131 points. The Championship now has a mid-winter break before reconvening at Morgan Park 5-7 August, with the regular classes rejoining us for what promises to be a hectic back half of the season.

ASBK Darwin Race Three Podium (Full Results Here)

1 Mike Jones – Yamaha YZF-R1
2 Glenn Allerton – BMW M RR +6.502
3 Troy Herfoss – Honda CBR RR +6.950

ASBK Championship Standings After Darwin Rd4 (Full Standings Here)

1 Mike Jones – Yamaha YZF-R1 – 202
2 Wayne Maxwell – Ducati V4R – 162
3 Bryan Staring – Ducati V4R – 155

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Thursday saw the riders and team members meet and greet local fans at the Darwin Waterfront, where they signed autographs and were interviewed about the weekend ahead. They then headed trackside for some shots. By all accounts it’s looking like a top weekend in the Top End. Stay tuned!

The format for the Merlin Darwin Triple Crown sees the Alpinestars Superbikes race three times over two days- a change to the usual two races on the Sunday. MA say that while this does not offer any particular rider an advantage, it does advantage teams that are fast on out-of-the-gate Friday morning as there is effectively one day less until race day. See more here…

Check out our track guide, corner by corner of Hidden Valley by Andrew Pitt

Live Broadcast Information:
Fox Sports Australia
Friday – Free Practice 2 and Free Practice 3
Saturday – Qualifying 1 & Qualifying 2, plus Race 1
Sunday – Race 2 (Exclusively Live on Fox) & Race 3

Channel 7
Saturday – Race 1
Sunday – Race 3

SBS
Sunday 3rd July 1pm- The ASBK Darwin Show

ASBK DARWIN, THURSDAY GALLERY

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Sure, Mike Jones showed he was the man to beat, and the Yamaha factory was certainly well sorted for the 2.2km layout. But after Wayne Maxwell’s team made an uncharacteristic error early in the proceedings, the gift was the pole position and the psychological advantage. For the leading duo, Wakefield indicated to those assembled that perhaps we have our 2022 champion pair and it’s now down to the remaining races to decide which one of them takes the trophy.

Grab your tickets for the weekend here…

For Bryan Staring, the Merlin Darwin Triple Crown is a real “line in the sand” moment. After scoring 45 points at round one, the West Australian has been on a slight downward slide, and the bike and rider seemed incredibly out of sorts at Wakefield as he scored just 32 points. If he wants to stay in the Championship hunt, then a solid points haul is necessary. Confidence ought to be high after the DesmoSport Ducati took a win here last year with Oli Bayliss aboard.

The Maxima Oils Racing duo of Josh Waters and Glenn Allerton might perhaps have the words of Wayne Maxwell ringing in their ears when he stated at the post round three press conference that they appeared to be “not making forward progress”. The BMW seems to have all they need to be front runners- power, handling a solid and electronics package, but an interrupted program for Allerton and Waters’ relative unfamiliarity has indeed slowed their progression. Darwin offers a chance to bring the BMW M1000RR to the pointiest end of the field.

For a guy who is currently fifth in the Championship, Cru Halliday has flown under the radar thanks to the success of teammate Mike Jones and Halliday’s own struggles. A solid result at Wakefield – where he scored more points in race one than he did in total at Round Two in Queensland, has put the likeable larrikin back into contention for the top three.

Troy Herfoss is the great unknown. His past results indicate that he certainly does well at Hidden Valley, and his growing fitness and pace shows that he could certainly be a contender. With Paul Free back in his corner and his indefatigable self-belief, eyes will be on the Honda Fireblade in the early sessions. Suffice to say, there’s a few demons that he will need to banish before he can really get down to business.

The format for the Merlin Darwin Triple Crown sees the Alpinestars Superbikes race three times over two days- a change to the usual two races on the Sunday. While this does not offer any particular rider an advantage, it does advantage teams that are fast on out-of-the-gate Friday morning as there is effectively one day less until race day.

Live Broadcast Information:

Fox Sports Australia

• Friday – Free Practice 2 and Free Practice 3
• Saturday – Qualifying 1 & Qualifying 2, plus Race 1
• Sunday – Race 2 (Exclusively Live on Fox) & Race 3

Channel 7

• Saturday – Race 1
• Sunday – Race 3

SBS

• Sunday 3rd July 1pm- The ASBK Darwin Show

The post Round Preview: ASBK Darwin Weekend Starts Today! appeared first on Racing, Riding, Motorcycle Reviews, Race bikes, Tech Tips, Rider Training....

I only ever went up there once to race and that was with Doyley and the Team Kawasaki Australia boys. Robbie Phillis and young Pete went ahead about a week earlier. The stories of that road trip from Pete about life in a truck with Phillis for a week, is in itself entirely for another issue. I suppose it was just about the equivalent of today’s flyaway races in the world championship. It was probably our only really hot summer type race as the Aussie Championship is run through the winter months.

Check out our other track guides here…

Flying up on the Wednesday and checking into a nice resort style holiday spot made you feel like you were away on a summer holiday somewhere with a few trips out to the racetrack thrown in. I do remember flying in over the coastline and beaches and seeing a few big old crocs soaking up the sun on the water’s edge. That was definitely somewhat of a surprise.

I learnt another pretty valuable lesson in punctuality up north in 1999 and that was when Peter Doyle says the team car leaves the hotel at 0800 then that is exactly when it leaves. I strolled down into reception about 0805 with everyone sat in the car waiting for me and Doyley simply said this is your one chance and the next time you’ll be getting a taxi. Scott Breedin explained to me that Marty Craggill had been left at the hotel a few times the year before and therefore had to get himself a taxi to the circuit. It had the desired effect because I was never late again.

Onto the circuit now. I found it probably due to lack of use but more likely having all the cars running around on it always made the 2+4 events a bit greasy. With the front straight at Darwin 1.2km long it gave you a nice little rest but also meant it allowed Craig Connell and Stevo Martin on the factory Ducatis to really stretch their legs. I had everything possible tucked in trying to stay in the slipstream especially of Craig. We were tapped out in sixth on the approach to turn 1.

Turn 01
Back down through the gearbox to 2nd and there was plenty to be made up on the brakes here because it is very much a double apex turn a bit like the Southern Loop at Phillip Island but you could really get sucked in here if you tried to go up the inside of someone and risk completely missing the turn. My old mate Krusty Fergusson found that out off the start of race two when he thought he could come from 5th or 6th and out brake everyone but unfortunately instead of just running off the track or running wide he used me to stop and took us both out. Krusty came away unscathed as he mostly did but I had a broken wrist to take home with me.

Anyway the first apex was on the way in while still trail braking and letting it drift out to about the middle of the track before pulling it back to apex again on the way out then letting it run out to almost the outside kerb while grabbing 3rd and 4th in pretty quick succession all the time trying to pull the bike to the left to get the next series of corners linked together right.

Turn 02/03/04
This is all taken in 4th for me on the ZX-7R and the end part very close to the limiter where the power goes a little flat just so the bike wasn’t still accelerating through the 3 and 4 flick from right to left before grabbing the brakes and shifting quickly back to 3rd for the right handed turn 5. This all needed to be done very smoothly because braking and down shifting while changing direction quickly can get messy if you don’t keep everything together including my movements on the bike.

Turn 05
This was a pretty basic and simple corner as long as you got it setup right on the way in. I tended to run it in a little fast sometimes because my bike was a little lazy in 3rd on the way out so I was always trying to roll through it a bit quicker. During the final qualifying on Saturday I remember it had gotten really hot and the circuit had started to melt and come apart and oil had been dropped on this corner that was then covered in cement dust. So if you slithered through the cement dust OK you were then presented with some potholes and lifting black stuff at turn 6. On the out lap though of final qualifying I didn’t make it past the cement dust losing the front on the way through.

Turn 06
Having been able to pick my bike up out of the infield of turn 5 I rode it back to get it checked over only to come straight back out in a rush and get one turn further and crash at turn 6 on the melting rutty part of the circuit. This time running back or getting a lift I don’t remember to the pit lane dreading the look on the boys faces when I wanted the spare bike. Flat and slippery and back to 1st or 2nd depending on the bike you were on. A Supersport bike would be in second whereas I took it in 1st so I didn’t need to carry as much corner speed and I could pick it up on the exit and jump out of the turn short shifting up to 3rd for the next fast right turn 7.

Turn 07
This was a turn you needed to sacrifice just a little on the entry to make sure you got it back for the right hand apex and got a really good exit for the next few fast corners all linked together. If you rushed at turn 7 a little fast tipping in early or simply were too wide on the exit of 6 the exit was terrible even if you managed to not run too wide.

Turn 08 and 09
Turn 7 and 8 were almost like one big double apex turn with a constant lean angle and constant throttle from the exit of turn 7 while shifting up to 4th just as you almost touch the inside kerb through turn 8. Still flat out in 4th while flick it left on the run down to turn 10 in the middle of the track.

Turn 10
You could enter here about the middle of the track not bothering to pull it back to the right too far for the entry in really run it in fast after back shifting down to 3rd. Let it drift out a little then picking up the throttle and aiming for the apex of turn 11.

Turn 11/12/13
These three are really just points to aim for while flick it from one side to the other on the throttle. The sections like this and also exiting turn 1 are linked corners where the bike needs to really steer well on the throttle and to get this you will need some good support from the rear of the bike. You definitely don’t want it being a chopper through these sections. After hitting your turn 11 apex it was a flick right for turn 12 apex and then right again to hit the turn 13 apex before letting it run out to the edge of the track while you set yourself for turn 14 and the exit onto the all important 1.2km start finish straight.

Turn 14
Just as you are grabbing the brakes and down shifting to 2nd while passing the turn 13 apex you should only be thinking about setting yourself up for the perfect exit onto the straight to finish the lap.

I got myself caught out in a painful way being a little over eager getting on the throttle as early as possible by hanging a highside without actually crashing. The rear stepped out and I was flicked up over the top but still hanging onto the bars I can back down on the tank with my head through the screen and both legs falling on one side. I had nutted myself and luckily the pit lane starts just after the exit because that was the direction I was going in. I managed to stay on board and dribble down pit lane to the boys that grabbed the bike while I fell into a heap in pit lane. After a few minutes I got my shit together and went back out for another go. This time though, I tried to picked it up a little more and ride it like a Superbike instead of the Supersport bike.

So that was how I rode around Hidden Valley and to be honest it wasn’t one of my best weekends result wise having an almost crash on Friday and two crashes on Saturday, a 4th in race one and my third crash on Sunday in race two courtesy of Krusty. I headed back to Sydney with a broken wrist for my troubles but the silver lining was I also had the lap record from race one that was to stand for more than 10 years, mainly to do with the fact they didn’t go back there to race until recently!

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