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2005 AUSTRALIAN SUPERBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP

2005 AUSTRALIAN SUPERBIKE / SUPERSPORT CHAMPIONSHIP

ROUND 4, MALLALA, SA: JUNE 5, 2005

RACE RESULT:

SUPERBIKE RACE 1

• 1 Shawn GILES, Suzuki GSX-R 1000, 19 laps
• 2 Jamie STAUFFER, Kawasaki ZXR 1000
• 3 Josh BROOKES, Honda CBR 1000
• 4 JOHNSON
• 5 ALLERTON
• 6 FERGUSSON
• 7 BUGDEN
• 8 GOBERT
• 9 CHARLTON
• 10 GERONIMI

SUPERBIKE RACE 2

• 1 Adam FERGUSSON, Honda CBR1000RR, 19 laps
• 2 Shawn GILES, Suzuki GSX-R 1000
• 3 Josh BROOKES, Honda CBR1000
• 4 Shannon JOHNSON
• 5 ALLERTON
• 6 BUGDEN
• 7 Jamie STAUFFER
• 8 CHARLTON
• 9 Anthony GOBERT
• 10 ETHERIDGE

SUPERSPORT RACE 1

• 1 Adam FERGUSSON, Honda CBR600RR, 19 laps
• 2 Mark AITCHISON, Yamaha YZF-R6
• 3 Josh BROOKES, Honda CBR600RR
• 4 Brendan CLARKE, Yamaha YZF-R6
• 5 Joshua WATERS, Kawasaki ZX-6RR
• 6 Bryan STARING, Honda CBR600

SUPERSPORT RACE 2

• 1 Adam FERGUSSON, Honda CBR600RR, 19 laps
• 2 Josh BROOKES, Honda CBR600RR
• 3 Brendan CLARKE, Yamaha YZF-R6
• 4 Mark AITCHISON, Yamaha YZF-R6
• 5 Bryan STARING
• 6 Christopher SEATON

RACE REPORT: HONDA

NEAR SHEER PERFECTION FOR KRUSTY AT MALLALA

• It was clear from the moment practice started at last weekend’s Mallala
  round of the Australian Superbike Championships that Adam ‘Krusty’
  Fergusson was in form and feeling at one with both of his Joe Rocket Honda
  CBR’s. Any bike set-up problems the Team might have contended with at the three
  previous rounds were clearly solved as Fergusson’s smooth-as-silk style
  came to the fore on the tight, hard braking circuit in South Australia.
• After snagging pole position in both the 600cc and 1000cc classes, Krusty
  proceeded to win three out of the four races in which he competed, taking
  away the overall round win in Supersport and the second podium spot after
  two event filled and somewhat controversial Superbike races.
• It was an extraordinary weekend from the brazen man from Melton as he very
  nearly cleaned up with 100% of the points, save for a first corner mishap
  in Superbike race one that marred his otherwise perfect score.
• Krusty’s chief technician, Luke Spence, explained how everything gelled for
  the weekend for the first time since the 2005 season started.
• “Mallala is a hard track on tyres and brakes but after a few rounds where
  we struggled with set up, we now have everything working really well,
  especially on the CBR600RR. The set up on Krusty’s bikes are getting such that it is easier and easier for him to ride at a faster pace,” he noted. “This is obviously what we’ll
  keep aiming for in the remaining rounds.”
• For the Joe Rocket Team as a whole, the weekend proved to be a winner with
  team mate Josh Brookes also taking his place on the podium in each class
  (2nd in Supersport, 3rd in Superbike), helping him to maintain his top spot
  in the hotly contested 600cc which he now leads by 16 points.
• Josh’s weekend was not devoid of difficulties however. After straining his
  forearm at Barbagallo the weekend prior, Brookes struggled somewhat with
  discomfort, particularly under hard braking. This coupled with race time
  fatigue created an atypical frustration for the 22 year old fitness freak.
  Working through the pain, Josh was still able to qualify and compete
  skillfully each time he took to the tarmac.
• “I was just getting more tired than usual about half way through each
  race,” Josh said. “And I haven’t been able to muscle the bike around as
  much as I’d like today. I did manage to pick up championship points though
  and that’s what counts.”
• On the junior side, Rocket Racing’s Jason O’Halloran once again rode
  steadily, finishing 7th overall for the day, and although somewhat
  perturbed that he couldn’t muster a quicker pace, the 17 year old rider
  continues to display the makings of a future champion.
• “My new mechanic Ben (Turner) and I are getting along great and we have
  been working on trying to find a good set up all weekend. It just didn’t
  quite get there so we’ll keep trying and hopefully get it right for
  Winton,” Jason said.

Race Action – Superbike

• Under perfect climatic conditions, the crowd was treated to a display of
  on-the-edge racing that continues to show why this country is still a
  breeding ground for world class talent.
• With qualifying times being only a hundredth of a second apart, the grid
  line up for the big class was a nose to tail pipe affair from the first
  green light. Fergusson, along with Shawn Giles, Jamie Stauffer and Josh
  Brookes kept on each other without remorse with the lead position chopping
  and changing continually for a variety of unforeseen reasons.
• In race one, Krusty got away behind the two rivals, taking second position
  under braking early on and setting a new lap record of 1:06.9 in the
  process. Brookes settled into fourth and got down to the business of
  closing the gap.
• Down the back side esses of the dusty circuit, Adam forged ahead to the
  front momentarily until an unusual mistake from the master at the Southern
  Loop relegated him back to second. Just as he was looking to pounce once
  again, the rules of the game kicked in hard as Adam went wide on turn one,
  and had to run back through the pits before rejoining the pack. (The
  Motorcycling Australia rule which does not allow riders to go straight back
  on to the track if they run wide on turn one, would be a hard pill to
  swallow for more than one rider on the day.)
• Fergusson found himself back in 8th spot and needing to make up as much
  ground as possible. He put his head down and moved up two places past
  Redwing Honda’s Anthony Gobert as well as Robert Bugden within a few laps
  however he had to settle for 6th, a frustrating finish for a man on a
  mission. Team mate Brooks meanwhile maintained his third place for the
  remainder of the 19 lapper.
• “When you run off the track and have to go through the pits, it is
  definitely not a good thing,” Krusty said with a grimace. “At the speeds we
  are doing here, it is easy to come in to that corner too hot but you can be
  assured it won’t happen again today.”
• It certainly was not an issue again as Fergusson went out for race two with
  some added fire in his belly. After getting away into 2nd and then dicing
  aggressively with Stauffer, he secured the front position just prior to an
  unusual red flag call being made due to debris on the track.
• Giles, who had retired due to mechanical failure on the previous lap was
  allowed to join the restart, and after a short break, the top runners went
  back out to the start grid in the positions they were in when the race was
  called.
• Adam thus restarted from pole position, while Josh restarted from fourth
  and the field took off once again for another 11 laps with the race to be
  decided on combined times. This time out, Krusty grabbed the lead early on
  with Brookesy slotting into 3rd and the two claimed those positions for the
  race - a 2nd and 3rd place podium finish for the round.
• Josh is currently in second place in the championship on 166 points, just
  five shy of Giles whilst Adam maintains the fourth spot on142 points.
• “With three rounds to go, the Championship is still clearly wide open,“
  Adam noted. “Josh and all the other guys at the top are tough to beat. For
  me personally, things are starting to come together and the next round at
  Winton is one of my favourite tracks so I think we can only keep improving
  from here on in.”

Race Action – Supersport

• There is no rest for the wicked in the Joe Rocket Honda camp with it being
  the only factory team to have the same two riders contest both classes. The
  pace does not seem to worry either Brookes or Fergusson however as both
  went out and put on an extremely dominant showing in the challenge of the
  600’s.
• Qualifying times between Fergusson on pole and the final contender in the
  30 plus field of riders varied by only three seconds so the racing was set
  to be fast and heated. At the end of the day, Krusty’s maturity and comfort
  with the 2.6 kilometre track paid dividends as he took away both race day
  wins.
• Brookes, who has dominated the class to date, was not far off his team
  mate’s pace and found himself chasing his fellow Honda rider each time out.
  Josh Waters and Mark Aitchison also provided the early competition for
  Krusty and Brookes who got away in race one in the top positions.
• The men on their dynamite red machines were clearly in control, however,
  with Adam getting a four second plus lead over his team mate by the half
  way mark. However a slight error on JB’s part at the northern hairpin left
  him open to a take over by Aitchison with only three laps to go. Josh found
  himself having to play catch up as he started to fatigue and he finished
  third; clearly not overly satisfied with the result.
• “I’m never comfortable when I’m in second and I’m not all that happy with
  the way I’ve been riding this weekend,” he said.
• Krusty on the other hand was chuffed at taking the holeshot, particularly
  after some of the dramas he has undergone with starts over the past few
  rounds.
• “After last week, I’d forgotten what its like to get the holeshot,” he
  mused. “I just went out to get the lead and create a gap so it all came
  together.”
• Adam was able to do the same again in race two after slipping by Brookes on
  the first lap. Both riders broke away to the tune of around three seconds
  with Krusty clearly in control and destined to take away another race win
  for the day, securing his round win and closing the gap on his team mate’s
  series lead.
• “I know JB has not been his usual self on braking today. Otherwise I think
  it would have been a much closer battle in Supersport,” he said.
• Adam also made a special mention of the Honda RACESAFE Team for helping him
  out earlier in the day with treatment of arm pump. “That helped a lot so a
  big thank you to those guys. They are doing a great service to all of us
  riders.”
• Team Manager Paul Free was clearly happy to see his rider take the spoils.
  “Adam has had to deal with some frustrations of late so we are all really
  pleased he has been able to get out and show just how dominant he can be.”
• “We have six weeks now before the next round to do some further development
  and testing so I am confident we will be highly competitive at Winton.”

QUALIFYING:

SAT QUALIFYING, JUNE 4, 2005

• 1 Jamie STAUFFER, Kawasaki ZX-10R 1m 6.879
• 2 Adam FERGUSSON, Honda CBR1000RR
• 3 Josh BROOKES, Honda CBR1000RR
• 4 Shawn GILES
• 5 Shannon JOHNSON
• 6 Anthony GOBERT
• 7 BUGDEN
• 8 CHARLTON
• 9 ALLERTON
• 10 GERONIMI
• 11 ETHERIDGE 12 REES 13 COOTE 14 HENDERSON 15 KELLY 16 TUCHYNA 17 MAXWELL 18 ELLIS

FRI PRAC, JUNE 3, 2005

• 1 Adam FERGUSSON, Honda CBR1000RR , 1m 7.459s
• 2 Shawn GILES, SUZUKI GSXR 1000 +0.62s
• 3 Jamie STAUFFER, Kawasaki ZX-10R +0.92s
• 4 JOHNSON
• 5 BROOKES
• 6 ALLERTON
• 7 BUGDEN
• 8 CHARLTON
• 9 GOBERT
• 10 HENDERSON

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