Motourage

Cougar Bourbon Honda Racing’s Bryan Staring weathered mixed conditions well at Phillip Island this weekend, finishing third overall as the Australian Superbike Championship raced in support of the MotoGP Iveco Australian Grand Prix.

The region turned on a typical show of elements, with drenching rain shortening the Superbike schedule from four to three races. The opening race left teams and riders guessing as to the tire choice required – some played the wet weather card and others pushed on in the dry. Staring was one of many caught out when the conditions improved, and did well to ride to seventh place on wet weather tires.

Race two saw luck swing back to Staring’s side, until the very last lap. He led proceedings from lap 2 and looked set to record a race win before Josh Waters drafted by in the closing stages.

Race three saw the battle between the defending ASBK champion and current points leader resume. This time the Gold Coast-based Staring got the upper hand and the two second place finishes were enough to boost him to a podium placing for the weekend.

“Phillip Island really turned on the weather this weekend and this ended up costing us in the first race where it was a gamble with tires,” said Staring. “Coming back in race two, the bike felt very strong and comfortable all race long. We were unlucky not to win that one.

“Another solid second place in the final race was good enough to ensure we would be on the podium. It was a positive way to round out the weekend, and despite it being a non-championship event it was a good opportunity to test the bike further in full race trim and get a run on the new tires.”

The final event on the calendar for Staring and the Cougar Bourbon Honda Racing team is round 7 of the Viking Group Australian Superbike Championship to be held in a month’s time at Tasmania’s Symmons Plains circuit.

Staring is on course to record a maiden Superbike championship with a handy points advantage over second. If he can achieve the feat, he will also tick off the elusive triple title win – national 125cc, Supersport and Superbike crowns.

Cougar Bourbon Honda Racing’s Bryan Staring has salvaged a surprise pole position at Queensland Raceway, the host of the fifth round of the Viking Group Australian Superbike Championship. Staring, the premier class points leader, admitted he was struggling for pace early in the piece and would have been happy with a front row start.

His flying lap of the 3.12km circuit was close to perfect, and stopped the clock as the fastest of the day. The 23-year-old Gold Coast-based rider was surprised by the result and said it set him up for a good shot at race victory tomorrow.

“Before I’d even begun I’d taken myself out of the equation, after a slow day I really didn’t think I stood a chance,” said Staring. The lap felt okay, there were a few little mistakes that felt like half a second each time but turned out to be a tenth or less – they are always much more pronounced in your mind because you only get one shot at the lap.
The conditions have been tough all weekend, yesterday didn’t give us too much to go on and the whole field was struggling for pace earlier in the day.
The whole team has been trying really hard and we’ve finally got there with our fourth shot at it (pole position) – it’s a great feeling and a good reward to those that have worked so hard and backed us.”

The result maintains the momentum for Staring at Queensland Raceway, who recorded debut race and round wins here in June and now adds a debut pole position. The Cougar Bourbon Honda Racing CBR1000RR and rider are revved up for a strong showing on race day with two 16-lap races to contest. A good result tomorrow can add further weight to Staring’s claim for a maiden Australian Superbike Championship victory. He currently heads the class by 4.5 points.

Superpole Results, Viking Australian Superbike Championship Round 5, Queensland Raceway
1. Bryan STARING (QLD) / Cougar Bourbon Honda Racing 1:10.379
2. Wayne MAXWELL (VIC) / Demolition Plus GAS Honda Racing 1:10.470
3. Shannon JOHNSON (VIC) / KTM Superbike Team 1:11.262
4. Glenn ALLERTON (NSW) / Valvoline Superbike Team 1:11.300
5. Craig COXHELL (VIC) / CJC Racing 1:11.744
6. Daniel STAUFFER (QLD) / The Natural Aprilia Racing Team 1:11.850
7. Robert BUGDEN (QLD) / Team Mack Trucks Suzuki 1:11.888
8. Jamie STAUFFER (NSW) / Ducati Motologic Racing 1:12.469