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NinjaMaster
31st December 2006, 07:34
2006 proved to be something of a disappointing year in the Australian Superbike Championship (ASC). Jamie Stauffer doubled up, winning both the superbike and supersport titles for Yamaha. His only competition (in superbike) was Honda privateer Russell Holland who was in with a chance all the way until the last round.
Unfortunately all other factory riders had problems, particularly with injury. Former multiple champ and contender Shawn Giles busted his pelvis midway through the year. 2004 champ Adam Fergusson broke a couple of vertebrae and other bones at the start of the year and returned later in the season only to get injured again. Their teammates in Robbie Bugden and Glen Allerton also had injury problems. Kawasaki's Shannon Johnson started the season strongly on an under-developed bike but also suffered injury from a training crash on his treadlie. To add to the injuries, Honda and Kawasaki also had tyre problems with their Michelins often not surviving race distance (of only 8 laps) and having to run treaded supersport tyres at times.


So now we move on to 2007 and it is the most promising ASC that I can remember. There have been some major team reshuffles and the field looks as deep as I can ever remember it since the early to mid 90's. Here is a run down on each of the manufacturers for next season.


Yamaha

For Yamaha, 2007 is a case of 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it'. Defending champ, Jamie Stauffer, will head up their superbike and supersport assaults again with brother Daniel competing again in the superbike class only. Dunlop will remain as tyre supplier.


Honda

Big changes for Honda next year including riders, tyres, sponsors and personnel. Honda were embarrassed that their assault was led by a privateer last season and launched a comprehensive investigation to suss out where they needed to improve. They started by changing their riders. In are 06 ASC runner-up Russell Holland and youngster Bryan Staring has been promoted from their supersport team. Adam Fergusson has been pushed sideways into a factory supported satelite team and Glen Allerton is expected to ride a factory assisted privateer Honda.
Michelin have been dropped for 2007 (except for Fergussons DVS Honda team)after a sub-par performance in 06, with Pirelli to supply the rubber after an impressive showing with Holland in 06.
Joe Rocket have been replaced as major sponsor by camera company, Konika Minolta.


Suzuki

Longtime Suzuki rider and multiple champion Shawn Giles will front-up Yoshimura Suzuki's campaign next year. Young-gun Robbie Bugden has been ousted after only 1 season and still young Craig Coxhell has returned to the team that took him to the 2003 title after a stint overseas. Dunlop will again supply the rubber.


Kawasaki

Substantial changes are afoot at team green as well for 2007. Kawasaki retain Shannon Johnson as their lead rider and add 24 year old Wayne Maxwell to their team. Both riders will race superbike AND supersport. Unfortunately they were unable to retain the services of talented youngster, Josh Waters, who is off to Suzuki to ride their supersport bike. Similar to Honda, Kawasaki have undergone a personnel re-structure with Dave 'Radar' Cullen who used to run the dominant Radar Yamaha Team with Kevin Curtain now heading things up. Michelin have been retained as the tyre supplier but will want a substantial improvement on 2006.
Also of note, there is a new Kawasaki privateer team running next year. Normally this wouldn't be of much interest but for the rider they have hired in a certain Anthony Gobert. Hope much help they will have from the factory I am unsure but the news is reported on the Kawasaki Australia website so hopefully that is a good sign.
http://www.kawasaki.com.au/kawpublic_docs/NewZX-10RTeamin2007ASC.pdf


MV Agusta

MV Agusta are to field a team in the ASC next season running veterans Craig Trinder and John Allen. Craig's brother Steve will run the team and the view is to treat 07 as a development year ready for a full-on assault in 2008. They are said to be working closely with the MV factory in Italy.


So, next year promises a lot for motorcycle racing fans in Australia. The manufacturers are getting more involved, the depth of quality of riders and machinery is as good as it has been for many years. The series has a television package on free-to-air station SBS and also on pay-tv through Foxtel where it will also reach other countries in the region. The only drawbacks that I can really see are that the races are still too short. There should be a 10 lap heat race followed by a 15 lap main - MINIMUM! The other negative is that there is no race in Western Australia this year or at Australia's premier race track, Phillip Island. Hopefully steps can be made to rectify this in 2008.

Roll on 2007! :up:

ChrisS
31st December 2006, 10:48
I read the go show was back in Aus SBK but I didnt know anything about the team. This could be interesting, all the best to him

Mach24
1st January 2007, 10:33
This season is shaping as a beauty. I like the way Honda operate with the total repackage of the team that did not work in 06'. Great to see Kawasaki introducing Maxwell into a factory team. Whilst it is great to have Cocko back it is a shame to see Bugden pushed out when Giles is on his last legs. J Stauffer is gunna be tough again in 07. Bring it on!

NinjaMaster
2nd January 2007, 12:04
This season is shaping as a beauty. I like the way Honda operate with the total repackage of the team that did not work in 06'. Great to see Kawasaki introducing Maxwell into a factory team. Whilst it is great to have Cocko back it is a shame to see Bugden pushed out when Giles is on his last legs. J Stauffer is gunna be tough again in 07. Bring it on!
It is a shame Bugden is out of the Suzuki ride but make no mistake, a fit Giles is a contender. Hopefully Robbie can get a competitive privateer ride with some factory involvement coz the guy is quick.

Mach24
3rd January 2007, 06:56
[quote="NinjaMaster"]It is a shame Bugden is out of the Suzuki ride but make no mistake, a fit Giles is a contender. Hopefully Robbie can get a competitive privateer ride with some factory involvement coz the guy is quick.[/QUOTE

The whole Giles saga is people thinking with their hearts and not their heads. Honda got it right by keeping Krusty associated with the brand yet let him bow out gracefully. I have no doubt Gilsey will be quick, but I don't think he will win a championship..... Bugden was well on his way. I respect your opinion Ninj and as a Giles fan over many years I hope he proves me wrong. Potentially we have the best OZ supers season in many years ahead of us.

NinjaMaster
3rd January 2007, 11:58
The whole Giles saga is people thinking with their hearts and not their heads. Honda got it right by keeping Krusty associated with the brand yet let him bow out gracefully. I have no doubt Gilsey will be quick, but I don't think he will win a championship..... Bugden was well on his way. I respect your opinion Ninj and as a Giles fan over many years I hope he proves me wrong. Potentially we have the best OZ supers season in many years ahead of us.
Hehe, Krusty wouldn't like you stating he is bowing out gracefully! :D He is supremely confident that he will be up the pointy end and is determined to give it to Honda for pushing him aside from the factory team. His team is basically factory backed but with more freedom to puch the limits of the bike.

On Giles, he can definately win another title. Remember, he drew with Brookesy in 05 only to be beaten on countback (no. of wins) and was immediately back on the podium when he returned from injury at seasons end. I agree that a similar setup to Ferusson would have been a good idea to retain Giles whilst looking to the future and keeping Bugden but maybe even the same sort of setup with Robbie would work well too?

One thing we both agree on is that this is definately the most promising season upcoming for years...and I can't wait for it to start!

racer69
3rd January 2007, 16:07
How close are Australian Superbike regulations to FIM Superbike regulations, from what i can gather our regs are much more along the lines of Superstock?

NinjaMaster
4th January 2007, 08:55
That's about right, at least for now. The major superbike series (national and world) all got together during the year to nut out like regulations betweem all the series so hopefully Australia will be able to return to full FIM spec bikes in the near future that can compete as wildcards when WSB comes to town.

patnicholls
5th January 2007, 22:58
Good thread Clint, it's great to have a perspective on some of the series we don't hear so much about :up:

spring54@bigpond.net.au
10th January 2007, 12:21
The series has a television package on free-to-air station SBS and also on pay-tv through Foxtel where it will also reach other countries in the region.
Hmmm - the coverage via SBS has more filler than actual racing. Be nice if they actually showed a complete race sometimes, rather than just the overtaking manoeuvres and crashes.

NinjaMaster
14th January 2007, 04:31
Good thread Clint, it's great to have a perspective on some of the series we don't hear so much about :up:

Thanks Pat. Your thread on the British series gave me the inspiration and I really want to see the Aus series return to it's rightful place as one of the leading national series.



Hmmm - the coverage via SBS has more filler than actual racing. Be nice if they actually showed a complete race sometimes, rather than just the overtaking manoeuvres and crashes.

That is sadly true but it is better than nothing. I'm also hoping that the new deal involves a more comprehensive coverage than ASC has had for the past number of years. They will also be shown on Foxtel which will hopefully be fairly in depth.


Also of note, Robbie Bugden is competing in the New Zealand Superbike Championship this Summer as Suzuki teammate to reigning champ Andrew Stroud and started the season off with 2 wins in the first round.

tha_jackal
31st January 2007, 05:08
from mcnews.com.au:-

"Suzuki Australia is delighted to announce the re-signing of Superbike rider, Robbie Bugden for the 2007 Australian Superbike Championship.

Wrapping up an impressive third place in the 2006 Australian Superbike Championship in his first year with a factory team, Bugden has secured a fully-supported satellite ride with Suzuki, remaining onboard the GSX-R1000 Superbike for the 2007 series.

Currently in scorching form, Bugden is leading the 2007 New Zealand Superbike Championship aboard the Suzuki GSX-R1000, taking five wins from six races and going under the lap record at every event.

"I'm really happy to be back on board with Suzuki for 2007... I had a very strong finish to the 2006 season with Team Yoshimura Suzuki and I think we can build on that momentum heading into this season," Robbie Bugden said.

"Already this year, I've been pushing myself to new levels in the New Zealand championship and the GSX-R1000 is proving that it's definitely THE bike to be on.

"I have to thank Suzuki New Zealand for the invitation to race in the NZ Superbike series... it's been a great experience and all the support they have given me so far has been absolutely fantastic.

"Suzuki is such a dominant force in New Zealand road racing, with GSX-R1000's filling the top three spots in the Superbike championship... I'm just glad that I'm the guy at the top of the points right now."

With the New Zealand Superbike Series as pre-season preparation for the Australian competition, Bugden will start the new season in great shape for Suzuki and is looking to continue his winning ways back on home soil.

Suzuki will field its strongest ever rider line-up in the Australian Superbike class, with three-time champion, Shawn Giles, the 2003 champion, Craig Coxhell and Bugden all piloting Team Yoshimura Suzuki prepared GSX-R1000 race machines.

The 2007 Australian Superbike Championship commences on 16 - 18 February at Sydney's Eastern Creek Raceway."

amazing what wins do for ya.. good to see!!

NinjaMaster
12th February 2007, 08:18
That is certainly good news for Robbie Bugden. By my calculations, that gives us 3 competitive Zooks, hopefully 3 competitive Kwaks, 4 fast Hondas and 2 quick Yamahas. Looks very exciting to me! :up:

Also, Adam Fergusson's new team has changed last minute from their expected Michelin tyres to Dunlop tyres, the same as the Yamaha and Suzuki teams.

Mach24
17th February 2007, 08:16
Pos Name Class Machine Q1 Q2 BEST
1 Jamie STAUFFER (NSW) Yamaha R1 1:31.968 1:31.773 1:31.773
2 Russell HOLLAND (NSW) Honda CBR 1:32.782 1:34.507 1:32.782
3 Bryan STARING (WA) Honda CBR 1:33.923 1:32.798 1:32.798
4 Shawn GILES (NSW) Suzuki GSXR 1:33.275 1:32.824 1:32.824
5 Shannon ETHERIDGE (NSW) P Yamaha R1 1:33.306 1:32.928 1:32.928
6 Craig COXHELL (VIC) Suzuki GSXR 1:34.552 1:32.984 1:32.984
7 Shogo MORIWAKI (VIC) Honda CBR 1:33.934 1:33.120 1:33.120
8 Adam FERGUSSON (VIC) Honda CBR 1:33.190 1:33.278 1:33.190
9 Daniel STAUFFER (NSW) Yamaha R1 1:33.228 1:33.342 1:33.228
10 Shannon JOHNSON (VIC) Kawasaki ZX10R 1:33.238 1:33.660 1:33.238
11 Michael FRASER (NSW) BP Suzuki GSXR 1:35.184 1:33.276 1:33.276
12 Wayne MAXWELL (VIC) Kawasaki ZX10R 1:33.317 1:33.325 1:33.317
13 Scott CHARLTON (VIC) P Yamaha R1 1:33.496 1:33.500 1:33.496
14 Glenn ALLERTON (NSW) P Honda CBR 1:33.724 1:34.110 1:33.724
15 Robert BUGDEN (QLD) Suzuki GSXR 1:33.822 1:33.984 1:33.822
16 Ashley ROE (VIC) P Honda CBR 1:33.838 1:34.311 1:33.838
17 Cole ODENDAAL (QLD) P Suzuki GSXR 1:37.391 1:36.282 1:36.282
18 James SPENCE (NSW) BP Yamaha R1 1:36.652 1:36.652
19 Steve MANNING (NSW) BP Honda CBR 1:37.054 1:36.777 1:36.777
20 Brenden GUROWSKI (QLD) P Honda CBR 1:36.931 1:36.873 1:36.873
21 Anthony GOBERT (VIC) P Kawasaki ZX10R 1:38.935 1:37.500 1:37.500
22 Brent SIDWELL (QLD) BP Honda CBR 1:38.618 1:37.536 1:37.536
23 Mark HIGGINS (VIC) BP Honda CBR 1:38.755 1:38.010 1:38.010
24 Denis CHARLETT (SA) P Kawasaki ZX10R 1:40.021 1:39.669 1:39.669
25 Matt BATTISTA (WA) BP Yamaha R1 1:40.567 1:41.226 1:40.567

Well it looks like Jamie is back on top in 07'.

2 thru 16 looks pretty tight.

Notice Anthony Gobert in 21st.

NinjaMaster
17th February 2007, 12:40
Ya beat me to it Mach! :) The race (for second) looks like being a cracker. Jamie Stauffer already has the superbike and supersport all wrapped up. He is a second faster than anyone in each category.
2 to 16 is only covered by 1.1seconds! and some riders came in very disgruntled apparently because the final q session was red flagged with 5 mins to go and a few blokes missed their flyers.
Gobert is apparently struggling with the bikes handling. It is a brand new team and this is the first time out so it is a shakedown test and race in one! Gonna be tough for him but his times have been steadily tumbling so hopefully he can get in the points by the end of the weekend.

Mach24
18th February 2007, 01:21
Seems the red flag at the end of Q2 was for Jamie and his brother Dan both binning their R1's at the same time at different points on the circuit. Jamie did not even bother to put a lap in in Q2 of Supersport and remained 1 second clear.

From the pics I have seen of Goey's pit garage it looks pretty much like a privateer outfit (a bit like my garage used to look), another tough years for the man that could have been king.


Shannon Etheridge the surprise in 5th on a private R1 with some go fast bit.

Mach24
23rd March 2007, 12:26
Pos Name Class Machine Q1 Q2 Best
1 Jamie STAUFFER (NSW) Yamaha R1 1:22.605 1:22.394 1:22.394
2 Russell HOLLAND (NSW) Honda CBR RR 1:22.569 1:23.550 1:22.569
3 Shawn GILES (NSW) Suzuki GSXR 1:23.397 1:22.726 1:22.726
4 Daniel STAUFFER (NSW) Yamaha R1 1:22.860 1:22.742 1:22.742
5 Bryan STARING (WA) Honda CBR RR 1:23.092 1:22.909 1:22.909
6 Wayne MAXWELL (VIC) Kawasaki ZX10R 1:23.710 1:23.222 1:23.222
7 Shannon JOHNSON (VIC) Kawasaki ZX10R 1:24.369 1:23.259 1:23.259
8 Craig COXHELL (VIC) Suzuki GSXR 1:24.175 1:23.587 1:23.587
9 Adam FERGUSSON (VIC) Honda CBR RR 1:24.238 1:23.618 1:23.618
10 Glenn ALLERTON (NSW) P Honda CBR RR 1:23.731 1:23.664 1:23.664
11 Scott CHARLTON (VIC) P Yamaha R1 1:23.825 1:23.833 1:23.825
12 Robert BUGDEN (QLD) Suzuki GSXR 1:24.040 1:23.872 1:23.872
13 Anthony GOBERT (VIC) P Kawasaki ZX10R 1:24.157 1:24.931 1:24.157
14 Ashley ROE (VIC) P Honda CBR RR 1:24.928 1:25.806 1:24.928
15 Michael FRASER (NSW) BP Suzuki GSXR 1:25.932 1:25.311 1:25.311
16 Shannon ETHERIDGE (NSW) P Yamaha R1 1:25.920 1:25.920
17 Brenden GUROWSKI (QLD) P Honda CBR RR 1:26.473 1:27.281 1:26.473
18 Matt BATTISTA (WA) P Yamaha R1 1:27.589 1:26.791 1:26.791
19 Mark HIGGINS (VIC) BP Honda CBR RR 1:28.176 1:27.445 1:27.445
20 Cole ODENDAAL (QLD) P Suzuki GSXR 1:28.010 1:28.760 1:28.010
21 Steve MANNING (NSW) BP Honda CBR RR 1:29.460 1:28.220 1:28.220
22 Brent SIDWELL (QLD) BP Honda CBR RR 1:28.548 1:28.265 1:28.265
23 Dennis CHARLETT (SA) P Kawasaki ZX10R 1:29.519 1:28.940 1:28.940

Mach24
23rd March 2007, 12:37
Jamie Stauffer well on his way toward another victory for Yamaha? As I write this it must be near 25 degrees at 1030pm with rain forecast tomorrow. With the rain will come some spice in round 2 of the OZ Supers. This weekend sees the first of the double header rounds at Winton in central Victoria. A short but challenging track which is sure to create tight racing.

I hope there is a good crowd gathered to see what is proving to be a tough and exciting series.

I will report back on Monday when I get back from rural Winton.

NinjaMaster
12th May 2007, 15:09
We had some bad news over here today. I got this report in my email.

DVS Honda star rider Adam ‘Krusty’ Fergusson is in a stable condition in the Launceston General Hospital after a very nasty crash during testing at Symmons Plains,Tasmania yesterday. The 2004 dual Australian Champion suffered multiple fractures across his body and lost consciousness for a short time after the crash and is out for the remainder of the season. He is scheduled to have his first surgery this afternoon to plate both legs. Further surgeries are expected.

More details will be released as they are confirmed.

The entire team at DVS Honda wish him a full and speedy recovery and would like to thank the track staff and in particular the other teams and riders for their support and assistance at the trackside.

Terrible luck for Krusty, really hope for a quick recovery for him. :(

ChrisS
12th May 2007, 15:52
I'm a member in a fan forum of his where he regularly posts, his wife posted this using his account


Hey All, It's Nikki (Krusty's wife), Just thought I'd let you know that Adams out of surgery and he's doing fine, he has had both his legs plated, he has broken/smashed his Tibia in one leg and his Fibula in the other. His hip has been put back in place and his collarbone should heal on its own.
Not to sure when he will be released from hospital although he is hoping to be home by mid next week.
Anyway, he has asked for me to keep you all updated so once I know more I will let you know.
Take Care, Nikki

other members that know him personally said he is thinking about retiring, 2 big crashes with a year, he thinks is time to get out.

NinjaMaster
13th May 2007, 04:36
Yeah, as much as racing would be very important to him, he is really only a young man with the rest of his life in front of him and after sustaining some very serious injuries from 2 massive crashes within the last 12 months, perhaps this is God's way of saying "slow down"! I would imagine these incidents would put a big question mark in the back of his mind which a racer doesn't need and more importantly, he wouldn't want any more injury that he has to put up with for the rest of his life. At least it's good to hear it's only broken bones and not damaged organs.

Mach24
13th May 2007, 10:05
Get well soon Krusty.

The end of a career is nigh but at least Adam Fergusson will leave the sport with the fondest of memories, after all he as a champion!