Staring dominates QR Aus Superbikes
Bryan Staring dominated at today’s fifth round of the 2010 Australian Superbike Championship at Queensland Raceway. 
23-year-old Cougar Bourbon Honda Racing rider Bryan Staring proved unstoppable in the 5th round of the Australian Superbike Championship.
Starting from pole position in today’s two 16-lap races at Queensland Raceway,. Staring came under fire in race one as Jamie Stauffer, starting from 8th on the grid, zeroed in on board the Ducati Motologic 1198R. Stauffer, a two-time Superbike titleholder, looked menacing but ran out of laps to attack, finishing 1.525 seconds adrift of Staring. Valvoline Superbike Team rider Glenn Allerton, who led the race early on, finished a lonesome third.
Allerton and Honda frontrunner Wayne Maxwell took turns at leading race two, but once Staring stole the lead on lap 6 he looked unstoppable. Maxwell, scored solid championship points with a second place finish. Stauffer ranged up on the pair but soon lost grip and could only consolidate with third. Staring scored 51 points today to go alongside 50 from round three, and must now be considered a title favourite heading into the penultimate event at Phillip Island with an considerable 18.5 point advantage.
“It’s great to take away two more race victories, in terms of the championship Queensland Raceway has been vital for us,” said Staring. “The bike was strong all weekend long, and was quick over race distance without sacrificing grip. The bike was only a few weeks old so full credit goes to my team for getting it up to speed so quickly, it was a group effort this weekend.”
Stauffer sealed a deserved second-place for the round on the back of two consistent races today. His 1198cc Ducati was exceptional on the straights and looked certain to challenge for a win. Stauffer, who has played an instrumental role in the development of the bike, was optimistic about the weekend and his chances at the final two rounds of the season.
“I really made things hard for myself with a bad run in Superpole – 8th yesterday meant I had to work extra hard to make back ground in the first half of both races,” he said. “We had a really good first race. Once I got past people the bike showed good speed and we were comfortable in second, everything felt good and I really just ran out of time to challenge Bryan.”
Positions 1 and 2 in the championship remain unchanged, but the fight for third place is now wide open with less than 10 points separating four riders. Gains were made by Allerton and Racer’s Edge Suzuki’s Scott Charlton who again shone at the 3.12km circuit. Team Suzuki’s Josh Waters slid to sixth on the standings, sidelined from riding this weekend due to a head injury sustained while testing in the United States. His GSX-R1000-mounted teammate Shawn Giles maintains fourth place with another solid performance at a circuit he knows well.
CJC Racing’s Craig Coxhell was a standout today, hauling the Superstock-spec BMW S 1000RR through to 6th overall in race 1 and backing it up with 9th in race two following his second consecutive appearance in the Motul Superpole. Two 4th place finishes see Ben Attard remain in command of the Superstock 1000 championship.
None could match experienced campaigner Kevin Curtain in today’s thrilling pair of Insure My Ride Australian Supersport Championship races. The Yamaha Racing Team’s one-off entry shook up the class, with Curtain leading home polesitter and points leader, Team Suzuki’s Troy Herfoss. Triumph’s Christian Casella also rode strongly, finishing second in the opening race. Herfoss leaves round five with a 28-point lead over Casella, while Suzuki rider Brodie Waters slips to third after a tough showing.
Three Australian championships were decided in front of encouraging crowds today. Yamaha rider Cru Halliday won 5 of the 6 races run this weekend to easily claim victory in the Cougar Bourbon Australian Superstock 1000 C&D Championship. The Suzuki Superstock 600 title fight went down to the wire, with New South Welshman Matthew Walters sealing the win thanks to four race wins and two second places. Aaron Morris came home second ahead of Mike Jones, the pairing separated by just 2 points after a hard-fought season.
The fight for Motul 125cc Grand Prix honours went down to the wire between two Queenslanders. James Mutton took the title away from Jordan Zamora, the latter slipping back with two zero-points races at a crucial stage of the double-header meet.
Lincoln Gilding built his Dunlop 250cc Mono championship on consistency, with pole and four second-place finishes securing victory.
Viking Group Australian Superbike Championship, Round 5 Results
1. Bryan STARING (QLD), 51
2. Jamie STAUFFER (NSW), 38
3. Wayne MAXWELL (NSW), 37
4. Glenn ALLERTON (NSW), 35
5. Scott CHARLTON (VIC), 31
6. Robert BUGDEN (QLD), 29
7. Shawn GILES (VIC), 29
8. Daniel STAUFFER (QLD), 27
9. Shannon JOHNSON (VIC), 24
10. John ALLEN (QLD), 22
Viking Group Australian Superbike Championship Points
1. Bryan STARING (QLD), 166
2. Wayne MAXWELL (NSW), 147.5
3. Glenn ALLERTON (NSW), 115
4. Shawn GILES (VIC), 111.5
5. Scott CHARLTON (VIC), 110
6. Joshua WATERS (VIC), 105.5
7. Jamie STAUFFER (NSW), 98
8. Shannon JOHNSON (VIC), 90
9. Robert BUGDEN (QLD), 87
10. John ALLEN (QLD), 68.5
Insure My Ride Australian Supersport Championship, Round 5 Results
1. Kevin CURTAIN (VIC), 50
2. Troy HERFOSS (VIC), 38
3. Christan CASELLA (VIC), 37
4. Rick OLSON (VIC), 36
5. Pat MEDCALF (VIC), 31
6. Aaron GOBERT (NSW), 30
7. Chris QUINN (NSW), 29
8. Ben BURKE (NSW), 26
9. Andy LAWSON JNR (QLD), 22
10. Blake LEIGH-SMITH (QLD), 20
Insure My Ride Australian Supersport Championship Points
1. Troy HERFOSS (VIC), 178
2. Christan CASELLA (VIC), 150
3. Brodie WATERS (VIC), 141
4. Chris QUINN (NSW), 107
5. Aaron GOBERT (NSW), 98
6. Ben BURKE (NSW), 87
7. Ryan TAYLOR (VIC), 80
8. Kevin CURTAIN (VIC), 70
9. Mitchell CARR (NSW), 68
10. Blake LEIGH-SMITH (QLD), 63
