World Superbike Support Events Report (Non Championship Points Scoring Event) - Teknic Honda

The factory Teknic Honda Team made important in-roads at last weekend’s World Superbike support races, presenting a competitive race package at the warm and picturesque Phillip Island circuit.

Youngest rider Bryan Staring demonstrated early signs of being the man to beat after taking his first pole position for the year in the 600 class.

Staring’s Pirelli adorned CBR600RR provided unyielding competition for main rival Jason O’Halloran during race one, and although Staring crossed the line first after a winning ride, he was demoted down the ladder after copping a ten second penalty for jumping the start.

A repeat performance in race two, where Staring pulled out some incredible passing manoeuvres to lead the pack in the final stages of the short race, saw him pipped at the line by O’Halloran by just .018 of a second.

“The 600 felt awesome right form the very start of the weekend, and we managed to put it on pole which was a good feeling for the start of the meeting,” Staring said.

“I’m obviously really disappointed to not walk away with a race win or a round win on the 600 as I worked extremely hard to get back up to the front in race one after dropping back to around sixth.”

“Losing race two by less than a tenth of a second was also disappointing but it was one of my better races for sure.”

“The difficult weather conditions unfortunately took me out of race three when I crashed from lack of grip.”

Although Staring also showed a solid pace in the Superbike class, his results left him wanting for more.

Qualifying in sixth, Staring showed incredible potential in race one, battling with fellow Honda riders Glenn Allerton and Adam ‘Krusty’ Fergusson for third place until running wide at Honda corner.

The 19-year-old rookie Superbike rider was also quick in race three where he led the field for a short time before finishing up in seventh.

With an eight place wrap up for the weekend, Staring was circumspect.

“The Super bike showed good potential to be a front runner this weekend but unfortunately we weren’t able to get a head start in qualifying.”

“The short race distances didn’t allow much time for catch up either,” he said.

“Overall we showed good speed on both bikes and I’m really confident we’ll get some good results in Winton in three weeks time.”

Last year’s Superbike runner up, Russell Holland also finished up the weekend with renewed confidence.

Although his results were mixed, the now Victorian based rider was clearly happy with this pace after continuing to recover from a shoulder reconstruction.

“I’m actually pretty happy with the results this weekend as my lap times show that I’m gradually becoming fitter. I’m not that far behind the guys at the front,” Holland noted.

For last year’s top privateer, the weekend was certainly “eventful” with a crash in Superbike race one as well as Supersport race two.

“I’m so keen to be at the front of the field again but at the moment, considering the physical problems that I’ve had, I know my focus needs to be on fitness and consistency,” he said.

“I was very happy to see that the CBR600RR is quite competitive already which gives me confidence that when I’m fit that I’ll have the equipment I need to be winning races.“

Teknic Honda Team Manager Paul Free agrees. “Getting pole position and a front row spot on the 600 was a great start to the weekend.”

“Unfortunately we didn’t walk away with any race wins but we proved that we’re competitive and have the ability to be at the top of the field.”

“The Superbike was also very competitive and we managed to achieve some consistent results.”

“It was a shame that we had a few races cut short due to scheduling constraints, but the time that we had on the track along with the support from the Pirelli World techs was a great help.”

Honda Australia were also very pleased to support Alto Evolution team rider Josh Brookes who was thrilled to be back on home soil.

With two 12th place finishes, Brookes said he was reasonably happy. “We got two solid results, no crashes, and we go back to Europe now full of ideas on how to improve the bike.”

“Having the extra sponsorship from Honda Finance was a great help too. We are a new Team and every bit of support we get is fantastic.”

The Teknic Honda Team will be testing at Winton this week prior to the double header round of the Australian Superbike Championships to be held there March 22-25.