Team Suzuki top day one at Phillip Island 8 Hour
Predictably Team Suzuki showed the way during the opening day of practice for the Phillip Island 8 Hour. The trio of Josh Waters, Troy Herfoss and Robbie Bugden setting the pace with a 1m35.098 to head the field by 1.7 seconds.
Second quickest was the Cube Racing GSX-R1000 regularly campaigned in ASBK by Ben Henry. The WA native joined for this weekend by fellow sandgroper Bryan Staring and the youngest of the Mildura based talented trio of Waters brothers, Nicholas. The boys were plagued with machinery problems throughout the day with the rear brake locking on, the shifter coming adrift and then during this afternoon’s 90-minute practice session the machine also had to be topped up with water after boiling its head off. Not a great start to the weekend machinery wise but their 1m36.8 showed they had the pace.
Next best was the WNR Kawasaki ZX-6R. The Warwick Nowland managed entry ridden this weekend by regular pilot Glenn Scott who for this Australian Endurance Championship event has been joined by European 600 Superstock Champion Jed Metcher and regular World Endurance campaigner Alex Cudlin. Their 1m38.52 narrowly besting the Team Suzuki GSX-R600 entry of Brodie Waters, Ben Attard and Mitchell Carr.
Brodie Waters chose not to ride this afternoon’s 90-minute session to allow his new teammates the best chance to familiarise themselves with the GSX-R600.
The first Superstock 1000 machine and sixth quickest outright was Team Cessnock’s KTM RC8R while the first Superstock 600 and eighth outright was the California Superbike School GSX-R600.
Shawn Giles took out the Period 5, Period 6, Pre-Modern historic category on the Race Bike Services 1981 Suzuki Katana. The same machine that Steve Martin has taken to victory at the Island Classic was hastily prepared for this meeting at the last minute. Shawn quickly got a handle on the machine and down to the 1m42s and took the opening race win from Murray Clark’s 1996 Kawasaki ZXR750 and Michael McLinden’s 1995 GSX-R750. Unfortunately the big Katana sustained terminal engine damage in the weekend opener and has been ruled out of the rest of the weekend.
Richard Liminton topped the healthy BEARS field in their opening stanza with the South Australian bringing home his 1198 S 6.2-seconds ahead of Phil Lovett’s 990 KTM and Brad Glennan’s Triumph 675.
Kawasaki ZXR400 mounted Steve Tozer topped the combined 125 / 250 / 400 field by a slender 0.051 of a second from Zac Zanesco on an RS125 Honda. Ben Burke rounded out the combined podium while the first and only 250 home was Luke Sells on a Moriwaki MD250 finishing 20th outright.
All support categories enjoy three more races each on Saturday with 8 Hour entrants participating in a 90-minute morning qualifying session followed up an hour long session early in the afternoon before a top-ten Super-Qualifier late in the afternoon to round out the day.
The main event gets underway at 0930 Sunday morning.