Voight hits back as Halliday denies Dunker by four hundredths

2027 Australian Superbike Championship

Round One – Phillip Island – Superbike Race Two

Harrison Voight answered his Race One frustration with victory in the second Superbike encounter at Phillip Island, getting away early as rain spots again tested the nerves of the field. Cru Halliday completed a Ducati one-two, holding off Cam Dunker by just four hundredths after a fierce last-lap scrap.

Race One winner Jonathan Nahlous had to settle for fifth this time, behind Glenn Allerton, as Voight moved to the top of the provisional points ahead of Sunday’s third and final race of the opening round.

YRT youngster had set the target

Nahlous had gone into the second race with his first Superbike victory in the bag and the chance to back it up. The Yamaha Racing Team youngster had charged from eighth on the grid to win the opening race of ASBK’s new summer season, leading Dunker home for a Yamaha one-two.

Dunker had reeled Nahlous back in during the middle of the opener, but a few moments when he tried to attack forced him to regroup. Voight, meanwhile, had admitted taking too long to get going before recovering to third, while Halliday’s late fastest lap and Jack Favelle’s audacious early charge suggested there was plenty more to come from the chasing pack.

Race One’s classification was subsequently amended when Favelle was disqualified for using unmarked tyres. Allerton was promoted to fifth and Waters to sixth.

Rain spots and a Ducati charge

Raindrops started falling again as the riders exited pit lane, and officials declared a wet race. It still looked too dry for wets to be a viable option, but there was plenty of rain on the horizon. The spots became more persistent as the field formed up in front of the starting lights.

Voight led Josh Waters through turn one for the first time, ahead of Halliday and Allerton, making it an early Ducati one-two-three-four. Dunker and Favelle were next in line.

Halliday got the better of Waters at turn four to move into second, but Voight was already pulling the pin. Dunker then carved up the inside of the Ducatis between turns ten and eleven in a ripper of a move to join the fight for second. Halliday held that position across the line, almost a second behind Voight, with Dunker third.

Voight escapes as Dunker comes under attack

Dunker took second back during lap two as he and Voight both dipped into the 1m31s on their first flying laps. The champion’s 1m31.611 would stand as the fastest lap of the race, and he went on to lead every lap.

Dunker had Halliday and Allerton keeping him busy. The Blue Marlin Pools Yamaha looked strong through the middle part of the lap, but the Ducati men clawed that ground back through the final sector. Voight’s advantage grew to around two seconds through the middle of the race as Dunker strove to keep the pair behind him.

Further back, Jacob Roulstone, Nahlous, Mike Jones and John Lytras were trading blows in their own battle over fifth.

Waters lost ground on a slow second lap, while Favelle’s challenge unravelled on lap four, dropping him from fifth to fifteenth. Roulstone briefly headed the group behind Allerton before Nahlous moved ahead on lap five and held fifth to the finish.

Halliday holds off a last-lap attack

Halliday kept the pressure on Dunker and was less than a tenth behind at the end of lap eight. He pounced on the next lap to take second, leaving the Yamaha rider with two laps to find a response. By then, the pair had broken clear of Allerton.

At the last-lap board, Voight had almost two and a half seconds over Halliday and Dunker, who were around three seconds clear of Allerton.

Halliday maintained his advantage through Southern Loop, Stoner, Miller and Siberia. Dunker went wider through Hayshed as he looked for a switchback, then tried the outside at turn ten. Halliday changed direction in front of him to defend the position. Dunker was still closing through the final sector, but Halliday kept him behind all the way to the flag.

Voight took the win by just under two seconds, while Halliday held Dunker off by 0.040s. After a Yamaha one-two in the opener, Ducati had answered with one of its own.

Allerton finished fourth, a little over four seconds behind Dunker, with another three and a half seconds over Nahlous in fifth.

Roulstone took sixth ahead of Lytras and Jones, with Waters ninth. Favelle recovered to complete the top ten, ahead of Broc Pearson, Jayden Martin and Morgan McLaren-Wood.

Richard Markham-Barrett, Eddie Leeson, Ghage Plowman, Reece Jamieson and Mitchell Carr were listed as non-finishers, with Leeson recorded as crashing at turn nine.

The updated provisional points put Voight on 44, three ahead of Nahlous, with Dunker third on 38 and Halliday a further point behind.

Podium Sound Bites

Harrison Voight – First

“It was a better turnaround compared to the first race. The conditions wasn’t as bad, but it was still spitting a bit, so it made it challenging mentally, especially leading.

“There’s no reference, none of that. So I just try to get out in front and go.”

Voight also congratulated Halliday and celebrated having “two McMartin bikes, first and second”.

Cru Halliday – Second

“The problem is I got bloody Cam Dunker. He’s like eighteen years younger than me, and I know they just go after everything. I had to ride so defensive then.

“That’s the first time I’ve actually ran that set-up that I wanted to run, and man, I can turn the bike where I want it now. Just, Harry’s just a step above us all at the moment.”

Cam Dunker – Third

“I was happy to be able to fight through. I gave it all I had to try and chase down Harry, and then when Cru come past me, the pace kind of backed up a little bit. But anyway, I feel I rode really well.

“The team’s given me an awesome bike. But we just need to try and keep a little bit of grip under us for a little bit longer, and should be right tomorrow. But who knows? Might even be wet.”

ASBK Superbike Race Two
Phillip Island – Provisional Results

Results remain provisional until the protest and appeal time limit expires.

ASBK Superbike Championship
After Phillip Island Race Two

Provisional championship standings after Race Two.
Harrison Voight’s 44 points include one point for pole position.
These totals reflect Jack Favelle’s Race One disqualification.

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