ASBK 2026
Round Five – QLD Raceway
Kawasaki Supersport Race One
Images by RbMotoLens
The opening Kawasaki Supersport / Next Gen race at Queensland Raceway was always going to carry plenty of championship weight, with both titles still to be decided across the final two 14-lap contests of the 2026 ASBK season.
Tom Edwards started Race One from pole after setting a new qualifying benchmark on Saturday, but with Olly Simpson, Tom Toparis and Hayden Nelson all alongside or immediately behind him on the grid, there was little chance of the BCperformance Kawasaki rider having things his own way.
The Edwards versus Nelson equation was particularly finely poised, with only four points separating the two Kawasaki team-mates heading into Sunday. Every position between the pair was set to matter, while Simpson and Toparis both had the pace to heavily influence how the inaugural Next Gen crown would play out.
Toparis added another wrinkle to the weekend by parking the Ducati V2 and returning to his trusted Yamaha YZF-R6 for the finale, immediately putting the Stop & Seal machine on the front row and right in the mix with the Next Gen title combatants.
In the traditional Supersport fight, Valentino Knezovic came into the day with a 16-point advantage over Jake Farnsworth, but Farnsworth had done what he needed to do in qualifying by putting his Yamaha ahead of the points leader on the grid. That placed the two main Supersport title protagonists together heading into the opening race.
Three leaders in three turns
Olly Simpson was the last to roll into his grid position on Sunday morning before the lights went out to signal the start of the penultimate Supersport / Next Gen race of the 2026 season. Edwards capitalised on pole to lead them through Turn 1, but Hayden Nelson scythed through at Turn 2 before the drag down the back chute was won by Simpson on the Ducati. Three different leaders in the first three corners gave an early indication of how fierce things were going to be.
As the field completed the opening lap, it was Simpson leading Edwards by 0.257 of a second, with Nelson third, Toparis fourth and Farnsworth fifth.
Simpson kept the lead for the remainder of that opening lap and was quickly into the 1m10s. Toparis was already starting to get down to business, setting about chasing down the leading trio, while Edwards had a big moment under brakes at Turn 3 on the second lap but somehow kept the Kawasaki underneath him before things got too ugly.
Toparis pace, but Turn 3 pain
Toparis looked ready to properly join the lead fight, but his challenge unravelled on lap three when he ran off at Turn 3. The mistake cost him more than 20 seconds and dropped him to the rear of the field, effectively taking him out of podium contention.
Edwards had his ears pinned back trying to get on terms with Simpson, but it was Nelson who got the better of his team-mate for second by lap five. The BCperformance Kawasaki pair then continued their private championship fight behind Simpson, with Farnsworth in fourth trying to keep them honest while also needing to maximise his own Supersport points haul.
Simpson continued to edge away from his pursuers, stringing together a run of mid-1m10s laps and later lowering his own best to a 1m10.412 on lap 11.
The fastest lap of the race ultimately went to Toparis, who was down in 13th when he uncorked a 1m10.368 on lap eight, underlining what might have been after his early off. A new lap record is some consolation.
Edwards strikes back
Edwards then reclaimed second from Nelson with four laps remaining and held his team-mate off to the flag by just 0.060 of a second. Farnsworth was still close enough to keep the Kawasaki pair honest, but ultimately took the chequered flag 0.988 behind Nelson and 4.718 behind race winner Simpson.
Simpson was a clear and dominant victor, taking the win by 3.670 seconds after leading every completed lap. Edwards finished second overall and first of the title-contending Next Gen riders, while Nelson completed the podium.
Anupab Sarmoon pressed Knezovic hard for fifth late in the race, finishing only 0.228 behind the Supersport championship leader, while Sam Pezzetta, Jordy Simpson, Josh Soderland, Lauchy Williams and Ghage Plowman rounded out the top 12.
Will Nassif was the only non-finisher, stopping at Turn 4 after completing 12 laps.
Championship picture
That result means Edwards takes a seven-point advantage over Nelson into the final race of the season this afternoon, 209 points to 202. Simpson is now third in the Next Gen standings on 159, ahead of Toparis on 131 and Eddie Leeson on 50.
In the Supersport ranks, Farnsworth took six points out of Knezovic once his Queensland Raceway pole point is included, cutting the margin from 16 points to ten. Knezovic still has the advantage, 204 to 194, heading into the final race, with Jordy Simpson third on 152.
Supersport / Next Gen Race One Results
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Class | Rider | Bike | Time/Gap |
| 1 | NG | O Simpson | Duc | 16m33.712 |
| 2 | NG | T Edwards | Kaw | +3.670 |
| 3 | NG | H Nelson | Kaw | +3.730 |
| 4 | SS | J Farnsworth | Yam | +4.718 |
| 5 | SS | V Knezovic | Yam | +11.416 |
| 6 | SS | A Sarmoon | Yam | +11.644 |
| 7 | NG | T Toparis | Yam | +28.815 |
| 8 | SS | S Pezzetta | Yam | +29.324 |
| 9 | SS | J Simpson | Yam | +33.246 |
| 10 | SS | J Soderland | Yam | +33.428 |
| 11 | SS | L Williams | Yam | +41.316 |
| 12 | SS | G Plowman | Yam | +41.387 |
| 13 | NG | E Leeson | Duc | +49.924 |
| 14 | SS | F Jacobs | Yam | +1m00.394 |
| DNF | SS | W Nassif | Yam | +12 laps |
Next Gen Championship Points
|
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Rider | Bike | Points |
| 1 | T Edwards | Kaw | 209 |
| 2 | H Nelson | Kaw | 202 |
| 3 | O Simpson | Duc | 159 |
| 4 | T Toparis | Duc | 131 |
| 5 | E Leeson | Duc | 50 |
Supersport Championship Points
|
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Rider | Bike | Points |
| 1 | V Knezovic | Yam | 204 |
| 2 | J Farnsworth | Yam | 194 |
| 3 | J Simpson | Yam | 152 |
| 4 | J Soderland | Yam | 140 |
| 5 | G Plowman | Yam | 140 |
| 6 | S Pezzetta | Yam | 138 |
| 7 | L Williams | Yam | 81 |
| 8 | F Jacobs | Yam | 73 |
| 9 | R Tamburini | Yam | 69 |
| 10 | H Fordyce | Yam | 61 |
| 11 | A Sarmoon | Yam | 54 |
| 12 | E Johnson | Yam | 51 |
| 13 | S Nicholson | Yam | 47 |
| 14 | W Nassif | Yam | 46 |
| 15 | S Drane | Yam | 44 |
| 16 | O Short | Yam | 31 |
| 17 | M Nikolis | Yam | 30 |
| 18 | T Zhao | Yam | 22 |
| 19 | B Quinlan | Yam | 12 |
| 20 | A Chiodo | Hon | 10 |
| 21 | S O’Neill | Yam | 6 |
2026 ASBK Calendar
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| 2026 ASBK PROVISIONAL CALENDAR | ||
| Round Four | May 29-31 | Morgan Park, QLD |
| Round Five | June 26-28 | Queensland Raceway, QLD |
