ASBK: A recap from Round 1 at Phillip Island

By Sam TickellRace Reviews
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We take a look back at the first round of the 2015 Australian Superbike Championship (ASBK) from Phillip Island

Race 1

The opening race of the day on Sunday was the rescheduled first Australian Superbike race, and with an 8:25am start, riders were greeted with much cooler conditions than on Saturday. Jamie Stauffer’s injury from Saturday meant there was no-one ahead of Herfoss on the grid, and the Team Honda rider took full advantage by coming off the line into the lead. Hook tucked in behind Herfoss into second, with Linden Magee (LMR BMW), Daniel Falzon (JD Racing), and Jones settling into top-five positions. After the opening lap, the top three riders of Herfoss, Hook and Magee had put nearly a second gap to Falzon, and on lap two he was overtaken by Jones into fourth spot.

“We were going a lot slower than what we were earlier. I actually thought when Josh got in front of me mid-race that the race was over, but I realised quickly that he was struggling just like I was. “It was sort of like a checkmate really; we couldn’t go faster and we were just sort of holding each other up, so I decided the best thing was to fight for every corner. “He (Hook) made me fight for it and I am just glad I held him off the line.” Troy Herfoss

Hook came round the final corner on the second lap and moved into first place ahead of Herfoss, while Magee managed to put more space between himself and Jones. But all eyes were on the front pair, and while Herfoss desperately tried to get past Hook heading down the straight and to the finishing line, the younger Honda rider held on to edge out his teammate by 0.099 of a second. It was a thrilling finish, with another enthralling battle for third, which saw Jones pip Magee on the line to take the final podium spot by nine-hundredths of a second. Falzon finished the race in third.

Race 2

Race two of the Australian Superbikes was the last event on the daily schedule, and this time riders took to the track in warm and muggy conditions.

Herfoss got a great start off the line to keep hold of first place from Hook and Magee, before Magee moved past the race-one winner and into second on the second corner.

Falzon and Jones rounded out the top five as they settled in through the opening lap, with the pair switching places a number of times.

“It was a bit of a pain to be honest. I sat back on that last lap knowing that I could get a good run on Troy (Herfoss) and pass him before the line so that was a bit disappointing.

“I was a bit upset with myself that I didn’t peel right instead of left but that’s the way it is. He came across and I got boxed in towards the pit wall, but overall it’s not a bad weekend for us to get first and second considering we were off the pace coming into this weekend.”

Josh Hook

It all came down to the final straight where Hook tried in vain to get past, but the experience of Herfoss saw him cut across the straight and not allow Hook even a sniff of victory.

Jones finished the race in third place, with Magee comfortably back in fourth and Frost holding on to fifth spot.

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