Oct 23, 2006 - Team Suzuki Press Office – October 23, 2006.
Team Yoshimura Suzuki’s Robbie Bugden raced to a stunning second place, while three-time champion Shawn Giles made a triumphant return from injury to finish fourth in round six of the Australian Superbike Championship at Winton Raceway on Sunday.
Starting the weekend in very competitive fashion, Bugden qualified second while Giles was quick to get back up to speed and was fourth fastest, putting both Suzukis on the front row of the grid.
Race one saw Giles make a blinding start and lead the pack through the first turn and heading the field for the opening two laps around the 3km circuit. Bugden climbed into second place and decisively assumed the lead.
Both Team Yoshimura Suzuki riders settled into a rhythm and pulled a solid gap on fourth placed Suzuki privateer Andrew Stroud. In a stellar effort, Giles preserved his third place across the full race distance and was closing in on Bugden in the final laps with the pair greeting the chequered flag in third and second places respectively.
Giles took another stunning holeshot in race two, but was again passed by Stauffer and Bugden in a replica of the opening contest.
Withstanding massive pressure in the closing stages, Bugden prevailed by a narrow margin and brought the GSX-R1000 home in second place again to claim second overall for the round.
Meanwhile Giles’ tenacious effort saw the Suzuki veteran cross the finish line in sixth, rounding out the weekend in fourth overall.
Bugden’s outstanding performance at the rural Victorian circuit elevated him to fourth overall in the championship with third place in sight for the final round of the series.
Team Yoshimura Suzuki now heads to Sydney as the 2006 Australian Superbike Championship wraps up with round seven at Eastern Creek Raceway on November 17-19.
Robbie Budgen:
“Winton is a track that I am very comfortable on – I finished second here last year as a privateer and it’s good to back that up again this year with Team Yoshimura Suzuki.
“The balance and horsepower of the GSX-R1000 was fantastic and I was running in second spot virtually all weekend with qualifying and both races which is a great result for me and the team.
“We’ve now moved up the championship table into fourth place with a podium in sight, so hopefully we can finish the year on a high in the next round at Eastern Creek.”
Shawn Giles:
“After so many months off the bike I was fairly nervous heading into this weekend and it’s really good to have that first round under my belt.
“It was great to be out on the GSX-R1000 in race conditions instead of looking on from the sidelines.
“I’d set myself a goal of a top five finish for this weekend, so I’m pretty happy to come away with fourth overall.
”There’s only one round to go this year and I’ll be chasing a podium and hopefully a race win to end 2006 on a positive note and set us up for the 2007 title challenge.”
Phil Tainton – Team Manager:
“Robbie was very quick in testing here at Winton two weeks ago and I knew he would be a serious contender for this event.
“I’m very pleased with his performance across the whole weekend and he set us up for a strong run home in the final round.
“Robbie’s up into fourth now, only six and a half points off third spot, so hopefully the Yoshimura Suzuki can snatch the final podium place in the championship at Eastern Creek next month.
“It was great to have Shawn back on the bike this weekend. He got back up to speed extremely quickly and really exceeded our expectations.
“He did a brilliant job to qualify up in fourth and he put in a fantastic effort across both 17-lap races.
“With such a big break from riding, we didn’t know how well Shawn’s race fitness would hold up, but he’s a real racer and he showed his true measure – it’s that combination of talent and determination that won him three titles with Suzuki.”
2006 AUSTRALIAN SUPERBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP
Superbike Class Overall Results: 1 Jamie Stauffer 51, 2 Robbie Bugden (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 40, 3 Andrew Stroud 35, 4 Shawn Giles (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 33, 5 Russell Holland 32, 6 Wayne Maxwell 27, 7 Joshua Waters 27, 8 Shannon Etheridge 24, 9 Ashley Roe 22, 10 Cole Odendaal 19.
Superbike Class Championship Points (After 6 rounds: 1 Jamie Stauffer 269, 2 Russell Holland 232, 3 Andrew Stroud 173, 4 Robbie Bugden (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 166.5, 5 Daniel Stauffer 150, 6 Scott Charlton 147.5, 7 Shannon Johnson 126.5, 8 Wayne Maxwell 122, 9 Shannon Etheridge 112.5, 10 Ashley Roe 97.