JN's Race Products/Bridgestone S1 450cc+ Class
Being first event of the day most riders took some time to adapt to the challenging Stanthorpe Soil during qualifying. Ross Taylor set the pace early with Alex Harriman and Seeton Battle close behind. Some aggressive riding from James Phillips on the Aprilia SXV550 was rewarded the final spot on the front row.
As the racing progressed Ross Taylor's Rising Sun Honda CRF470 seemed to have the field covered with Seeton Battle, Harriman and Phillips applying more pressure as each race went on. Ross was able to win the first 6 races while Harriman and Battle swapped positions with Philips close by on the big Aprilia. Further back in field the racing was just as tight with John Newton, Ward Freeland, Pete Smith and Tom Gardiner fighting desperately for their positions in the Top 10.
The last 2 races of the Round saw Seeton Battle get the better of Taylor. Battle by Name, Battle by nature applied some pressure to Taylor and as often happens in such a close field the smallest error was enough to see Battle gain the lead with Taylor remounting for fourth in both races.
Taylor's dominance in the first six races was enough to see him win the round with a 10 point advantage over Battle with Harriman in Third. Tom Gardiner rode his Redcliffe Mowers/Terex Cranes KTM 515 consistently all weekend to claim the Top C Grader prize.
Workshop 2000 Slacks Creek S2 450cc Class
The premier class got off to a blistering start with Motoworks NZ/North Coast Motorsport Yamaha YZF450 rider Beau Laing the only rider to do a sub 50sec lap in qualifying. Luke Trail was a close second with Jarrod Koppe and Alex Harriman rounding out the front row. Suzuki Rider Warren Gill missed the front row by 0.3secs and the next 7 riders were separated by under 2 secs.
As the racing begin it was North Qld'er Koppe who got the jump and stormed to victory in the first 2 races. However in the third Koppe made a mistake which Laing capitalised on to take the victory. The Future Sport Suzuki rider Koppe got back to his winning ways for the remainder of the races as Laing and Titan Garage's Alex Harriman traded places on the podium.
A big crash in race 7 ended a great weekend for Belray/Shark Helmets/Yamaha YZF450 Luke Trail. Trail insists "I haven't fallen for the longest time, I can't remember the last time". Trail escaped with some minor injuries and was awarded crash of the weekend by his fellow competitors.
Koppe's impressive performance gives him the championship lead with Harriman and Laing close behind. Warren Gill rounds out the top 4, while Steven Relph, Peter Cox, Darren Webb and James Harwood all rode consistently to keep there championship hopes alive. Peter Cox was the Top C Grade finisher for the round.
Loosekid Industries S3 250cc Class
Beau Laing was again the man to beat in the 250cc class with Luke Trail and Supermoto new comers Peter Hull and Alex Jamieson rounding out the front row. Mechanical gremlins hampered titles hopefuls Ben Endicott Davies, Alex Jamieson and Aaron Barr, leaving Laing to dominate the eight races and setting a new lap record in the process. Trail and Springwood Suzuki SMZ250 rider Peter Hull battled closely until Trail could not continue due a crash in the S2 class.
Laing holds a commanding points lead going into Round 2 with Hull claiming second and the ever improving featherweight Sam Crossley taking third for the round. Aaron Barr was the pleased to finish in the top 4 and claim the Top Unplaced C Grader title for the round.
Rebel Fm 97.1 Veterans Class
New-comer to the Veteran's class, Ross Taylor set the early pace with James Phillips, Darren Webb and Steven Relph claiming spots on the front row. Baby faced Taylor and the hard charging Webb engaged in some epic battles for the top positions with Steven Relph, Steve Coppock, James Phillips and Pete Cox pressuring the top 2. The class had it all with crashes, near misses, banging bars and a start from pit lane to victory from Taylor proving once again age is no barrier to great racing. Taylor claimed the overall victory with Steven Relph in second and the always entertaining Webb rounding out the top 3.
Overall the weekend was a huge success with great racing on show. Thanks to the Motorcycle Sportsman of Qld, Motorcycle Qld Officials, Loosekid Industries, Workshop 2000 Slacks Creek, Rebel FM 97.1, JN's Race Products, Bridgestone, Osella Photography and Shark Leathers for the support. Round 2 is in Mareeba, North Qld, August 6 & 7 with big numbers expected once again. The same format will be run in Mareeba with S1, S2, S3, Veterans and Novices all catered for.
Main Photo: 575 Jarred Koppe leads Alex Harriman. (19)
Credit: Oselle Photography
