Image: Keith Muir.

Brandon Demmery, Chris Trounson, Angus Reekie and Simon Galloway; just a few of the riders who won championships in their respective classes at the 2014 Swann Insurance Australasian Superbike Championship at Eastern Creek.

Off the line in the opening Kawasaki FX300 Ninja Cup race it was Kyle Buckley taking an early lead from Brendan Demmery, Bailie Perriton and Robbie Phillis.

Perriton moved into the lead on the second lap, before Buckley wrestled control of the lead on the next lap. Demmery soon took the opportunity to have a turn at the front, and as has been the case all year, it looked like being a game of musical chairs all the way to the finish line.

At the halfway mark of the race it was Demmery from Perriton, Buckley and Phillis and it stayed that way for the next couple of maps. Then there was movement – Buckley snatching the lead at the beginning of the final lap, while Perriton passed Demmery into second.

There was less than half a second between the trio the whole way around the final lap, and as they turned on the final corner heading to the finish line it was anyone’s race. In the end it was Buckley who claimed the narrowest of wins, with Demmery moving into second on the line and Perriton having to settle for third.

The second race of this class was much like the first – the top three riders battling and jostling for positions, with Phillis not far behind in fourth. The race saw every possible top-three combination of Buckley, Demmery and Perriton enacted throughout, and again it came down to a photo finish on the line.

It was Demmery who came out on top, learning from his finish earlier to go one better this time round, and the Noise Guard Racing rider pumped his fist in ecstasy as he crossed the line victorious. Buckley had to settle for second place, with Perriton finishing half a second behind in third.

The third race effectively became the battle for the championship crown, and what a fitting end to the closest competing class in 2014. It was a battle between Demmery and Buckley all the way to the finish line – with a championship on the line for the race winner.

Heading down the final straight the pair was side by side as Buckley drifted across the straight, pushing Demmery off the track in the process. The pair came together before Demmery held his nerve and finished in front – which was only confirmed after a video review.

After the race Buckley was disqualified by the Clerk of Course for unsportsmanlike riding, but the disqualification did not matter – Demmery was crowned the champion. Despite the disqualification, Buckley still finished the championship in second place, while Perriton took out the final spot on the podium.

In the 250 ranks it was Grant Jordan who won the round over Stuart Smith and Stuart Green, while in the series it was Jordan over Joshua McHenry and Craig White.

The first Formula Oz race of the class saw Matthew Harding (Kawasaki) jump to an early race lead ahead of Chris Trounson (Gas Honda Racing), Brayden Carr (Fastaway Couriers Kawasaki) and Ben Nicolson (Next Gen Motorsports BMW).

Harding set about extending his lead in the early stages of the race, as Nicolson made his move past Carr on the second lap, and then Trounson on lap three to push up into second spot. A couple of laps later Trounson experienced some issues and fell back down to fifth in the field, as Harding put a four-second gap on Nicolson at the halfway mark.

It was status quo for the rest of the race as Harding impressed to take out the win from Nicolson, while Carr just managed to hold onto third, pipping Paul Byrne (LTR Honda) over the finishing line.

The second race saw the first major racing incident take place for the day, when Samuel Slessar and Simon Barbacetto came to blows on the second lap. The incident saw the red flag raised and a 10-minute delay before racing recommenced with a full race re-start.

When the race did re-start there was more drama to follow, as Harding came off at the opening turn to force another red flag. The second red flag unfortunately resulted in the race being called, allowing riders to go back and prepare for their final race of the day.

In the final race of the class, it was Irishman Byrne who pipped Phil Lovett (Cessnock Motorcycles) right on the line to take the race win. The pair was closely followed by Carr who was just one second behind Lovett, while Trounson and David Johnson (Pope Building Services) rounded out the top five.

Trounson’s fourth place was enough to give him the championship win – finishing the year a mere three points ahead of runner up Carr. Despite not taking part in the final race, Harding managed to claim third spot overall.

Angus Reekie (KTM Racing) continued where he left off on Saturday, by storming to the front of the Nakedbike field in the opening race. He held the lead from fellow KTM rider Luke Follacchio, who had managed to put a three second gap to nearest rival Adrian Pierpoint (Aprilia) after four laps.

Follacchio extended that lead to five seconds heading to the chequered flag to claim second, but it was all Reekie putting in another solid display of racing to take the opening race win.

For a wrap up of race two, just re-read opening race report above. That’s because it was a case of déjà vu, as Reekie worked his way into a huge lead in the opening part of the race.

Follacchio again settled in second, while Rennie Scaysbrook (LTR Yamaha) and Pierpoint were locked in a tight battle for third. Pierpoint eventually took the third place honours, but it was Reekie and Follacchio who finished above him on the podium.

In the third race Reekie again led from start to finish, streaking clear early from Follacchio who had Pierpoint hot on his tail. Follacchio held Pierpoint at bay to claim second spot in the race and second overall for the day.

The results ended up giving Reekie a two-point championship win from Pierpoint – the pair being the only riders in the class to have entered every round of the series.

In the opening Pro Twins race, Craig McMartin (Racers Edge Performance Ducati) took the lead off the start with Kevin Curtain (Trinder Aprilia Racing) hot on his tail. There was nothing between them through the first two laps and on lap three of the race, Curtain made his move – a lovely pass propelling him into the lead.

It was a lead that he never surrendered in the race and despite the fact that McMartin was never more than a second behind, the experience of the Aprilia rider was telling as he took the race win. Simon Galloway (KTM) finished the race in third while Aprilia rider Mario Gonzalez claimed fourth.

In race two Curtain looked the goods early, as he flew off the start, and by the end of the opening lap had opened up a three second gap over nearest rival Paul Dutton. His cause was helped by the absence of McMartin on the grid, but Curtain still rode hard to widen the gap from his closest rivals.

Gonzalez worked his way into second over the first few laps, and at the halfway mark it was Curtain from Gonzales and Dutton. That’s the way it stayed for the remainder of the race – Curtain making it two from two and finishing nearly nine seconds clear to take another win.

In the third and final race for the day, it was again Curtain who led from start to finish – getting a great start off the line to take a commanding early lead. He was followed by Dutton and Gonzalez, before Gonzalez (who received a 15-second jump-start penalty) was forced to retire from the race.

Galloway was running third in class but at the half-way mark of the race was already 10 seconds behind leader Curtain. Curtain continued his push at the front of the field, and by the time he reached the chequered flag had established an 8.594 second lead from Dutton, while Chris Perini ended the race in third.

Galloway’s fourth placing in the race was enough to hand him the overall championship win and he admitted that he was in conservative mode to make sure he finished all the day’s races.

Defending champion Galloway finished the series 50 points ahead of James Arnold in second, with New South Welshman Kris Keen finishing the series in third spot.

2014 Swann Insurance Australasian Superbike Championship
Round six – Sydney Motorsport Park, NSW

Formula Oz overall results:
1. Brayden CARR 62
2. Phil LOVETT 54
3. Paul BYRNE 52
4. Chris TROUNSON 51
5. Ben NICOLSON 47
6. Mathew HARDING 45
7. Ryan HAMPTON 41
8. Liam WILKINSON 38
9. Lucas VITALE 31
10. Albie WHEELER 31

Formula Oz championship standings:
1. Chris TROUNSON 351
2. Brayden CARR 348
3. Mathew HARDING 311
4. Ben NICOLSON 303
5. Phil LOVETT 278
6. Paul BYRNE 263
7. Ryan HAMPTON 170
8. Liam WILKINSON 169
9. Jack FOX 145
10. Sophie LOVETT 121

FX300 Ninja Cup overall results:
1. Brandon DEMMERY 409
2. Kyle BUCKLEY 408
3. Bailie PERRITON 295
4. Sophie LOVETT 279
5. Phillip BURKE 230
6. Di JONES 225
7. Ryan MASRI 160
8. Ben WHITE 158
9. Scott CHAPMAN 135
10. Paul YOUNG 133

FX300 Ninja Cup championship standings:
1. Brandon DEMMERY 72
2. Kyle BUCKLEY 69
3. Bailie PERRITON 60
4. Robbie PHILLIS 54
5. Phillip BURKE 45
6. Mitch KAVNEY 43
7. Samuel DAVISON 42
8. Jack DAWES 36
9. Sophie LOVETT 33
10. Ryan MASRI 33

FX250 Ninja Cup overall results:
1. Grant JORDAN 75
2. Stuart SMITH 60
3. Stuart GREEN 59
4. Craig WHITE 58
5. Matthew LOWERY 50
6. Ben GREEN 46
7. David LIVESLEY 41
8. Joshua McHENRY 40

FX250 Ninja Cup championship standings:
1. Grant JORDAN 402
2. Joshua McHENRY 361
3. Craig WHITE 334
4. Stuart GREEN 331
5. Ben GREEN 294
6. Stuart SMITH 231
7. Matthew LOWERY 168
8. David LIVESLEY 84

Pro Twins/Nakedbike outright overall results:
1. Kevin CURTAIN 75
2. Angus REEKIE 64
3. Paul DUTTON 50
4. Luke FOLLACCHIO 45
5. Adrian PIERPOINT 42
6. Simon GALLOWAY 42
7. Rennie SCAYSBROOK 37
8. Darren JONES 36
9. Chris PERINI 36
10. Mario GONZALEZ 35

Pro Twins/Nakedbike outright championship standings:
1. Angus REEKIE 339
2. Simon GALLOWAY 334
3. James ARNOLD 293
4. Adrian PIERPOINT 243
5. Mick JOHNSTON 216
6. Kris KEEN 195
7. Mario GONZALEZ 184
8. Richard MARROCCHINI 183
9. Craig McMARTIN 172
10. Michael McMILLAN 145

Click here for detailed results