Features 16 Feb 2016

Catching Up: Bryan Staring

Superstock 1000 FIM Cup contender previews 2016 campaign.

Multiple Australian champion Bryan Staring will spend his final season in the European-based Superstock 1000 FIM Cup during 2016, riding for the Kawasaki agro on Benjan Racing team on board the brand new Ninja ZX-10R. Coming off a disappointing last year, the time is right for 28-year-old Staring to challenge for the crown in a bid to continue his world championship career. CycleOnline.com.au spoke to the Queensland-based Western Australian about the year ahead and his recent outing at Phillip Island’s ASBK test.

Image: Russell Colvin.

Image: Russell Colvin.

Thanks for your time Bryan. First of all, can you give us your run down on what 2015 was like for you from your point of view?

It was disaster really. Nothing about 2015 really came together from the get go. At the start of the season we looked quite strong and we were one of the championship favourites, but it didn’t turn at all like that. There were a bunch of problems really. The first one came when I started suffering badly from arm-pump. That continued throughout at least half of the season, if not longer until I got it operated on to solve it. Between all those races there was a lot of heartache, because I suffered back conditions throughout my whole racing career. I’m getting older now and I have been racing for a while and it came as a surprise to me to be hit so severely from it. At the same point of time we started realising the new bikes were becoming super-dominant and it was becoming really hard for us to stay competitive. The bike we had last year was five-odd years old and we did everything we could do with it, but we just started running out of momentum. The season just continued to go on negatively, but I think we could say it was for the team and myself. We struggled to dig ourselves out of that little hole we struck. It was definitely one of my more disappointing seasons of racing. But look that is how it goes sometimes and these hardships in racing can only make you a better rider, so let’s hope that is the case.

For 2016, you’ve singed for Kawasaki agro on Benjan Racing. It’s a new team and you’re going to be on the all-new Kawasaki ZX-10R, so you must be pretty excited about this year.

Yeah, this year I am very excited about it. It’s a bit of a combination of two teams actually. Both Dutch teams have merged together to compete in the Superstock 1000 FIM Cup series. The team is best known as having spent time in World Supersport, they have had some pretty good success there, also in Superstock where they have had some good success there. It’s a new project, but it’s all very positive and the team is really eager to get going. We have the new Kawasaki ZX-10R for this year. From what we hear it’s going to be an exceptional motorcycle and have everything on it to be competitive right at the front, from what we have been told. We are really looking forward to going testing and getting some information coming back to get the season underway strong from the get go.

And when will you have your first test session with the team?

It’s been delayed actually, which is unfortunate. It’s going to be the 17th of March, which is quite late, however we will still get a lot of testing in – it will just be a rushed testing schedule. That’s pretty much due to some of the kit parts have been delayed in manufacturing. Everyone is waiting and we’ll be underway shortly.

Where abouts will you go testing once it’s underway?

We’ll be going testing at Valencia and Aragón

So what’s goals and ambitions do you have for season 2016?

As far as results go, I haven’t got any goals. I am a bit past setting goals on numbers. I just want to get back to racing motorcycles at my absolute peak level, the way I know that I can. I’m still confident that when I perform at my best that I’m going to get a really good result. So I just want to focus on getting that performance of that quality from myself again, which I feel that I haven’t done for a little while now, but there is no giving up.

Image: Russell Colvin.

Image: Russell Colvin.

Last week you were at Phillip Island riding one of Ben Henry’s Cube Racing ZX-10Rs at the Australian Superbike pre-season test. How did that come about and can you use any knowledge from last week’s testing for this year?

There is probably no surprise and it’s common knowledge that Ben and I are best of friends. We are both WA boys and we have been living together and racing together for a decade now, so we are always in contact. He obviously has the new Ducati deal going with Mike [Jones] and he has sort of hung up his boots, for the time being, so Ben still had the bike sitting around basically ready from last year. He was heading down to Phillip Island anyway, potentially looking to sell the bike somewhere down towards the southern-end of Australia, but before he moved it on I managed to get a ride in on it, which was fantastic. As far as using that knowledge towards the new bike, it will probably won’t be very relevant, because we are going to be using Showa suspension this year with the new bike. Ben’s bike has basically got my set-up in it from my 2012 Superstock setting, which I loved. I really enjoined riding that bike at the Island. In my opinion anyone who saw that thing going around the race track could see just how stable it was and how well it worked. That being said, I should have maybe ridden it a bit faster [laughs]. It was really important that I got that shakedown test in before I go back to Europe. That was the first time I have ridden since October, so it’s been four months I have been off a motorbike, which is a long time. Especially given that I didn’t finish the season so confidently, it was even more important for me to get a run in, as I can’t regain that confidence sitting on the couch, so I wanted to do some laps!

You obviously have a big fan base out there, both in Australia and Europe, and it’s not often we do get to catch up from here. Would you like to send out a message to them?

Yeah, I would like to send a big thanks to all the supporters out there which I have had for a long time, who keep supporting me and all the people who keep believing in me, both in Australian and Europe. I was surprised that I got another opportunity to go back, after what I felt like was a disappointing season, so it’s a big motivation for me to know that there a lot of people out there who believe that I can still do a good job.

As always Bryan, it’s been an absolute pleasure. All the best of luck for the season ahead and hopefully it’s a successful one!

Thanks very much, cheers!

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