Team Honda Racing’s Jamie Stauffer has won his maiden Australian Superbike Championship race since joining the Japanese manufacturer in 2011 during the opening race at Queensland Raceway this morning.

Stauffer converted his pole position to the first race win of the weekend, winning by 2.423 seconds ahead of fellow former dirt track star Josh Waters (Team Suzuki).

It was a dominant win by Stauffer, leading from the outset and maintaining the gap over a determined Waters, who returned to the podium for the first time since Darwin in April.

Series leader Glenn Allerton was a distant third for Procon Maxima Racing BMW, while Wayne Maxwell (Team Honda Racing) and Troy Herfoss (Team Suzuki) enjoyed a tight tussle for fourth.

A pair of Queenslanders in Robbie Bugden (Team Mack Trucks Suzuki) and Ben Attard (iStyle The Natural Aprilia Racing) were next best in sixth and seventh, ahead of GAS Honda teammates Craig Coxhell and Cole Odendaal.

Rounding out the top 10 was Western Australian privateer Ben Henry on his Cube Racing Suzuki.

In Supersport this morning, Yamaha Racing Team leader Kevin Curtain won the opening leg of the weekend from class returnee Brendan Clarke (Champion’s Ride Days Honda) and YRT’s Rick Olson.

In a race that saw Superpole winner and former title leader Mitchell Carr ruled out with a mechanical problem on his Triumph Daytona 675, Aaron Gobert (CycleOnline.com.au/Gobert Motorsports Yamaha) was fourth, with another Yamaha rider in Chris Quinn fifth.

Stay tuned this afternoon for a rundown of the weekend including full results, as well as more pit and on-track images and films to come.