Australia’s Bryan Staring saved his best for last in the Superstock 1000 FIM Cup race at Portimao last weekend, finishing fourth after dicing for the podium throughout the race.

Staring held third place for seven of the 11 laps on his Team Pedercini Kawasaki ZX-10R after starting well from seventh on the grid and passing a group of front runners in a brave move around the outside of the tight right hander, turn three.

The 24-year-old held the position despite Barrier, Zanetti, Antonelli and Baz all riding within six-tenths behind the Aussie.

Staring quickly dropped into the 1:46 mark and made a charge, catching South African rider Sheridan Morais on lap six and attempting a pass. A small mistake saw Bryan clip a ripple strip, allowing Barrier through, relegating Staring to fourth.

Despite his best efforts the three-time Australian champion could not take the last podium spot back and ran out of laps.

“It’s a bitter sweet result for me,” Staring said. “Not getting that podium will stay in my mind for as long as I live! But finishing a tough debut season with such a strong race is fantastic for me and for the team.

“The weekend has gone well for all of us. It is a new track for us and a very technical one. We had a lot to learn and we progressed throughout the weekend with small changes – eventually finding a great set-up on the Team Pedercini Kawasaki ZX-10R.

“Q2 went to plan, I put a new tyre in with 10-minutes to run and immediately got into the 46 bracket, holding third until the final minutes. Seventh on the grid was my second best result this season and the Kawasaki launch control is very good, so I knew I would get a strong start.

“I got away well and passed a handful of riders around the outside of turn three. Then I concentrated on pace and reeling in Morias and Petrucci.

“Those first few laps were wild! But once we all settled down Petrucci cleared off and Morias and I had a great battle. Unfortunately I missed the last lap board and lost the opportunity to take back third place from Sheridan but these things happen.

“I’m certainly looking forward to a cold beer tonight after a tough season!”

Staring finished the championship in 11th position. He finished in the points in all completed races, did not crash out of any races, and suffered two machine failures during the season.