It’s been a big few days on the domestic front with the return of Australian Superbike racing to Eastern Creek, now Sydney Motorsport Park.

Those that were behind the push to see Superbikes back in New South Wales should be congratulated for their efforts. Its absence was very noticeable and the return has been welcomed by all.

It was an eventful four days, with two rounds of competition merged in to one double header.

The format saw riders practice and qualify for Saturday’s races on Thursday, and then return to do it all again for Sunday’s races on Friday.

The big news from these days was the electric pace of the Team Suzuki pairing. Both Robbie Bugden and Wayne Maxwell went under the 1m30s mark in Superpole, with Bugden actually setting the fastest-ever lap of the circuit on a motorcycle with his 1m29.842s effort.

This form would be reflected over the weekend, with the teammates securing one-two overall finishes on Saturday and Sunday.

A major talking point was the scintillating form of Maxwell, who came into the weekend having not won a points-paying race for Suzuki, and walking away with all four.

Wayne Maxwell was dominant in the Australian Superbike Championship’s return to New South Wales, scooping the pool with four race wins. Image: Andrew Gosling/TBG Sport.

When we spoke to Wayne for this week’s Race Recap he told us that he felt the foundations of the result were built at Queensland Raceway, somewhat of a bogey track for him.

Maxwell also said while he was pinching himself on Sunday afternoon, he remains fully aware that there is another 100 points up for grabs in the title fight, and there will be no one more motivated to challenge for those points than Glenn Allerton.

The Next Gen rider endured a tough weekend at his home circuit, and though he did battle strongly for the podium, it was his crash on Saturday afternoon that did the most damage in terms of the championship.

Allerton was able to dust himself off and collect eight points in that race, a move that may prove pivotal at the conclusion of the season.

With Bugden now level-pegged alongside Allerton in second, you can be sure of an entertaining duel at Darwin and Phillip Island.

Team Honda did it tough at Sydney, with principal Paul Free identifying Saturday’s first race as a complete disaster for Jamie Stauffer and Josh Hook.

The team made solid inroads from thereon in, with both riders achieving podium finishes, but that hiccup at the start did set them back a fair way.

Glenn Scott broke through for a deserved podium finish at Sydney Motorsport Park. Image: Andrew Gosling/TBG Sport.

It appears that Stauffer is still struggling with the pelvis injury he sustained at Queensland Raceway, and the sheer workload of the past 10 days – the Suzuka 8 Hour included – took its toll and it really started to bother him in the weekend’s closing stages.

The team will debrief and no doubt come back stronger, but it will also be a good chance for Stauffer to take some time out and get the rest and treatment he needs. Jamie’s always great to watch and hopefully we’ll see him back right up there at Hidden Valley.

It was an incredible weekend for Glenn Scott, with the InsureMyRide Racing rookie claiming his first Superbike podium in a strong performance in Sunday’s opening race.

The team is really banding together well and the product is a level-headed racer with pace to burn. He was the lead Honda home in that race, and is definitely a future star of this category.

Let’s take a quick look over at MotoGP before wrapping things up.

There’s still a week and bit left until the racing kicks off again at Indianapolis, but what’s of particular interest this week is Casey Stoner’s first test with Honda.

He joined his former team at the Twin Ring Motegi, intending to run a program that would see him shake down the 2013 machine before moving immediately onto an evaluation of the 2014 prototype.

Casey’s officially back on track in his test role – but will it lead to a wildcard MotoGP start?

However the weather had other ideas, and the team have changed up their run sheet a little to accommodate.

On the first day he turned six laps, so they’ll definitely be aiming to get a bunch more under their belt today.

We’re well aware of Stoner’s test plans – this is the first of four planned – but despite the constant denials from HRC, rumours persist that these tests are actually to get the Aussie’s eye in for a wildcard ride with the team in 2013.

It’s an exciting prospect, certainly, but with two riders in the title hunt, will Honda expand to facilitate the move? At the end of the day, if Stoner raced, and beat Marc Marquez or Dani Pedrosa, then he’s effectively taking points away from them!

Interesting times ahead, and I’m sure the Australian Grand Prix Corporation are hoping that, if it indeed does happen, that his wildcard event is back on home soil.

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