Features 2 Jul 2014

Cycle Central: 26

A front row view of Australian road racing, presented by Alpinestars.

It was both an interesting and potentially championship-defining weekend at Queensland Raceway for the third round of the Swann Series last weekend.

Aside from the usual morning chill and a particularly strong wind, conditions were pristine and crowds were encouraging, filling up much of the prime viewing spots around the track.

There were a host of talking points to come from the weekend, the greatest of which continues to be hotly-debated. Of course we’re referring to the incident involving Wayne Maxwell, Sean Condon and Glenn Allerton, which had championship changing implications.

As it stands, the Swann Series is the top level of Aussie racing, and these are its major players. We’re fortunate that we’re confronted by relatively few major issues but this one has divided the pack, with some standing in support of Maxwell and others defending Condon.

The incident itself, while awkward, was fairly clear-cut. Condon put his hand up as the instigator, which seems to have been accepted, but its the flow-on comments that are stirring a rousing response.

Maxwell’s comments surrounding parity suggested Condon was only battling up front because of the horsepower advantage of his Kawasaki, raising fresh discussion about the technical rules of the class.

Image: Russell Colvin.

Image: Russell Colvin.

You can read the various comments and opinions about the incident and the overall parity concerns in the premier class here.

Is it necessary to review the rules? That’s a subject for teams to take to officials and discuss. So far we’ve seen three rounds produce a handful of different results, with some tracks naturally suiting the strengths of a particular brand over another.

The Swann Series is a production-based championship, much more so than the Australian Superbike Championship was, so its natural that the bikes retain at least some of their main selling points as they come off the showroom floor and onto the racetrack.

The incident that flared up this debate may be over but no doubt you’ll here more about parity as the season rolls on.

The Supersport class produced its share of close racing too, along with a few emotion-charged moments away from the track.

We’re seeing a real sporting rivalry developing between Aaron Morris and Daniel Falzon, with both riders competing on a very level pedestal and pushing each other in every race.

Post-race podium interviews with each rider weren’t complimentary, and naturally opinions differed depending on whose side you were on. The particular incident of note was the touch between the two on the final lap of race three, and though no further action was taken, you can bet it will be at the back of both riders’ minds in races to come.

Image: Russell Colvin.

Image: Russell Colvin.

Overall it was a well-run meeting and a lot of fun to be a part of. Bring on Winton and more close racing.

A few final comments today and there is a need to make mention of the top run by our Aussies at the Assen TT.

Ant West, what can you say. A fantastic performance, and certainly one that shows off the talent that we know he has.

Broc Parkes’ showing was similarly stellar. It received minimal coverage on the telecast but for someone who crashed on the warm-up lap, he put in a fairly good effort! They say the conditions are often the great leveller, and he not only held his own he kept pace with a handful of the prototypes in the thick of battle, with an 11th place finish an absolute credit.

Marc Marquez’ win was just like another day at the office, with an encouraging challenge from Ducati falling predictably short. Another hot topic from the GP was the performance of Jorge Lorenzo, who struggled to a points finish in a lacklustre performance.

This has been a matter of debate, too, with many suggesting that Lorenzo is both physically and mentally exhausted and at a concerning breaking point. I think it’s too early to make that suggestion. We can’t forget the mental toughness that he has shown time and time again. He will bounce back, even if it takes time, or indeed, as some suggest, a different bike to do it on.

That’s all for this week. Keep up with all the domestic and international racing news on our social media channels. Just search ‘CycleOnline’ on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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