SA Kawasaki BCperformance press release:

Round One of the ASBK racing calendar was held at Phillip Island in conjunction with the WSBK opener and it proved to be a brilliant weekend for the SA Kawasaki BCperformance team, to kick off their 2016 racing campaign. With all new livery, sponsors, gear and bikes, the team looked resplendent under the Victorian sun.

After limited testing and heaps of refining going into the bikes over the summer break, the riders were particularly eager to get out on track to see just how much quicker they’d go in 2016.
Thursday’s practice session finally gave that opportunity with all three Superbike riders putting in plenty of laps in order to refine their bikes just a little more.

Ben Burke put in 17 laps, with a fastest time of 1:35.529, while Robbie Bugden lapped 9 times, in between making some set up changes, finishing up with a 1:34.589. Evan Byles also put in 13 laps, picking up the pace with each lap and finishing up with a 1:40.661. Supersport riders, Kyle Buckley and Ryan Masri also put in plenty of laps.

Kyle picked up where he left off in 2015 but putting in 17 laps and finishing up with a 1:39.470, while Ryan spent most of his session learning his new bike as this is Ryan’s first year on a Supersport machine and his first outing at Phillip Island on a 600.

Friday’s practice session saw all five riders continue to refine their bikes in preparation for qualifying, which brought some good results for the whole team. Ben Burke qualified in 9th with a 1:34.633, while Robbie Bugden slotting in just behind in 10th with a 1:34.690, while Evan landed 22nd place with a 1:39.487.

Supersport riders, Kyle Buckley and Ryan Masri qualified in 3rd and 23rd respectively, with Kyle posting an outstanding 1:38.039. The first race for both Superbike and Supersport riders was held on the Saturday, with all five riders putting in wonderful performances.

Ben Burke and Robbie Bugden finished 8th and 9th respectively, while Evan Byles came home in 17th. Unfortunately, both Supersport riders recorded a DNF – Kyle Buckley had a high speed crash at the Hayshed section on the third lap whilst in second place. A disappointing result but points to the sensational pace Kyle already has at this stage of the year.

Races two and three were both held on the Sunday, producing great results for the whole team. Race two saw Ben Burke and Robbie Budgen finish in 9th and 11th respectively. However, their times improved significantly with both riders lapping in the 1:33’s. Evan Byles came home in 21st place, while Supersport riders, Kyle Buckley and Ryan Masri had much better outings in the shortened race two, recording a 6th and 24th respectively.

The final race for the weekend brought some of the best results yet, with Ben Burke finishing in 5th and showing he very much has the pace to stick with the fastest guys on track. Robbie Bugden recorded an 8th place, while Evan Byles finished up in 15th. In the final supersport race, Kyle finished 11th, despite his best efforts fighting an injury from his earlier crash and Ryan Masri improved markedly to record a 19th place.

This is what the riders had to say…

Ben Burke – “Had a great weekend. The new Ninja ZX-10R has shown it is fast straight out of the box and was complimented by the team’s hard work in getting them ready in such a short amount of time. I have never fared well out of a trip to Phillip Island but my luck changed this time. From the first session I was comfortable going faster every time on track. I was satisfied with qualifying but knew I had much more when encouraged by a race. I proved that this weekend and look forward to battling for the podium from now on. Thanks to the team and my mechanic Adam Nolan for giving me confidence to push. And my personal sponsor landscapesupplies.com.au”

Robbie Bugden – “Firstly I want to say a massive shout out to the whole team. From the get go, we had challenges but everyone showed true determination and grit to develop and improve the SA Kawasaki BCperformance Ninja ZX-10R. In that short space of time we had a brand new bike, and put it in a position to be challenging for a podium. With so much more to come from the bike, I’m confident it will be more “when” then “if” this bike and the team will be winning races. I feel it will be sooner rather than later. For me, it was great to be back out in the national series and can’t wait for Sydney in Two weeks time. A chance to continue to develop the Kawasaki ZX10R and continue to develop and find more track speed within myself, I can’t wait. Big Thanks to my personal sponsors, Pope Building Services, Nitro Stainless, Kobuto, Spidi and the whole team. Great weekend and so much more to come.”

Evan Byles – “Phillip Island WSBK racing is all done for me again this year! I have had a great weekend, developing the new SA Kawasaki BCperformance Ninja ZX-10R. The team worked together to tune the geometry of the bike so Kirsty could make all the necessary changes. Friday night debrief was a good turning point for me, and from Saturday’s 5 minute warm up until we packed up on Sunday, I set a new Personal Best lap time in every session on the bike. I had heaps of fun and enjoyed riding the best toy in the world! I would like to thank the whole team and especially Kelvin for the framework and hard work behind the scenes. Thank you Cath for letting me out to play …. Again! Kirsty as always… for keeping me safe and reliable.”

Kyle Buckley – “Eventful first round of 2016 for myself and my side of the garage, started strong in practice and qualifying with P3 on the Grid, but with a heavy fall at turn 8 in race 1 that all came unstuck. Must again thank the team for building a new bike for Sunday’s races to be able to get out and grab a few points. Mega Effort! Also a big thanks to my personal sponsors, Iceberg Enterprises and Doyle Media Services. Keen as ever to get back on the seat in a few weeks time!”

Ryan Masri – “Had so much fun at Phillip island with the SA Kawasaki BCperformance team ensuring my challenges were overcome and I was out racing and gaining valuable experience. Had a nasty crash on Saturday by getting caught up with a few riders which resulted in me being thrown over the handle bars and some damage to the bike. However big thanks to the team for getting me back out there despite the large amount of work and effort required on the bike. Not only that I was able to learn so much lap by lap being my first race meeting on the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R putting me in a good position for the next round. Big thanks to the team wouldn’t be this far ahead without them”

The next outing for the team will be at the Swann Insurances Australasian Superbike Championship round one to be held at Sydney Motorsport Park on the 11th and 12th of March where the Superbike and Supersport teams will be joined by the Ninja 300 cup team of Jimmy Broadbent and Yanni Shaw. We would love your support so if you can make it to the track, please do.

A massive thanks to the team sponsors and partners: Kawasaki Motors Australia, Kawasaki Motors Finance, SA Motorcycles, Iceberg Enterprises, Landscapesupplies.com.au, Mahaffey, Outdoor Fabrications, MSC Moto, NG Brake Discs, Ipone Oils, Fibrezone, Ixon, Chicken Hawk, motoDNA, TKD jeans, Venhill brake lines, Ixil silencers, DNA Air filters, Vesrah brake pads, DID Chains, R&G Racing, JT Sprockets, tenconnect.net , Mototech Australia and Woolich Racing.