The opening round of the 2016 Swann Insurance Australasian Superbike Championship gets underway at Sydney Motorsport Park today, featuring the unique schedule into the twilight to cap off the two-day format. Racefeed will feature race-by-race rundowns of the Superbike and Supersport categories, as well as support class updates at stages during the day.

Image: Keith Muir.

Supersport race one:
SA Kawasaki BCperformance’s Kyle Buckley kept his winning streak going in race one of the Supersports, holding off a fast-finishing Mitch Levy (Yamaha) and Cambridge Olivier (Yamaha). Buckley controlled the race from the outset, which was restarted following an initial red flag, eventually winning the seven-lap affair by 0.277s. Meanwhile in fourth was Mark Chiodo (Triumph), trailed by Jordan Carlsson (Yamaha) completing the top five. Sam Muldoon was an early casualty, crashing his ZX-6R in turn nine on lap two while running inside the top five.

Supersport race two:
The second Supersport leg of the round looked as though we’d see a new winner in the form of Levy, taking charge on the opening lap and leading much of the seven laps. However a late charge from Buckley this time saw him post his fastest lap of the race at 1m35.579s on the final lap, taking the lead in the process to keep his unbeaten run in tact for the weekend. Levy crossed the line second just 0.382s in arrears, while Olivier was also within a second of the lead in third. Michael Knight (Yamaha) was fourth this time out, getting the better of Chiodo again inside the top five.

Superbike race one:
Kawasaki Connection Repsol’s Matt Walters dominated the opening IPONE Superbike race of the season at Sydney Motorsport Park, sprinting away from the field in the seven laps to commence the Swann Series season for an untouchable 3.961s victory – his fastest lap almost a second quicker than his closest rival. Upon return to fulltime competition Robbie Bugden out-diced SA Kawasaki BCperformance teammate Ben Burke for the runner-up, with rookie Michael Blair (IPONE Blairbuild Yamaha) close in tow for fourth. LTR Honda rider Paul Byrne claimed fifth from Mathew Harding (Kawasaki), Brendan McIntyre (Suzuki), Liam Wilkinson (Yamaha), a fading Beau Beaton (Racers Edge Performance Craig McMartin Racing Ducati) and top of the Formula Xtreme runners Dane Purcell (Kawasaki) filling the top 10.

Support class update:
A quick rundown of the supporting results from today so far. Pro-Twins/Nakedbike race one – Beau Beaton, Michael McMillan, Adrian Pierpoint; Formula Oz race one – Simon Galloway, Steve McLeod, Evan Byles; Formula Xtreme race one – Carlos Rendon, Richard Mercadal, Dane Purcell; FX300 Ninja Cup race one – Jack Dawes, Sam Condon, Jimmy Broadbent; Pro-Twins/Nakedbike race two – Beau Beaton, Michael McMillan, Adrian Pierpoint; Formula Oz race two – Simon Galloway, Steve McLeod, Evan Byles; FX300 Ninja Cup race two – Jimmy Broadbent, Sam Condon, Hunter Ford.

Supersport race three:
With the third Supersport race of the round hitting the track behind schedule this afternoon, Buckley once again withstood the pressure of Levy for a fifth win of the weekend so far. Today it’s been three from three for Buckley, working his way to the front and taking a 0.536s win over Levy and another impressive showing from Olivier in third. Chiodo crossed the line fourth after Knight crashed out of position at turn eight with just over a lap to run, also allowing Carlsson to move up a place for fifth by the finish. Bouncing back from an earlier incident, Muldoon made his way forward to sixth.

Superbike race two:
It was a tight fight for the top in the second Superbike race of the round, but in the end it was dominant Kawasaki-mounted Walters who maintained his unbeaten run for the weekend. The additional opposition for Walters came in the form of Blair, who set the quickest lap of the race at 1m32.454s and missed out on the win by just 0.193s at the conclusion of seven laps. Finishing third this time out was Bugden, two seconds back down the track, and in turn almost another couple of seconds ahead of teammate Burke. Also dipping into the 1m32s this time out was Byrne, taking home another top five and comfortably ahead of Beaton in position six. The top 10 was rounded out by Brad Swallow (Kawasaki), Harding, McIntyre and Wilkinson.

Supersport race four:
A new winner emerged in the fourth and final Supersport race of today, Repsol-backed Triumph rising star Chiodo denying Buckley a clean-sweep of the weekend after switching to his ‘number one’ bike for the final race of the weekend. And he did so in great control, taking over the lead in the early laps and then withstanding the immense pressure of Buckley for a 0.132s victory. Early leader Levy ended the weekend in third place, near a second ahead of Olivier, while Muldoon was a lonely fifth. Overall for the round it was Buckley the winner, joined on the podium by Levy and Olivier, with Chiodo a consistent fourth.

Superbike race three:
Like Supersport, there was a new rider in victory lane for the first time all weekend come the final race of today, as Burke barged his way to a 0.037s advantage over the round winner Walters, who put on a strong challenge in the closing laps of the seven. While Burke broke through for the race win from Walters, Blair crossed the line comfortably in third position after setting the fastest lap of the race, followed home by Bugden and Byrne. Beaton meanwhile was sixth for race three, with Swallow, Harding, Wilkinson and McIntyre rounding out the top 10. Overall it was Walters the winner and early championship leader, with Blair’s strong run of results securing second and Burke’s final race win landing him on the final step of the podium.

Support class update:
With the final rounds of racing complete, here are the podiums in the supporting classes. Pro-Twins/Nakedbike race three – Michael McMillan, Adrian Pierpoint, Aaron Breese; Formula Oz race three – Simon Galloway, Steve McLeod, Evan Byles; FX300 Ninja Cup race three – Sam Condon, Hunter Ford, Jimmy Broadbent; Pro-Twins/Nakedbike race four – Michael McMillan, Adrian Pierpoint, Aaron Breese; Formula Oz race four – Simon Galloway, Steve McLeod, Damian Sutton; FX300 Ninja Cup race four – Hunter Ford, Sam Condon, Jimmy Broadbent.