Image: Marc Jones.

A single point is all that split Daniel Falzon with Robbie Bugden as leading privateer when the Yamaha Motor Finance Australian Superbike Championship presented by Motul Pirelli wrapped up at Phillip Island.

Caterpillar-backed JD Racing Yamaha standout Falzon’s target going into the final races of the season was to edge BCperformance Kawasaki team rider Budgden for top privateer status this season.

That’s precisely what the opening round winner did, starting out of second on the grid and then going on to card 4-6 finishes for fifth overall. That result saw him climb to fourth in the final championship standings.

“It’s probably been the toughest that I’ve ever seen the Australian Superbikes and to come away with top privateer is a fantastic result for our team,” Falzon told CycleOnline.com.au. “The whole year we’ve had some mishaps, so coming into this round it was a bit unrealistic for the privateer championship, but we had some really good, consistent results and I think we deserve this.

“We proved each round that we were probably the fastest privateer, so to come away with first is fantastic and fourth in the championship is a great result for the team. We showed at round one this year that we can win races – three of them – and two pole positions, which is equal with anyone else.

“Me becoming more mature as a rider, getting more familiar with the Superbikes and finding the limits now. I think if we keep following the path that we’re going, eventually we can be a privateer team that’s going to win the Australian Superbikes.”

However with Falzon’s Yamaha Racing Team (YRT)-supported program a family-run operation, the multiple-time national Supersport champion was yet to confirm if they will continue fielding the team full-time in 2018 – a decision largely dependent on whether he secures a factory seat and the status of his prospects as a full-time paramedic away from the circuit moving forward.