Yamaha Motor Australia press release:
The bLU cRU 300 Racing team of Tom Bramich, Zac levy and Hunter Ford made its debut at the opening round of the 2018 Yamaha Motor Finance Australian Superbike Championship with all three riders well in contention and inside the top 10 after round one action at Phillip Island was wrapped up on the weekend.
Undoubtedly providing some of the best race action of the weekend, the final Supersport 300cc race highlighted just how tight the racing was. The top seven riders flashed across the finish line of an action packed eight lap race with just 1.1 seconds separating them. It was edge of the seat stuff from the up and coming stars of Australian road racing.
Leading the charge on the weekend for the bLU cRU 300 team was Tom Bramich who raced to 4-1-3 finishes in the three races contested. He finds himself just 10 points off the championship lead and given the weekend’s action, the gap between the top riders is narrow and the points can shuffle around quickly.
Zac Levy finds himself in fifth place after a very consistent weekend that saw him take 6-5-5 results in a solid start to his season. It must be frustrating for a rider to by within .5 of a second of the race winner yet finish fifth but that is the 300cc Supersport category and Levy will be a major player in this championship come the final round.
Hunter Ford rounded out his opening round in seventh place and only a mistake while battling for the lead in race two cost him a better result. Ford claimed a fifth-place finish in race one, then was right up the front in race two until a mistake some him drop down the field on the fifth lap and he eventually scrambled back to 14th place. A fourth-place finish in the final race was a good recovery and a positive way to finish the day for Ford.
“It was an energetic and positive start to the year for all three riders and there are a lot of things we can gain from the weekend,” describes Ian Irving, who oversees the team. “Despite it all coming together quite late, the guys did a great job and all three riders are right in contention.
“Racing in this class is hectic to say the least but I think all three riders are capable of winning, races, rounds and the championship and I look forward to working with all three of them in the coming rounds and watching them improve as the championship progresses,” Irving ends.
Round two of the Australian Superbike Championship hits Wakefield Park on March 16-18 and the bLU cRU 300 Racing Team will be out to build on their solid foundations to the racing season.