Image: Foremost Media.

Electronics problems plagued the performance of Broc Pearson at Phillip Island, leaving the DesmoSport Ducati rider unable to deliver the results his pre-season form might suggest in what was a challenging opening round of the 2023 Mi-Bike Australian Superbike Championship (ASBK).

Signed as the sole DesmoSport Ducati rider for this season, Pearson was fifth fastest at the Sydney Motorsport Park pre-season test, later delivering a solid weekend racing with the Hartwell club to rival Troy Herfoss (Penrite Honda) at the venue just weeks out from the opener.

Come the ASBK race weekend, Pearson’s pace especially over race distance on Sunday didn’t match what he was able to deliver earlier in the month at the club round, indicating a problem or some sort of issue might be the cause of the performance deficit. He ultimately qualified ninth and finished 10th overall with 10-9-11 finishes.

“To be honest we have had some highlights of good and bad, we have had a bit of a rollercoaster with some electronic problems we need to get on top of, and they haven’t really occurred in much of our testing schedule, so it’s been a little bit difficult to understand the problem,” Pearson said to CycleOnline.

“We’ve had a really good testing schedule where we have been fast, so I don’t doubt where we are at with the team, we have just been caught up today with some things that we couldn’t get on top of. Obviously, it has been a very disappointing weekend, it would definitely be nice to be going home with some better results right now because where we finished is not where we should be.

“It’s not as much a problem of dealing with these things, it’s more getting on top of it. We need to get on top of it so when we come to race weekends like this, we’re ready to go and not facing these issues.

“I have no doubt that when we get on top of these issues we are going to be strong everywhere, days like today we were affected by something that we struggled to get on top of. Like I said, something we will continue to build and get on top of.”

Pearson has shown he has the potential to fight up the front with DesmoSport Ducati, finishing fourth overall on debut with the outfit last year at Morgan Park. Both he and the team will have the opportunity to charge forwards when the 2023 Mi-Bike Australian Superbike Championship resumes with round two at Sydney Motorsport Park, the historic event between 24-25 March to feature racing under lights.