Image: Supplied.

Fourth in race two at Jerez concluded the rookie Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) campaign of Australia’s Remy Gardner, with the GYTR GRT Yamaha rider equalling his season-best result despite suffering a heavy fall the day prior.

Garnder posted a 1m38.961s to qualify fifth-fastest ahead of the opening bout, but fell hard in the relatively early stages of race one, suffering a deep cut to his right elbow and a left wrist contusion.

The gutsy R1 rider rebounded to take the checkers P6 in Sunday’s superpole race, before a commendable performance in race two saw him just 1.370s from the victory, closing in on teammate Dominique Aegerter for third in the closing stages.

“To be honest, today I wasn’t even sure about racing due to the crash I suffered yesterday,” said Gardner.”After warm up I felt I could do the races, but it was painful, I’m not going to lie. The Superpole race was a decent one, unfortunately due to the red flag our rear tyre was quite used, and I struggled with grip in the latter stages of the race.

“Then, in race two I could smell the podium, we finished so close, and I could catch the group fighting for the victory. Unfortunately, I missed a bit of pace in the end as I pushed a lot to close the gap and I felt a bit of pain as well which maybe prevented me from doing more. Anyway, it’s not a bad way to finish the year, we’re aware we have good potential and that we can have a strong 2024. To finish on the top of the Independent Teams is also nice, and I would like to dedicate this win to Mirko (Giansanti), who sadly passed away a few months ago.”

Gardner ultimately finished ninth in the 2023 WorldSBK Championship standings, with the first round of the 2024 season taking place at Phillip Island between 23-25 February where he will again represent the GYTR GRT Yamaha team.