It was a clinical performance from Josh Waters at Sydney Motorsport Park to take out round two of the 2025 Australian Superbike Championship (ASBK), while Jack Mahaffy claimed the Supersport overall with a 1-2 finish, moving into the championship lead. CycleOnline caught up with both riders after the races for this Debrief feature.

Superbike

Image: Russel Colvin.

Josh Waters, we described this weekend as domination in terms of the race day Saturday. Those starts though, tell us about that.

Yeah, pretty good. I wish I always got on like that, but yeah. The first one was like really, really good and then I was able to get another great start in race two. The guys knew that I was coming, so they moved over a bit more to the right. But yeah, that was a great Saturday.

That first race especially, that launch off the line, were you expecting that? What was it like? Was it a bit unfamiliar being that far back on the grid? I can’t remember, it’s been a while.

Yeah, it was. So I was frustrated with myself yesterday because the speed that I felt like I had, I felt like I’d be able to challenge to be on the front row. But then with the weather and so on, I was just too safe. Very, very difficult to tell whether it’s wet or dry when it’s just a mist, but sooner or later it becomes wet. So I just didn’t want to take the risk. But yeah, happy with today.

Take us through the races from your perspective. Anything out of the ordinary from you or just controlling from the front?

No, I just felt like I did what I had to do. Yeah, I felt good. The team gave me a great bike. There were patches of water and stuff on the circuit, the conditions weren’t perfect out there.

What were the conditions like then? Because we thought it was going to rain today. It didn’t end up raining like we expected. But as you said, the conditions were still – because of the rainfall that we’d had – kind of tricky anyway.

It was. Like the amount that was forecast was ridiculous, it was like 60 millimetres and that was for today. But yeah, it had a lot of rain, it’s very moist around the circuit and it’s, you know, at night also it seems to come back up and runs across the circuit. So that’s why riding tonight, it come back out.

When you consider this stage of your career, the success that you’re having with the team, do you feel like nights like tonight, you kind of enjoy them more? I feel like it’s becoming more and more obvious that it’s not just a Ducati or V4R thing. You see Broc Pearson, you know, a little bit up and down, and you see Glenn Allerton still adjusting. Between yourself and the team, it’s a winning combination. I think that’s becoming more and more obvious.

Yeah, 100 percent. I’m very fortunate to be involved in this team and we all click and that’s the big thing. Everyone in the team, the environment’s good and then that’s why the results are like they are, I think. So yeah, keep trying and we’ll keep enjoying ourselves. Just keep smiling and keep trying.

Do you ever think about the times where it wasn’t clicking for you, when you weren’t on the right bike, when you weren’t on A-level teams and that kind of thing?

I just think about what we’ve got coming. But yeah, when you turn back, you do think of those times, but like that’s what I say about last year. It was very special crossing the line because of all those years and, you know, I had to do my own thing because no one wanted me. And then that’s where it was very special. Now, I’ve got with this team and we’ve all clicked. We’re friends away from the races and also at the races. So it works good, we can be open and honest with each other and it’s really good.

One thing I noticed as well, I’m not sure if you would have seen yet, but on social media, Paolo Ciabatti from Ducati Corse, he’s very engaged in your program and your results. He’s already commented. Very familiar face and name in the sport, but that connection is pretty neat to see for ASBK.

Yeah, it’s really cool. I need to maybe hit him up for a dirt bike, seeing that he’s involved in that project now, but yeah, it’s so cool. Like I said to people, there was an world under 21 speedway champion that watched the race. It’s watched by a lot more people. He’s in Poland at the moment and he’s messaged me like, ‘God, I need that. Whatever you’ve done to your bike to off the start,’ because speedway is very important to start. So just stuff like that, he actually messaged me between race one and two. But yeah, it’s really cool that a lot of people, my teammate from the 8-Hour who finished second or third in the All Japan Series, he watched it. I haven’t checked through all my messages, but it’s pretty cool that people take interest.

Where would you rate a night like this for you in your career? In terms of your career, and how would you judge your form overall compared to different stages? Because your first championship was your rookie season, what, 09?

Yeah, 09.

Yeah, so I feel like you’re pretty good at the moment.

Yeah, I’m happy in a good place, happy with myself, happy with the team and the bike, and everyone believes in me.

But do you feel better now than back then?

Maybe just older and more experienced. Like knowing to try when you have to and stuff like that. I still try [hard] in the practices and all those kind of things, but maybe not put yourself in silly positions. So I’m happy with how I’m going at the moment. Yeah, it’s a hard one. I think I’ve just gotten better and then I’m happy. That’s a big thing, I’m happy.

This young generation, we’re seeing finally stepping up in ASBK, a lot of good kids, a lot of young talent. Not only opportunities in teams, but investing in themselves, their families are too. Every Supersport champion since 18 is in the field. What’s your take on that? The kids are coming along.

Yeah, I reckon it’s really good. I know that a lot of people are like, ‘oh it’s the same blokes that get the rides,’ and all this kind of stuff. But I bust my arse too, I put in all that work. Yeah, mum and dad helped me a lot, but now, it’s just different. I love doing it, but I gotta work on Monday. I didn’t think that at all tonight. I know that people are always like, ‘oh he’s still got the ride,’ and all this kind of stuff. But when you can beat me, then you can have [my ride]. That’s what it was like when I was growing up and that’s how you got them. If you were good enough, you got the rides, but I really do think the kids this weekend, there were some of them that went awesome. I was watching in FP3 and thinking, I’m getting knocked off first in a minute. And yeah, I was really good in the races and so on.

It was good to watch. It was a really impressive day from you, so well done.

Nah, thanks heaps.

Supersport

Image: Foremost Media.

Jack Mahaffy, you were able to win the overall here in Sydney and you’ve taken over the points lead as well. You must be stoked with the result.

Yeah, super happy to put in a strong result, and yeah, we have the championship lead. Let’s see what we can do from here on out. We’ve got the next two rounds up in sunny Queensland. So I think I feel pretty strong at those tracks. But yeah, we have tough competition. So we just need to keep working hard and work on the details and see what we can do. We know that consistency is the key for this championship, especially when me and Archie [McDonald] are going second-first, first-second, so it’s hard. But yeah, really good.

You won that first race and then came so close in the second one. What was the thought? Did you know you obviously had the overall anyway, but was there any sense of disappointment?

Yeah, I was actually really disappointed. It just stung, because the way Archie did it was, he just passed me down the straight. I actually said to him, I was half joking. I said, ‘it was a bit of a boring way to win a race.’ But that’s all right, that’s fine. I tried to push to pull away halfway through the race, but Archie kept that pace. So this is the way it goes, we just have to stay strong. We know where we’re strong.

How did you negotiate the mixed conditions throughout the weekend?

Yeah, hard. Especially in that last one. Okay, there was a streak of water at turn seven that you couldn’t see because it was in the shade, not under lights. When I saw Jake go through the warm-up lap, it was a big crash. Then every lap after that during the race, you just had to have the bike with no degree of lean angle when you hit it. In race one, when we were on the wets, after a few laps, you could understand how much grip you had. Trying to gauge it and manage it was okay. Big thanks to my team, they did a great job, and Michelin tyres, I can’t do it without them.

Final one, this year, obviously the championship is the goal, but how much better do you feel compared to last season?

Yeah, everything is different. The team understand the bike a lot more. I understand myself a lot more. I’m training on training bikes very, very often during the week, so I’m very sharp and I feel ready every time I hop on the bike. So yeah, I just feel like I’m more of a complete rider compared to last year and I hope that I can just keep it going and trust the process.