The 2025 Mi-Bike Australian Superbike Championship came to a close at The Bend, completing a lengthy season in South Australia. In the end, Josh Waters claimed title number five in the premier class, while Jack Mahaffy took his first title in the Supersport category. CycleOnline caught up with both riders post race for this Debrief feature.

Superbike

Image: Foremost Media.

2025 Superbike champion Josh Waters got it done there in qualifying yesterday. Got that one wrapped up for the fifth time, take us through that real quickly – getting done after the qualifying session finished up.

Yeah, it was really, really cool. Such a weird experience because I actually qualified fifth, but Mike [Jones] didn’t qualify on pole, so I got the championship there. I was celebrating a fifth place for winning the championship. It was a weird feeling, but it was such a relief. Huge thanks to my team and all of our supporters – yeah, so good.

A bit of a weird one actually, because it was pretty late in the session. You were on top, then Mike put a lap in, and straight away your crew reacted – did you know at that point, or did you have to wait until you crossed the line?

I didn’t actually know until I rode back in. I did a practice start, and then I didn’t know until I rode back into the pit lane that I’d actually done it. So yeah, it was really cool once I found out. It would’ve been cool to do it in race one though. I got a good start and was in the lead, won the race, so that would’ve been really cool to have it happen on track. But it was also cool to have the bike with the gold fairings and wear the gold helmet – that was special.

Take us through the races for you. It looked like a pretty straightforward day overall.

Yeah, it was. So obviously in race one, I got a good start, was able to pull away, and then ran off with about five laps to go. All the work that I’d done to that point meant I could bring it back, and I was still able to win, so that was great. Race two, after the restart, I buggered the start and I think I was eighth or ninth – maybe a little bit higher – but was able to work my way back up.

2026. Do you try again and go for a sixth premier class title? How many more years have you got left, do you think?

Yep, try for number six in 2026. I still enjoy it, I still love it at the moment. The passion and drive are both still there, so as long as that’s the case, I’ll keep going.

I’m going to use the Eli Tomac reference because that’s something you’d understand – he’s said before that while he’s competitive and enjoying it, he’ll keep racing. I feel like that’s somewhat similar for you.

Exactly. So true, so right. I may as well keep doing it. I enjoy it, I love working with the team I’ve got, and I’m very fortunate to be in the position I’m in.

Rinse and repeat for next year, with a bit of a different schedule – the new summer series as well. What are your thoughts on that?

Yeah, I think it’s an idea to try and make it, you know, create more interest or whatever they’re trying to do. I still think we need better promotion so more people get through the gates. Everyone who comes loves it, but the problem is that no one knows it’s on. This weekend, for example, the promotion that was done for the event was terrible. I reckon the majority of the people here were from Mildura — from the 25 posters I put up around Mildura myself, not locals from here. I just know that they love it, and there are so many people who didn’t even know the event was on, even in Mildura. That’s what needs to be fixed.

From your point of view, what’s the best way to promote it and get more eyes on the sport?

It needs to be out there more so people actually know it’s on. There are so many track days that are hugely popular, and we need to get those people involved. They already have the same interest. It’s not really my job, but there are reps and people who go to all these bike shops, maybe if we could work in with them, the bike shops wouldn’t care about putting up a poster, especially if you give them some tickets or something. I’m not sure what the exact answer is, but something needs to change. And it’s not just road racing – it’s the same for motocross, supercross, all of them.

I’ll use this example – the Supercars opening round next season is offering free Friday entry to get more people through the gates. We’ve seen that before in Superbikes under Yarrive Konsky’s management, right?

Yeah, I think so. When Yarrive ran it, he did something similar and it was packed. Maybe that’s what we have to look at again. But the difference is, Supercars are really good at telling fairy tales. They’ll say they had 47,000 people there when they came here, but maybe 47,000 people live within 200 kilometres of the track – there definitely weren’t 47,000 people at the event! So they need to be realistic about those things.

Do you think sticking with combined rounds like the Supercars event at Queensland Raceway is the answer?

It worked well because there were a lot of people there, but will it actually mean more spectators for us? I’m not sure. It was great being on Kayo, but not everyone has it. Life’s expensive, and a lot of people can’t afford more subscriptions. If it were on free-to-air TV, that would help massively. Everyone’s got access to SBS, so if people just knew it was on, they’d watch. It’s like motocross – I watch all the motocross, but I’d bet no one else in downtown Mildura knows it’s on. I watch Supercross too, but I can’t even watch it on my TV at the moment because it’s only on Kayo. I’m not sure if I’m wrong there, but it’s something like that. It’s such a good sport, though. Maybe running into the summer will help, but I don’t know how we’ll get the European riders over here, because they want to do it for money. We’d need more funding. It’s not like all of our teams have wads of cash falling out of their pockets and can pay people to come over.

Lots to look forward to then. Congratulations again on the championship. You put on a show all season and, like we’ve spoken about before, really broke that stigma of Phillip Island being Ducati Island. You went to every round knowing you could win anywhere.

Yeah, exactly. That was really nice, to show we could win at different tracks, in different conditions, not just at one circuit.

Congratulations again on another incredible season – we can’t wait to see it again next year.

Thanks so much. I really appreciate it, and thanks for taking an interest, doing the podcast, following the series, and trying your hardest to make it all happen – and to make me sound good too! So yeah, I really appreciate it.

Awesome. Congratulations, Josh.

Thanks, mate.

Supersport

Image: Foremost Media.

Jack, congratulations on the Supersport championship. You look much more relaxed than you did this morning, take us through the day.

Thanks, man. That sounds really good when you say that! Yeah, for sure, this weekend hasn’t been easy. After One Raceway and I had that 24-point lead, I started to feel this overwhelming… I wouldn’t say pressure, but something lurking. Like, ‘Yep, it’s going to come down to one point, one critical moment, and I’ve got to get it done.’ So, I just did everything I could – as much training and prep as possible, to make sure there was no doubt coming into this weekend that I was the best prepared I could be. Although, when I got here on Friday, I wasn’t as fast as I’d hoped. I’d done a two-day test here a few weeks ago and was a lot quicker than I’d been throughout this weekend. But that’s something I’ve learned about myself – maybe what you tell yourself isn’t actually what you’re feeling subconsciously. Anyway, I’m happy we could finally get the job done. I have to thank the team, and I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I have to thank the competition for pushing me so hard. They’ve pushed me to be my best self, and that’s something I’m chasing for next year – more of those types of people who can push me to be better, because that’s how I get the best out of myself.

You sort of knew coming into it that around that P7 mark is where you needed to be. In that second race, I saw you dropping back a little more – did you start to panic? Did you know where everyone was? Take us through that.

Yeah, so for race one, I’d done the math and knew that I needed a solid result there. Coming into the weekend, I knew if Archie [McDonald] had a perfect weekend, I’d have to finish P7 in both races. Because I got P5 in race one and Archie finished second, that gave me a bit of a margin for race two. I said it in an interview before – you kind of race to your circumstances. If it had come down to one point, I would’ve been there to fight with Archie to make it happen. But in race two, I was riding super stiff, and I actually couldn’t get out of my own head. I knew where I had to finish, and that’s what everyone was telling me to do, so I just stuck to it. We got the job done, and I’m super proud.

A championship at this level – what does it mean to you now that you’ve wrapped it up?

It means everything. It’s not just one year of hard work – it’s years of effort from so many passionate people, both inside this team and outside of it, who’ve made all the pieces of the puzzle come together. I think everyone involved feels a bit of relief now that we have something to show for it. Looking forward, I hope it gives a bit of merit that can open up new opportunities or doors to push myself even further. Whether that’s with Robbie and Claire [Bolger] or somewhere else, I’m not sure – time will tell.

What’s the plan for next year – do you have that settled yet, or still working it out?

I’ve got another opportunity in a couple of weeks. I’m racing in Spain for the FIM Stock Championship in the Junior World Championship, and if I do well there, that could open some doors to keep racing 600s overseas as well as here. Ideally, I’d like to step up to Superbike, but I had a chat with a few riders like Troy Herfoss, and his advice was not to rush it. I’m still only 24 – at a mature age, yeah, but he’s right. I shouldn’t rush. I should take the opportunities as they come, and we’ll see what happens.

Having Kyle [Ryde] here this weekend – a dual British Superbike champion – racing him, seeing where you stack up, comparing lap times and all of that, it must’ve opened your eyes to how good both you and your package are right now.

I think it’s fantastic what Robbie and Claire have done bringing Kyle over. It shows what we’re building here in the series, and just how high the level is. Kyle’s such a good guy too – he’s been helping me out through the weekend as well. If it weren’t for the circumstances of me fighting for the championship, I’d have loved to be up there battling with him in both races. I learned a lot from him in qualifying and in race one. He’s an absolute demon on the brakes, and after watching some of his BSB races, it’s clear why he’s a two-time champion. It’s not easy to come here and just race a new bike, new track, new tyres – but he handled it like the pro he is. He’s not a BSB champion for nothing.

Did you know about his arrival ahead of the weekend? Were you on board with it from the start? I guess it could’ve gone either way in the middle of a title fight.

Yeah, exactly – it was another curveball! Another Stop and Seal curveball, but in this case, it was a good one. I knew he was going to be fast, and honestly, him taking points off Archie helped me out a bit. But it’s just great to have someone of his calibre here. And who knows, maybe we can do the same one day, head over to America or the UK, get into a good team and show what we’re capable of. That would be awesome.

Your teammate is ‘Mad Dog’ Archie McDonald – does this make you the top dog now?

[Laughs], I think we’ve been through this before at QR. I feel like I’m top dog! But seriously, Archie has been an incredible teammate to have. He’s got so much hunger, and that’s pushed me this year as well. I’ve got to tip my hat to him, he’s doing two championships, which is no easy feat. He’s got his dream, I’ve got mine, and I think anyone would agree that having a strong teammate pushes you on and off the bike. You think about it when you’re at home, when you’re training, when you’re running, just thinking, “What’s he doing?” Especially since racing is Archie’s full-time job. I’ve got a full-time gig working nine or ten hours a day, so I’m trying to fit everything in. If I can get to that point where I can focus fully on racing, that would be amazing. But yeah, Archie’s been great.

2025 Supersport Champion, Jack Mahaffy. Congratulations – and it’s not that long until you guys go again, really.

I know, right? We’re going to be back at it real quick. Preseason starts early, and we’ll be straight back into it for next year.

Enjoy the night, mate.

Thank you man, really appreciate it!