Giles Wins Superbike Weeknd At Mallala :: 07-06-2005

For the first time, the 2005 Australian Superbike Championship season has seen a change of command as Team Suzuki snatched the series lead in round four at Mallala Motorsport Park (SA) this weekend.

Piloting the Team Suzuki GSX-R1000, three-time Australian Superbike Champion, Shawn Giles scored a race victory and overall round honours to shoot into the series lead with a margin of five points.

Heading into the round only two points shy of the series lead, Giles laid down a 1:06.784s lap around the 2.6km circuit to snare yet another front-row start for the weekend’s two races - critically qualifying ahead of his main series rival, Josh Brookes.

Race one saw Giles blast off the start line to grab the holeshot and lead the field through turn one before being shuffled back to third place in the opening laps, headed by Jamie Stauffer and Adam Fergusson.

Close dicing in the ultra-competitive Superbike class saw Giles quickly forge his way back into second place and begin to hunt down the race lead.

Demonstrating his vast experience, the Suzuki champion maintained his cool, delivering a consistent, blistering pace while Stauffer threw away his advantage in the closing stages; running wide at the first turn and taking a tour through pit lane to make amends.

Giles controlled the remaining five laps to collect his third successive race win and assume the series lead with a three point advantage.

Sunday’s second race was full of action and high drama as dangerous debris on the track brought the red-flag out on lap seven – the same lap that Giles fell victim to rocks that punctured his radiator.

The timing of the incident played into Giles favour as he mounted his spare bike to rejoin the second half of the race in third place.

Stauffer again running wide on the opening lap made way for Giles to slot into second place and chase Fergusson for the race lead.

The pair maintained stations and stretched a lead on the rest of the field over the ensuing laps to see the Suzuki star cross the line in second place for the overall round victory.

“I’m really happy with this win today,” Shawn Giles stated.

“I was extremely lucky to make the restart in race two after debris pierced my radiator, but the Suzuki had great pace to be up there at the end of the day.

“This is a real riders’ circuit and a good set up is critical so the testing we did here a few weeks ago made an incredible difference - the team has done an awesome job.

“On top of that, the Dunlop tyres performed brilliantly which really gave me the confidence to push hard lap after lap.”

Giles was again partnered by Team Suzuki rookie, Glenn Allerton who was on a charge having recovered from the illness that hampered his solid progress in the previous round.

Allerton produced his strongest Superbike results with fifth place finishes in the both of the day’s 19-lap races to be classified sixth overall for the round.

Buoyed by his two top-five results, the 24-year-old now enters the next round full of confidence.

“I’m stoked with my achievements this weekend… I’ve really turned a corner here and now I need to use this momentum to keep moving forward and build on these results,” Glenn Allerton said.

“The bike is performing brilliantly… the Suzuki’s horsepower is incredible; I reckon it has more straight-line speed than any other machine out on the track.

“I had a great run. I was able to make moves on other guys and made them stick.”

Jubilant Suzuki Team Manager, Phil Tainton was full of praise for his riders and team at the conclusion of the South Australian event.

“Another round win with both riders in the top five for each of the races is a brilliant result for Suzuki,” Phil Tainton said.

“Shawn’s riding exceptionally well at the moment and that has delivered us the series lead… we are all delighted and perhaps a little relieved to finally regain the upper hand in the title chase.

“Glenn has been improving at every event and he’s really stepped up to the mark here this weekend… now that he knows what it takes to be in the top five, I think we’ll see him running with the front guys more consistently.”

Having completed back-to-back events over two consecutive weekends, Team Suzuki now has several weeks to prepare for the upcoming event at Winton Raceway (VIC) on 19 - 21 August, where they will continue their charge for the 2005 Australian Superbike title.

Delivering an ominous message to his rivals, Tainton anticipates further performance gains before the next race meeting.

“We will use the break before the next round to continue the development of the new 2005-model racebike and go to Winton with an even better, faster machine,” Tainton concluded.


2005 AUSTRALIAN SUPERBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP

RESULTS – ROUND 4

RACE 1:
1. Shawn Giles
2. Jamie Stauffer
3. Josh Brookes
4. Shannon Johnson
5. Glenn Allerton
6. Adam Fergusson
7. Robert Bugden
8. Anthony Gobert
9. Scott Charlton
10. Shaun Geronimi

RACE 2:
1. Adam Fergusson
2. Shawn Giles
3. Josh Brookes
4. Shannon Johnson
5. Glenn Allerton
6. Robert Bugden
7. Jamie Stauffer
8. Scott Charlton
9. Anthony Gobert
10. Shannon Etheridge

OVERALL ROUND PLACING:
1. Shawn Giles
2. Adam Fergusson
3. Josh Brookes
4. Shannon Johnson
5. Jamie Stauffer
6. Glenn Allerton
7. Robert Bugden
8. Scott Charlton
9. Anthony Gobert
10. Tony Rees

CURRENT CHAMPIONSHIP POINTSCORE:
1. Shawn Giles (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 171 points
2. Josh Brookes (Honda) 166 points
3. Jamie Stauffer (Kawasaki) 152points
4. Adam Fergusson (Honda) 142 points
5. Shannon Johnson (Yamaha) 134 points
6. Scott Charlton (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 113 points
7. Glenn Allerton (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 103 points
8. Robert Bugden (Yamaha) 100 points
9. Tony Rees (Yamaha) 83 points
10. Daniel Stauffer (Yamaha) 79 points