Team Joe Rocket Suzuki rider Shawn Giles showed he's lost none of the skill and bravado that has earned him three Australian Superbike Championships when he finished second overall at the opening round of the 2008 Australian Superbike Championship at Sydney's Eastern Creek Raceway at the weekend.
Giles engaged in two thrilling high-speed duels in the two 13-lap races with defending champion Jamie Stauffer, missing victory in race one by just 0.252sec and 0.927sec in race two.
In race one the duo swapped positions throughout, Stauffer later commenting that he'd never seen the Suzuki rider in better form than he was at Eastern Creek.
Team Joe Rocket Suzuki rider Robbie Bugden finished fourth in race one, with Craig Coxhell sixth and TJRS-supported privateer Trent Gibson 13th.
Stauffer and Giles continued their battle in the second 13-lap heat, Giles' Suzuki GSX-R1000 hitting 290kmh down the front straight.
Such was the pace at the head of the field that in the second 13-lap race the top six riders all lapped faster than the Superbike lap record for the 3.93km Sydney circuit. The new mark eventually went to Stauffer at 1:31.057 with Giles' best lap just 0.048sec slower.
Bugden was again fourth in race two, with Coxhell adopting a safety-first approach after experiencing gear-selection difficulties on his TJRS GSX-R1000 and finishing eighth. Gibson was 13th and again in the points.
Stauffer's two race wins and bonus championship point for pole position gives him a 51pt tally and an 11-point lead in the seven-round series over Giles, with Coxhell sixth on 28pts.
In the opening round of the 2008 Australian Supersport Championship, Team Joe Rocket Suzuki rider Joshua Waters secured two fourth places on his brand new 2008 Suzuki GSX-R600 to lie fourth on the points chart.
Waters' bike had not turned a wheel until Friday's opening practice session, the team opting to debut the new bike earlier than initially planned and use the Eastern Creek meeting to help fast-track development.
The decision proved to be the correct one with Waters leading the second Supersport race and improving his race time by over five seconds compared to race one.
Phil Tainton - Team Manager
“It's been a good weekend for us and I'm extremely happy with the results. Shawn rode with hunger and determination that was rewarded with a very close runner-up position to Jamie Stauffer on a track that hasn't been kind to us in the past. Craig showed a lot of maturity in race two to ride safely for a points finish when he had some gear-selection issues, and Robbie's results of two fourths were excellent given the little amount of time he's had on the new bike.
“To have all three riders placed in the top six of the Superbike championship at a track that's been our worst results-wise in recent years is a great start to the 2008 season.
“Josh's rides were impressive on the new GSX-R600, and especially his second race. It's been a big learning curve this weekend with the new bike, and we've learned a lot about the bike. It hadn't turned a wheel until Friday, so for Josh to lead the second race shows just how good the standard bike is with very little development time.”
Shawn Giles
“I'm really happy with results - although I wanted to win, not come second. But this is a track that Jamie Stauffer has always been strong at, so to push him so close in both races is a great start to the season.
“I'm hungry for another title, and I'm injury free and fitter than I've been for a couple of seasons.
“It was a pretty fast pace out there; I don't think Jamie and I could have ridden any harder. I never gave up to trying to get past him in that final race - I was lucky on the last lap as I lost the front between turns 11 and 12, but was able to save it.
“My bike had good speed all weekend, it was one of the fastest through the speed trap - and I can't say enough about the team. The Superbike class is so competitive this year - one of the toughest ever.”
Craig Coxhell
“I went into this round wanting to start the season with a good haul of points, so I'm a little disappointed with sixth overall. But when I had some gear-selection problems in race two I knew that the important thing to do was finish.
“I ran wide at the first turn three laps in a row, so the safest thing to do was let the other riders around me go and give myself some clear track. Before the problem I'd lapped faster than the old lap record, and faster than the three riders ahead of me, so the bike had good pace.
“I wanted to be a couple of places further up, but I just couldn't push any harder. I knew where Dan Stauffer was and knew I could get him on the run to the finish. Those points could be important at season's end.”
Robbie Budgen
“The new bike is great - lots of power. I only got in an hour's testing before the meeting, so there's more development to come.
“I'm happy with the results, and two fourths is a good start to the season, although I'm a little disappointed as I had the pace to run with the leaders. My starts weren't as good as they could have been - even though I'd qualified okay with fifth grid on the second row. It's difficult to peg back the leaders once they get a jump.”
Joshua Waters:
“It was always going to be a challenge to ride the brand new bike at this meeting, especially as it didn't turn a wheel until the first practice session on Friday.
“But it was a good opportunity to do some development in race conditions and I guess I should be happy with two fourths to start the season - the bike is only going to get faster.
“Fourth in the first race was okay for the points, but I was a long way behind the leaders - around 12 seconds. The team made some changes between races and although I was fourth again we were a lot closer - and I led the race for a while. We learned a lot at this meeting.
“The championship points are good but I want to win races - not ride for points. I'm looking forward to the next round at Mallala as the new bike has so much potential.”
