ASBK kickstarts a massive week of motorcycle action in Warwick

Key points:

• The return of ASBK and debut of ProMX in Warwick is made possible by increased support from the Southern Downs Regional Council, along with major upgrades to Morgan Park’s motocross track.
• The ASBK round at Morgan Park features six separate classes, each offering unique challenges and rivalries, from elite-level Superbike racing to the grassroots-focused Oceania Junior Cup and historic Superbike Masters.
• The event includes stunt shows, pillion rides and a Sunday paddock party where fans can interact with riders and legends.
• Rising stars, seasoned veterans and riders from overseas showcase the depth and international flavour of the championship.

The national motorcycle racing spotlight will fall squarely on Queensland’s ‘horsepower capital’ of Warwick as it hosts the Australian Superbike and ProMX Championships over the next two weekends at the multi-purpose Morgan Park motorsport precinct.

Thanks to increased support from the Southern Downs Regional Council, the 2025 mi-bike Motorcycle Insurance Australian Superbike Championship presented by Motul (ASBK) returns to Morgan Park Raceway from June 13-15, and then on Sunday, June 22 the ProMX Championship will make its first-ever visit to the extensively upgraded Morgan Park motocross track.

For the ASBK paddock, Morgan Park Raceway has become a mainstay on the calendar. The tight and twisty nature of the 12-turn, 2.96km layout means that race winners rarely prevail without some serious heat – last year’s race two in the SW-Motech Superbike class a prime example as Mike Jones (Yamaha Racing Team, Qld) just outlasted the fast-finishing Broc Pearson (DesmoSport Ducati, Qld) in a cliff-hanger.

Jones is one rider who has masterfully unlocked the Morgan Park code in recent times, finishing either first or second in the last eight races.

The likes of Pearson, championship leader Josh Waters (McMartin Racing Ducati, Vic), Anthony West (Addicted to Track Yamaha, Qld) and Max Stauffer (Yamaha Racing Team, NSW) will be keen to put the squeeze on Jones’ domination in the two SW-Motech Superbike races, while fresh storylines will also be abound in the five other classes: Kawasaki Supersport, Race and Road Supersport 300, ShopYamaha R3 Cup, BLU CRU Oceania Junior Cup and Superbike Masters.

Morgan Park Raceway will also be abuzz with plenty of off-track activities, including stunt shows, ASBK pillion rides and a huge paddock party on Sunday where spectators can grab autographs from their favourite riders and ASBK legends.

Related:
Warwick: Where horsepower meets heritage

SW-Motech Superbike
Waters leads the SW-Motech Superbike standings by 32pts (169 to 137) over Jones – ironically, the same gap between the pair at the same time in 2024 – followed by West (123), Glenn Allerton (Superbike Advocates Racing Ducati, NSW, 99) and rookie Jonathan Nahlous (Omega Racing Team Yamaha, NSW, 99).

Waters (six wins) and Allerton (one) have been the only riders to greet the chequered flag so far this season, with the latter winning his first race in the premier class since 2016 in a wet race two at Queensland Raceway.

While his victory was top shelf, Allerton’s race one performance will also go down as a career highlight – not in terms of the outright result but the way he sliced through the pack to finish fourth from the rear of the grid after qualifying gremlins.

Jones aside at his happy hunting ground, West is another who will be knocking on the door for a race win at Morgan Park – and very much like fellow veteran Allerton he continues to defy the laws of nature as he trades blows with the younger brigade.

And certainly don’t discount Pearson, who was on pole last year and then went 2-2 on Sunday. He knows the circuit like the back of his hand.

Stauffer finished on the podium in the opening race at Morgan Park in 2024, while Cameron Dunker (MotoGo Yamaha, NSW), Cru Halliday (Stop and Seal Yamaha, NSW), Nahlous and Jack Favelle (Addicted to Track Yamaha, NSW) also have strong Superbike credentials.

Kawasaki Supersport
The Kawasaki Supersport category has already produced plenty of theatre in 2025, and there’s no reason why that won’t continue at Morgan Park – especially with the return of Archie McDonald (Stop and Seal Yamaha, NSW) who missed the last round due to European commitments.

McDonald remains in championship contention on 109pts, behind teammate Jack Mahaffy (Vic, 148) and Olly Simpson (BCperformance Kawasaki, SA, 121) and in front of Tom Bramich (Apex Building Supplies Yamaha, Vic, 102) and Hayden Nelson (BCperformance Kawasaki, NSW, 98).

Mahaffy enjoyed some titanic battles with a rejuvenated Bramich and Simpson at Queensland Raceway. Bramich broke through for his first win since 2023, while Simpson won his first race of the year in race two.

Adding more shine to the class is the return of Tom Edwards with TeamBWR on a Yamaha. Edwards finished a close second to Pearson in the 2021 Supersport title before he headed overseas to compete, only returning to Australia in 2025.

Making a welcome return is Spanish teenager Jesus Torres Cabrera (Yamaha). A good friend of Aussie JuniorGP World Championship campaigner Marianos Nikolis, he headed ‘Down Under’ for the summer period and is yet to return home. It’s been a steep learning curve at every round, but he’s proven to be a fast learner with two third places to his credit.

Talent runs deep in the 22-rider field, with Marcus Hamod (Honda, NSW), Cameron Swain (Yamaha, Qld), Levi Russo (Yamaha, NSW), Josh Newman (Addicted to Track Yamaha, NSW), Queensland Raceway pole-sitter Jake Farnsworth (Yamaha, NSW) and Will Nassif (Yamaha, NSW) among the standouts.

Former Oceania Junior Cup front-runner Haydn Fordyce (Yamaha, NZ) also makes his debut in the Supersport ranks across the two 14-lap races.

Race and Road Supersport 300 and ShopYamaha R3 Cup
With six races between the two classes across 12 corners of a Morgan Park lap, there is a real possibility the lead may change a total of 648 times during that period!

Highly improbable, of course, but it’s emblematic of the frenetic, unpredictable and instinctive nature of the two classes.

It’s tight on the Race and Road Supersport 300 ladder. Scott Nicholson (Kawasaki, Vic), who at the ripe old age of 24 is the elder stateman of the class, leads by 14pts (158 to 144) over Tara Morrison (Kawasaki, SA), followed by Jordy Simpson (Yamaha, SA, 134), Hudson Thompson (Yamaha, NSW, 133) and Jake Paige (Kawasaki, Qld, 130), who won two races at Queensland Raceway.

The antics will continue in the ShopYamaha R3 Cup, with winning gaps often measured in milliseconds – and the nature of the Morgan Park layout guarantees that you will see the same this weekend.

Mitch Simpson (SA) leads the class by 15pts from his brother, Jordy, and deadlocked in third is Nikolas Lazos (Vic) and Oscar Lewis (NSW). Just 21pts covers nine riders from third to 11th position.

BLU CRU Oceania Junior Cup
The breeding ground of future circuit racing stars will again be an intense playing field as they get to work on their identical Yamaha YZF-R15s.

Leading the way is Chaz Williams (Qld), who at just 11 years old has prodigy written all over him. He has been setting the pace, but at the previous round it was Sydney-sider Connor Lewis who claimed two wins to let Williams know he won’t have it all his own way.

Lewis has closed Williams’ lead down to 10pts, with Kiwi Hunter Charlett in third from Rossi McAdam (WA) and Jai Strugnell (SA).

Superbike Masters
Superbike Masters brings a truly unique flavour to the ASBK Championship, and at Morgan Park the class will be making the second of three appearances in 2025.

Beau Beaton (Ducati 851, NSW) was in a league of his own in the opener at Sydney Motorsport Park, and it will be hard to not see him continue in the same vein this weekend unless he hits the self-destruct button.

Josh Mathers (Yamaha FZR1000, WA), Michael Berti Mendez (Ducati 992, NSW) and Phil Allen (Ducati 851, Qld) should provide Beaton’s major opposition.

Images: RbMotoLens