Slick conditions greeted riders during practice for round two of the 2027 Shannons Australian Superbike Championship presented by Pirelli (ASBK) at Shell V-Power Motorsport Park (The Bend) on November 13.

With overnight rain continuing throughout the morning and only easing late afternoon, any notion of dry practice sessions quickly dissipated – and the day did prove to be, in true ‘Friday the 13th’ tradition, unlucky for some as many riders were caught out on the wet tarmac.

After three practice sessions for all four championship classes – SW-Motech Superbike, Kawasaki Supersport Next Gen, Race and Road Supersport 300 and the BLU CRU Oceania Junior Cup – conditions will be perfect for qualifying and racing across the weekend as the ASBK paddock completes it second outing on the 4.95km circuit in six months.

Spectators are in for a treat at The Bend, with the on-track action complemented by a huge line-up of two-wheel racing exotica in the welcome centre, the popular pit walk and motorcycle stunts shows on Saturday and Sunday.

All ticket holders will also receive free entry to the Summit Racing Equipment Track Championship on the adjoining drag strip.

To purchase tickets for round two of the Shannons ASBK Championship, click here.

Related:
Event program
Battle lines drawn as Shannons ASBK Championship heads to The Bend
ASBK round two results

SW-Motech Superbike
The SW-Motech Superbike riders got the best of the Friday conditions in their third and final practice session, with times tumbling accordingly as Jack Favelle (Apex Racing Team Honda) and late entry Max Stauffer (Stop and Seal Ducati) took it in turns at the head of the timesheets.

Favelle was wise to the caper, though, and his late burst of speed saw him seize top spot with a 2:04.438, while the returning Olly Simpson (DesmoSport Ducati, 2:04.609) and JJ Nahlous (Yamaha Racing Team, 2:04.978) also upped their workrate in the closing minutes to push Stauffer (2:06.666) back to fourth.

Blue Marlin Pools East Racing Yamaha teammates Cameron Dunker (2:07.072) and Morgan McLaren-Wood (2:07.437) were next, with multiple The Bend race winner Mike Jones (Yamaha Racing Team, 2:07.447), lap record holder Cru Halliday (Stop and Seal Ducati, 2:08.793), Luca Durning (Apex Racing Team Honda, 2:09.044) and Charles Holding (Yamaha, 2:10.557) completing the top 10.

Among the riders to sit out the final practice session were five-time Superbike champion Josh Waters (DesmoSport Ducati) and John Lytras (Addicted to Track Yamaha), who are both expected to rocket back into calculations on Saturday.

Harry Khouri (Addicted to Track Yamaha) was another to remain in the pits for the final outing after two crashes in FP2.

Qualifying on Saturday will be followed by two 11-lap races on Sunday.

Jack Favelle

Kawasaki Supersport Next Gen
Jake Farnsworth (Yamaha) ended day one of the new Kawasaki Supersport Next Gen season with a big smile, setting the fastest lap in two of the three wet sessions on his Yamaha YZF-R6.

His best time was 2:13.619 in FP3, about 20 seconds off the lap record pace in what were extremely tough conditions for the 19 riders.

Cameron Dunker (Addicted to Track Yamaha, 2:14.072), making his return to the class for the first time since winning the championship on his 15th birthday in 2023, was second fastest ahead of rookie Archie Schmidt (Unitek Racing Yamaha, 2:15.404), Tommy Edwards (BCperformance Kawasaki, 2:15.545), Jordy Simpson (Yamaha, 2:15.757) and Hayden Nelson (BCperformance Kawasaki, 2:16.026).

Further down the field was Tom Toparis (SBG Racing), with the two-time champion continuing to acclimatise to a new team and new bike in the shape of the Yamaha YZF-R9.

Two qualifying sessions will be held on Saturday followed by two nine-lap races on Sunday.

Jake Farnsworth

Race and Road Supersport 300
Only six Race and Road Supersport 300 riders set lap times in all three practice sessions, and it was Matthew Ritter who ended up the fastest ahead of fellow Yamaha riders Krue Knight, Zac Russo, New Zealander Ryder Chamberlain and Ashton Reid.

Ritter has already proven he’s a deft hand around The Bend, winning the opening race at the last ASBK round in May.

The balance of the Friday top 10 included some established names, including the Dellow siblings, Ethan and Seth (both Yamaha), Orlando Peovitis (Kawasaki) and Tara Morrison (Kawasaki).

With no dry track time today, the pressure meter will be on high when qualifying begins at 9:20am on Saturday in the build-up to race one at 3:15pm.

Matthew Ritter

BLU CRU Oceania Junior Cup
A baptism of fire for the rookies in the BLU CRU Oceania Junior Cup on the wet track, and it was no surprise the ‘wise’ head of returning rider Callum Campbell saw him lead the way on his Yamaha YZF-R15 ahead of Ryder Plumb, Ryder McKenna, Jordan Lazar, Sam Harrison and Harry Yanko.

Campbell’s buffer over Plumb was over two seconds as the reigning No. 2 asserted his authority, but times will also most certainly be much closer on a dry track as the circuit racing academy kicks off its ninth season.

Race one will be held at 3:45pm on Saturday after two qualifying sessions.

Callum Campbell

Images: RbMotoLens