Race 1 Report – 2016 World Superbikes Australian Round

Josh Brookes: Grid: 14th Finish: 10th 

“Top ten is nice considering we started the week with a crash and struggled to improve the lap times, but it’s far from what I want to achieve. Points are good, but at the moment the gap to the top of the field is too big to be satisfied with. Now that we’ve got time before tomorrow to review the data and see what areas need improving, I’m hoping we will be more productive in Race 2. I don’t know for sure if that will happen, but that’s what my instincts say. There were a few specific areas on the track where it felt like I was losing time, so if we use not only the data from the bike but also what I could see on track, it should be enough to put together a plan for tomorrow.

Karel Abraham: Grid: 15th Finish: 13th

“I’m really happy to see the chequered flag and to get my first points in the World Superbike championship. There are a couple of things to change, because the bike was really good but it can still get better, so we have a few set up changes to make tonight.

I need to start taking a few more risks with my riding style, and I think this will really help towards some better results. It’s also my first race in nearly half a year, so I’m happy to have finished this race and I really enjoyed it.

We’ve still got a few more issues to solve, mainly with the electronics which always take a long time, but we are definitely headed in the right direction, and hopefully we can fight for more points tomorrow.”

Mick Shanley, Team Coordinator:

“Overall we’re pretty happy, but we know we’ve got a bit of pace to find to reach the next guys. To come away from our very first World Superbike race with a 10th and a 13th I think we should be fairly happy, and it’s the first time we’ve done so many laps in succession.

We’ve got a lot of useful data from the race which we need to go back to tonight, and the guys now have a chance to gain further understanding of the bike in a race situation. All in all, I’m sure after some changes tonight we will be a step closer tomorrow.”

Race 2 Report – 2016 World Superbikes Australian Round

Josh Brookes: Grid: 13th Finish: 9th 

“It’s good to get more points today at home, and I’m pleased that I could push for longer and more consistently. We made a lot of changes to the bike overnight; they weren’t big changes but they definitely improved the bike. I managed to find ten seconds over the race distance from yesterday, which is a great job by the team, and they recognised some of the areas I was struggling with. It’s always a risk to make bike changes between races, and it’s just as easy to make a positive change as a negative change, but real credit to the Milwaukee BMW team for giving me that bit more confidence to push. There’s still some things I want to try with the throttle and the electronics, but we’ve got a good base to build on now to improve things like grip and power. There’s a bit of work to do before we get to Thailand, but I think we’re in a position now to bring all our data together and close the gap to the leaders.”

Karel Abraham: Grid: 15th Finish: 11th

“I’m really happy that we could bring home points in both races this weekend. The team did some great work on the bike, so I’m really proud of them. When I think that I haven’t raced for so many months, I’m happy to have finished both races and run consistently.

Because we had limited running in the winter we treated this weekend a bit like a test, but even so I think it went really well. We made changes to the bike every session and I could try new things with my riding each time, so it does seem to be getting better and better.

I know that I can push harder on the bike and get more from it, because I had a few small problems getting the tyres to work for me. But overall, it’s great to get some more points and I’m really looking forward to racing again in Thailand.”

Shaun Muir, Team Principal:

“Considering where we started on Monday and where we are today, there’s a happy atmosphere in both sides of the garage. We’ve made a considerable number of changes, and made giant steps forward as a result.

Overall we got two solid finishes, with both riders in the points. The most important development is our race pace, where Josh took around eight seconds off his race distance and Karel ten, which shows what a big step forward we’ve taken.

We can leave here with our heads held high, and now focus on starting afresh in Thailand in two weeks’ time.”