Tom Bramich (YRT, Yamaha YZF-R3) makes it two out of three for the Australian Supersport 300 class at The Bend Motorsport Park for Round 3 of the Yamaha Motor Finance Australian Superbike Championship presented by Motul Pirelli (ASBK). Bramich made a swift move around the outside on the final corner to cross the line first and claimed overall honours for the round.
Bramich is thrilled to extend his championship lead; “That was another tough one which is becoming the usual in the Supersport 300 class, but my Yamaha was perfect and Trevor Manly has been giving me such a good bike. I’m really happy to come away with the round win and a big thank you to my sponsors and supporters,” said Bramich.
Harry Khouri (Acid Racing Australia, Yamaha YZF-R3) was involved in a tight last corner battle and he pushed through on the inside to get in behind Bramich and clinch second place in race three, which also handed him second overall for the round.
Seth Crump (Rock Oil, KTM RC390) continued to show his improvement over the three races, sneaking in to third place. Oliver Simpson (Simpson Crash, Yamaha YZF-R3) grabbed his third fourth place, but his consistency handed him third overall for the round.
The battle for fifth went down to the wire, with Zac Levy (Puma RV’s, Yamaha YZF-R3) getting the better of Oli Bayliss (Cube Racing, Kawasaki Ninja) who bounced back after a difficult weekend and Tayla Relph (Earmold Australia, Yamaha YZF-R3) grabbed seventh.
As has been the case for all three races here at The Bend, the lead pack included up to nine riders throughout the seven-laps, with passes and positional changes at almost every opportunity. The gap from first to seventh was 0.924s, which just showed the quality of racing on display in the Supersport 300 class.
Hunter Ford (YRD, Yamaha YZF-R3) was in the mix with the lead group and led for a number of laps in race three but a crash on lap five when he got caught up with Ben Bramich (GoMoto, KTM RC390) ended his chance of pushing for the round victory.
Bramich leaves The Bend with the Australian Supersport 300 points lead, with 183 points. Levy sits in second place with 164 points and rounding out the podium is Khouri with 156 points.
The next round of ASBK will see the Australian Supersport 300 class racing up north at Hidden Valley Raceway in Darwin on June 28-July 1.
Australian Supersport 300 Race Three Provisional Results
1. Tom BRAMICH (YRT,Yamaha YZF-R3)
2. Harry KHOURI (Acid Racing Australia, Yamaha YZF-R3)
3. Seth CRUMP (Rock Oil, KTM RC390)
4. Oliver SIMPSON (Simpson Crash, Yamaha YZF-R3)
5. Zac LEVY (Puma RV’s, Yamaha YZF-R3)
6. Oli BAYLISS (Cube Racing, Kawasaki Ninja)
7. Tayla RELPH (Earmold Australia, Yamaha YZF-R3)
8. Locky TAYLOR (LTR, Yamaha YZF-R3)
9. Ben BAKER (Kawasaki BCperformance, Kawasaki Ninja)
10. Travis HALL (Barry’s Dyno, Yamaha YZF-R3)
2018 ASBK Calendar
Round 4- Hidden Valley Raceway, Darwin NT June 28 – 1 July
Round 5- Morgan Park Raceway, Warwick QLD August 17 – 19
Round 6- Winton Motor Raceway, Benalla, VIC September 7 – 9
Round 7- Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, VIC October 12 – 14
Photos Andrew Gosling
