2025 ASBK Round Two | Waters plays it to perfection

2025 ASBK Round Two | Josh Waters’ (#1) domination of the 2025 ASBK has continued at Sydney Motorsport Park, with the reigning champion again a class above on his McMartin Racing Ducati. Report: Ed Stratmann/ASBK Media, Photos: RbMotoLens

It was a classic Waters playbook in both 13-lap SW-Motech Superbike races on March 29 as he charged to the front early after phenomenal starts from seventh on the grid. Once he hit the lead, the Victorian applied the heat with brutal efficiency, leaving his rivals with plenty of head scratching ahead of round three in early May.

Mike Jones (Yamaha Racing Team #46) was second overall in the ASBK Sydney Night Race with a 2-2 scorecard (as well as a bonus point for pole position), ahead of a resurgent Cru Halliday (Stop and Seal Yamaha, 5-3 – #65).

“That was a really, really good day,” said Waters. “I can’t wait to watch those starts on replay when I get home. I’ve even had some world speedway mates messaging me about the starts and what they can learn from me! Once again, a huge thanks to my team for providing such a great motorcycle, as well as all the sponsors which help to make it happen.”

After five season-opening wins on the trot, Waters has now extended his lead in the championship to 27pts (126 to 99) over Jones, with Anthony West (Addicted to Track Yamaha #13, 85pts) remaining in third position. Jonathan Nahlous (Yamaha #20, 72pts) and Max Stauffer (Yamaha Racing Team #27, 65pts) are next in a logjammed mid-table battle.

mi-bike insurance Australian Superbike

Three-time SW-Motech Superbike champion Jones would not be denied in qualifying, as he put himself in prime position to make a dent in Josh Waters’ championship lead.

“It’s never great when there’s water on the visor or screen, but it was just dry enough to ride something like normal,” said Jones. “Those situations are always tricky, and it’s just a matter of nailing the right strategy to get the top spot. “It often comes down to a minute either way, but I’m certainly happy to be on pole.”

Jones’ best lap was 1m30.450s as he finished ahead of Halliday (1:30.559) and Pearson (#11 – 1:30.759), while surprise packet Jack Favelle (Yamaha #33, 1:30.978), Cameron Dunker (MotoGO Yamaha #3, 1:31.170) and Max Stauffer (Yamaha Racing Team, 1:31.204) were next.

A number of riders were caught out in the SMSP lottery, including defending champion Waters (McMartin Racing Ducati), who started from an uncharacteristic seventh – his worst qualifying position since 2021. Jonathan Nahlous (Yamaha), Anthony West (Addicted to Track Yamaha) and John Lytras (#308 – Yamaha) completed the top 10.

Race One

It only took about five seconds of the SW-Motech Superbike opener to dispel any notion that Waters’ lowly qualifying position – one of many riders caught out in dicey Friday night track conditions – would bring him back to the field.

Instead, he produced a mind-blowing start from the third row of the grid to lead from start to finish, backing off in the final stages to win by just under 1.5 seconds as he brought up his 37th career Superbike victory. Meanwhile, Jones was as secure in second as Waters was in first, leaving most of the fireworks in race one to a battle for the final podium position, which went down to the wire between Nahlous, Cameron Dunker (MotoGO Yamaha), Halliday and Jack Favelle (Addicted to Track Yamaha).

That’s how they finished, with Nahlous holding his nerve in the face of some intense pressure to celebrate his first podium in the premier category. Broc Pearson (DesmoSport Ducati) and West were seventh and eighth.

Race One Results

Josh Waters
Mike Jones (+1.473)
Jonathan Nahlous (+13.736)
Cameron Dunker (+13.991)
Cru Halliday (+14.013)

Race Two

Race two was held under the floodlit 3.93km grand prix circuit, with Waters even more dominant than race one as he greeted the chequered flag by nearly two seconds without really breaking a sweat.

While Waters again played it to perfection – he set the fastest lap of the race on lap four as he doubled down on his dominance – it was a spicy battle for second between Jones and Halliday as the relative strengths and weaknesses of each rider around different parts of the circuit balanced out to make it a thrilling spectacle. Halliday appeared to have the answers, until Jones’ last-gasp slipstream effort saw him pinch it from his former teammate by inches.

Ultra impressive rookie Favelle was a lonely fourth, while a little further back West, Nahlous, Pearson and Glenn Allerton (Superbike Advocates Racing Ducati) flashed over the line in quick succession. Round three of the ASBK Championship will be held at Queensland Raceway, on a circuit where Jones – as well as the one after at Morgan Park – is traditionally very hard to beat. There’s still a lot to play out in 2025.

Race Two Results

Josh Waters
Mike Jones (+1.987)
Cru Halliday (+2.003)
Jack Favelle (+4.212)
Anthony West (+9.878)

Championship Points

Josh Waters – 126 Points
Mike Jones – 99 Points
Anthony West – 85 Points
Jonathan Nahlous – 72 Points
Max Stauffer – 65 Points

Kawasaki Supersport

It was a second consecutive pole position for Archie McDonald (Stop and Seal Yamaha #69) in the Kawasaki Supersport class, who was just ahead of teammate and main rival Jack Mahaffy (#37). The duo produced sizzling Friday times that would have kept many Superbike riders on their toes.

It was then a massive gulf back to third-placed Jake Farnsworth in a Yamaha front row lockout. Row two for tomorrow’s two 11-lap Supersport races – the second one under lights – was filled by Glenn Nelson (Yamaha #9) and Bcperformance Kawasaki teammates Olly Simpson (#5) and Hayden Nelson (#279). The combined winning margins in the two Kawasaki Supersport races was a wafer-thin 0.041secs, delivered in two very different circumstances.

Jack Mahaffy (Stop and Seal Yamaha) was front and centre in both flurries to the finish line. In the first 11-lapper, he just held out the fast-finishing duo of rookie Will Nassif (Yamaha #65) and Marcus Hamod (Honda #13). And in the second Mahaffy’s teammate Archie McDonald pipped him at the post.

Race one was held on a drying 3.93km circuit after heavy rain on Friday night and into Saturday morning, with some riders opting for full wets and others slicks. Mahaffy, McDonald and Olly Simpson (BCperformance Kawasaki) were among those to take the wets route – a decision which left McDonald well back in an uncharacteristic ninth. After shaking off a pesky Simpson, it looked like Mahaffy would cruise to victory before Nassif and Hamod – both on slicks – began slicing through the pack late in the piece as the circuit continued to dry.

The duo easily dispensed with a fading Simpson and were on Mahaffy’s tail coming onto the straight for the last time. In a photo finish, the trio was separated by 0.014secs, with Nassif second from Hamod, Simpson and Jesus Torres Cabrera (Yamaha #11).

In race two, without Nassif, who had issues with his rear wheel, and Jake Farnsworth (Yamaha #49), who crashed on the warm-up lap, normal service was resumed as Mahaffy and McDonald cleared off to make it another intra-team arm wrestle. Mahaffy did most of the bullocking work only for McDonald to get him on the finish line, with Torres Cabrera third in his first Supersport podium ahead of Hayden Nelson (BCperformance Kawasaki), Simpson and Levi Russo.

Round Results

Jack Mahaffy – 45 Points
Archie Mcdonald – 38 Points
Jesus Torres Cabrera – 34 Points
Olly Simpson – 33 Points
Hayden Nelson – 32 Points

Championship Points

Jack Mahaffy – 110 Points
Archie Mcdonald – 109 Points
Olly Simpson – 84 Points
Hayden Nelson – 65 Points
Marcus Hamod – 62 Points

Race and Road Supersport 300

There were three different winners at Sydney Motorsport Park – Yamaha trio Valentino Knezovic, 15-year-old Hudson Thompson and new championship leader Scott Nicholson – with the first race held in wet conditions on Friday night.

Oddly, the damp outing was the tamest of the lot – and the shortened race three very much the opposite after Knezovic and Jordy Simpson (Yamaha) went down in the early stages, with Riley Nauta (Kawasaki) spearing off the circuit to take evasive action. The race was already without Thompson, who had two crashes (the second a heavy one) in the preceding ShopYamaha R3 Cup race.

Eventually, a sense of calm prevailed – as much as possible in such a frantic class – and Nicholson won the five-lapper from Jake Paige (Kawasaki) and Mitch Simpson (Yamaha). Nicholson (7-3-1) was the overall winner from Mitch Simpson (4-4-3) and Thompson (2-1-DNS), and Nicholson leads the championship on 113pts from Thompson (98), Tara Morrison (Kawasaki, 98) and round one pacesetter Jordy Simpson (96).

Meanwhile, there were two races to kick off the four-round 2025 ShopYamaha R3 Cup, and it was a Simpson benefit as siblings Mitch and Jordy went 1-2 in both, with John Pelgrave and Oscar Lewis securing the third places.

Race and Road Supersport 300 Championship Points

Scott Nicholson – 113 Points
Tara Morrison – 99 Points
Hudson Thompson – 98 Points
Jordy Simpson – 96 Points
Mitch Simpson – 88 Points

BLU CRU Oceania Junior Cup

The BLU CRU Oceania Junior Cup (OJC) opened its 2025 account at the round, with a damp (race one) and wet (race two) track serving up tricky conditions for the 20 riders on race-prepped Yamaha YZF-R15s.

Rookie Chaz Williams was one who embraced the challenge, winning both typically tight six-lap races to leave Sydney with a healthy 15pt lead in the championship over Connor Lewis (4-3) and Hunter Charlett (3-4). Polesitter Ghage Plowman and Rossi McAdam also finished on the podium.

Race three was red-flagged due to an incident on lap one, and then wasn’t restarted due to time constraints. As well as the scintillating on-track action, it was also announced in Sydney that Motorcycling Australia, in partnership with Yamaha Motor Australia, has launched the Yamaha OJC Scholarship, which will see the winner of this year’s OJC receive a fully supported ride in the 2026 Yamaha R3 BLU CRU Asia-Pacific Championship.

Race one under lights on Friday night kickstarted a huge 15-race program at the ASBK Championship round, with light drizzle and slick tyres making for some nervous energy. The riders all got through with flying colours, though, as Williams forced his way to the front on the final lap to flash over the finish line just ahead of early leader Plowman, Charlett, Lewis, Xavier Curmi and Charlie Nichols.

There was no uncertainty about tyre choice in race two, with wets on the menu as Williams defeated McAdam, Lewis and Charlett in a blanket finish. The quartet cleared off from the rest of the pack, led by Curmi ahead of Phoenix O’Brien, Stevie Middlebrook – the only female on the 2025 grid – and Thomas Cameron. Middlebrook and Nichols were then involved in a crash on lap one of race three, and eventual cancellation of the restart.

Championship Points

Chaz Williams – 50 Points
Connor Lewis – 35 Points
Hunter Charlett – 35 Points
Rossi McAdam – 33 Points
Ghage Plowman – 32 Points

Superbike Masters

A modest field of Period 5 and Period 6 machines ventured to Sydney Motorsport Park, with ex-Superbike star Beau Beaton making light work of the field as he won all three races to claim the overall honours from defending champion Ryan Taylor (Suzuki GSX-R1100, 6-3-3) and Michael Berti Mendez (Ducati TT2 992, 4-4-4). Taylor had machine issues on Friday, but was able to regroup for Saturday’s two races.