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Wanganui motorcycle racer Brian Bernard gave Suzuki’s awesomely powerful GSX1300R Hayabusa its world debut Sports Production race win at Manfeild Autocourse last weekend, appropriately in the final round of the Suzuki Road Race Series.
Actually, it was a winning double as Bernard streaked to victory in two of the three Open Sports Production Championship races on the 175 bhp Shell Advance Suzuki Hayabusa.
Bernard started the day at Manfeild on the Suzuki TL1000R he had used to clinch the Open Sports Production class in the Suzuki Series at the fifth round at Taupo in August. He then switched to the Hayabusa to do some shake-down testing before the start of the New Zealand Race Championships in November.
In the first Open Sports Production race, Bernard got the drop on the competition, streaking into an early lead on the thundering Suzuki V-twin, and continued to pull away as the race went on, leaving Tauranga’s Dean Fulton (Kawasaki ZX-9(R) to fight for second with Aaron Maitland (Honda CBR900) and Warren Turner (Yamaha YZF-R6).
Having beaten the competition with the fully sorted TL1000R, Bernard decided to wheel out the 1300cc four cylinder Hayabusa for the second race, despite having only tested it for the first time the previous day.
While Shell Advance Suzuki team-mate Jared Love blasted into the lead on his fuel-injected GSX-R750 in race two, Bernard made a more leisurely getaway then streaked past Fulton and Maitland on their 900s before reeling in Love and snatching the lead on the second lap. He led from there to the flag, holding out a last corner challenge from Love on the flying 750 in the process.
In the final race, it was Maitland on the Honda 900 who got the jump at the start but Love and Bernard were quickly in control, Love leading on the 750 Suzuki while Bernard stalked him on the Suzuki 1300.
With two laps to go, Bernard made his move, whistling past on Manfeild’s pit straight and holding out his Suzuki team-mate into the first corner. From there he led to the flag with Love second on the Shell Advance 750 Suzuki well clear of Dean Fulton’s Kawasaki 900.
\'It was starting to spin up the rear tyre out of the corners,\' Bernard revealed afterwards. \'In fact, it was laying darkies everywhere,\' he added, referring to the black lines of rubber the 1300cc Suzuki was leaving on the tarmac behind it.
Indeed, a check of his rear Dunlop showed it had been put under extreme stress by the huge torque of the Hayabusa, but had stood the torture test fairly well.
Bernard will now concentrate on the GSX1300R Hayabusa as he prepares for the five round New Zealand Road Race Championship series that starts at Invercargill’s Teretonga circuit on November 7.
RESULTS
Suzuki Road Race Series, Round Six, Manfeild
Open Sports Production
Race One: Brian Bernard (Shell Advance Suzuki TL1000R); 2, Dean Fulton (Kawasaki ZX-9R); 3, Aaron Maitland (Honda CBR900); 4, Jared Love (Shell Advance Suzuki GSX-R750); 5, Kendric Younger (Honda CBR900); 6, Karl Moerkerk (Yamaha YZF-R1); 7, Daniel Coughey (Yamaha YZF-R1); 8, Robbie Dean (Aprilia RSV1000); 9, Martin Peck (Kawasaki ZX-9R); 10, Darryn Anderson (Kawasaki ZX-9R).
Race Two: 1, Brian Bernard (Shell Advance Suzuki GSX1300R Hayabusa); 2, Jared Love (Shell Advance Suzuki GSX-R750); 3, Aaron Maitland (Honda CBR900); 4, Dean Fulton (Kawasaki ZX-9R); 5, Daniel Coughey (Yamaha YZF-R1); 6, Kendric Younger (Honda CBR900); 7, Karl Moerkerk (Yamaha YZF-R1); 8, Martin Peck (Kawasaki ZX-9R); 9, Darryn Anderson (Kawasaki ZX-9R); 10, Alister Stronach (Suzuki GSX-R750).
Race Three: 1, Brian Bernard (Shell Advance Suzuki GSX1300R Hayabusa); 2, Jared Love (Shell Advance Suzuki GSX-R750); 3, Dean Fulton (Kawasaki ZX-9R); 4, Aaron Maitland (Honda CBR900); 5, Daniel Coughey (Yamaha YZF-R1); 6, Kendric Younger (Honda CBR900); 7, Martin Peck (Kawasaki ZX-9R); 8, Karl Moerkerk (Yamaha YZF-R1); 9, Robbie Dean (Aprillia RSV1000); 10, Darryn Anderson (Kawasaki ZX-9R).
Final Series Points: 1, Brian Bernard (Wanganui – Suzuki TL1000R/GSX1300R), 238; 2, Daniel Coughey (Rotorua – Yamaha YZF-R1), 223; 3, Karl Moerkerk (Dargaville – Yamaha YZF-R1), 175; 4, Martin Peck (New Lynn – Kawasaki ZX-9R), 158; 5, Aaron Maitland (Takanini – Honda CBR900), 133; 6, Darryn Anderson (Auckland – Kawasaki ZX-9R), 113; 7, Jared Love (Cambridge – Shell Advance Suzuki GSX-750), 104; 8, Kendric Younger (Te Aroha – Honda CBR900), 101; 9, Alister Stronach (Upper Hutt – Suzuki GSX-R750), 99; 10, Ray Clee (Huapai – Honda CBR900), 60.
Courtesy of:
Tom Peck, Motorcycle Marketing Manager, Suzuki New Zealand Limited,
Private Bag 3008, WANGANUI
Tel: 06-3458544 Fax: 06-3454352
