Team Yoshimura Suzuki endured a weekend of highs and lows at the opening round of the Australian Superbike and Supersport Championships at Sydney’s Eastern Creek Raceway at the weekend. The ‘high’ came in the Supersport class where new recruit Joshua Waters scored fifth and fourth placings in the two 13-lap races to secure fourth overall on the Supersport Championship points table. It was an impressive debut in Suzuki colours for the 20-year-old with the Team Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R600 still in the early stages of development. The ‘low’ came in the Superbike class where three-times Australian Champion Shawn Giles lies 15th on the points table after an up and down weekend: After qualifying on the front row, 36-year-old Giles and his GSX-R1000 Superbike were in stunning form and running easily within the top three on track. The Suzuki hero looked to be on target for two podium results in both 13-lap Superbike races before falling victim to the slippery 3.93km circuit. Giles wasn’t the only one to find the limits of adhesion on a weekend where track temperatures soared past the 55-degree mark and a number of top-level riders showed signs of gravel rash on both body and machine. In race one Giles was forced to run wide at turn two and onto the grass after misjudging his braking mark while involved in a multi-bike battle for track position, dropping outside the top 15. But he charged back through the field to claim eighth place. The opening Superbike race was run in two parts after officials red-flagged the race on lap eight due to a crash involving privateer Steve Manning. The rider received only minor injuries but Manning’s bike was in a dangerous position alongside the track surface. In race two, when again battling for a podium finish with Daniel Stauffer, Giles had a low-speed crash at turn nine. He was unhurt in the incident but was unable to restart his bike and was forced to retire. Team-mate Craig Coxhell also had his share of bad luck in his return ride although 13th and sixth places have the Victorian seventh overall on the points table. In race one the 24-year-old was holding a top-10 position when he had to take evasive action to avoid the tumbling Suzuki GSX-R1000 of satellite team-mate Robbie Bugden. Coxhell’s sixth in race two reflected the form that helped him win the 2003 Australian Superbike Championship for Suzuki before heading overseas. Bugden, third in the 2006 Australian Superbike Championship, had a frustrating meeting on his Team Yoshimura Suzuki when a high-speed crash in race one was followed by a DNF in race two due to the first race damage. With the Australian Superbike and Supersport Championships held over eight rounds in 2007, and another 350 points up for grabs, Team Manager Phil Tainton is confident the team can regroup after the disappointment of round one. Introducing a new double-header format, rounds two and three of the 2007 Australian Superbike Championship will take place at Victoria’s Winton Raceway on March 22-25. Phil Tainton Team Manager: “I’m extremely happy with how the riders performed today in conditions that were demanding on man and machine. We had some bad luck this weekend but I couldn’t have asked for more from the riders. “We showed we have good speed from the bikes, and we can run at the front. Josh rode two perfect races in the Supersport Championship and Shawn was fast all weekend on the Superbike. “How good are our Australian rules when 15 riders are separated by just over one second in qualifying? This year’s Superbike championship is shaping as the most competitive for many years. “Congratulations to Jamie Stauffer on his wins today.” Shawn Giles: “It’s been one of those meetings and I’m disappointed with the race results after qualifying so well. The bike had good speed all weekend and I can’t say enough about the team and the performance of the tyres. “In race one I got into turn two a little too hot and ran wide, and in race two I lost the front without warning. It was a strange crash because I didn’t do anything different from the lap before. “It’s a long season with seven rounds to go, so there’s plenty of time to make up the 38-point deficit to Jamie.” Craig Coxhell: “I’m reasonably happy with the results – and to get 23 points from the two races – but this weekend has been a struggle. “I went quicker in testing a few weeks back and never really got to grips with the circuit this weekend. The Australian championship is extremely competitive and I knew it was going to be tough. “My aim was to get comfortable with the team and the bike in the opening round and score points in both races. The Yoshimura Suzuki team is like a big family to me and it’s good to be back after three seasons overseas.” Joshua Waters: “I set myself a goal of a top five finish overall this weekend so I’m happy to be sitting fourth in the points. We’re still in the early stages of developing the Suzuki GSX-R600, and there’s a lot more to come. I’m feeling more comfortable on the bike every time I ride it. “It’s a pity I crashed and damaged my number one race bike on Friday as the results could have been even better.” Robbie Budgen: “It’s a disappointing way to start the new season with no points after finishing off so strongly last year. It’s so competitive out there it’s important to have the bike set-up spot-on and we’d been chasing the front-end all weekend and trying to find a feeling that I was happy with. “I guess I was trying too hard in the restart of race one and the tyre wasn’t up to temperature after the delay. It tucked as I went around turn eight and I couldn’t save it. “Although we got the bike repaired in time for race two, it seems part of the electrics had been damaged and I couldn’t finish the race.” Superbike Overall Results (Round 1): 1 Jamie Stauffer, 2 Daniel Stauffer, 3 Glenn Allerton, 4 Adam Fergusson, 5 Scott Charlton, 6 Shannon Johnson, 7 Craig Coxhell (Suzuki GSX-R1000), 8 Shannon Etheridge, 9 Wayne Maxwell, 10 Michael Fraser (Suzuki GSX-R1000). Superbike Championship Points: 1 Jamie Stauffer 51, 2 Daniel Stauffer 40, 3 Glenn Allerton 34, 4 Adam Fergusson 33, 5 Scott Charlton 30, 6 Shannon Johnson 29, 7 Craig Coxhell (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 23, 8 Shannon Etheridge 23, 9 Wayne Maxwell 21, 10 Michael Fraser (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 20. 15 Shawn Giles (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 13. Supersport Overall Results (Round 1): 1 Jamie Stauffer, 2 Jason O’Halloran, 3 Jeremy Crowe, 4 Joshua Waters (Suzuki GSX-R600), 5 Judd Greedy, 6 Bryan Staring, 7 Russell Holland, 8 Nick Henderson, 9 Gareth Jones, 10 Mick Kelly. Supersport Championship Points: 1 Jamie Stauffer 51, 2 Jason O’Halloran 40, 3 Jeremy Crowe 36, 4 Joshua Waters (Suzuki GSX-R600) 33, 5 Judd Greedy 31, 6 Bryan Staring 31, 7 Russell Holland 27, 8 Nick Henderson 27, 9 Gareth Jones 24, 10 Mick Kelly 23.

John Hopkins’ injury status appears to be better than originally thought after he highsided his Rizla Suzuki GSV-R800 at 120 mph while testing at Losail International Circuit, in Qatar February 15. “After being fully examined by a bone specialist here in England it turns out that there are no serious injuries and recovery should be short,” Hopkins wrote on his MySpace page today. “Injuries include …. 2 broken toes, slight sprains in the left and right ankle’s, slightly chipped bone in the left wrist and fully sprained right wrist. Other than that just a full body bruise!!! I will be attending the IRTA test in Jerez, Spain this coming up weekend, but riding in it is yet to be determined ??? The first race is the most important thing and I have my sights on being 100 % for that without a doubt!!!!!!! As said before, thanks to everyone for all the great support and I really do appreciate it!!!!! Look forward to the best season thus far!!!!!! Cheers.” Hopkins had the second-fastest time during the test.

James Gang Rides Again James Gang Racing’s Greg Avello and Paul James will enter their podium proven Buell Firebolt XB12R in the SunTrust MOTO-ST Daytona 500K. The pair, along with co-rider John Fox, finished 2nd in the Grand Sports Twins (GST) class in the innagural 8-hours At Daytona race in October. Crew Chief Mike Kirkpatrick will once again quarterback the team from the pits, supported by lead mechanic John Kinzer and pit crew Tim Kinzer and Nancy Birkenstock. “Hal’s Speed Shop’s Terry Galagan built us a solid motor and Mike and John have gone through the entire bike,” said James. “We want the top step of the podium.” For 2007 sponsorship opportunities, please email [email protected]

R&R Racing will be back at Daytona for the 2007 Moto-ST season opener. We’ll be running 2 new Aprilia Tuono 1000’s in the SST class. We have plans in place to run the entire season. I know that we will have a very serious shot at the championship. I think we proved the capabilities of the Aprilia in October by leading many laps of the race running under JC racing. With a broken shift lever and some tire problems taking us out of contention for the win. Thanks to companies like Aprilia and Hitachi we are much better prepared this year. Also having some time on the bike is a big plus. Also we will be doing live web casts from our pit through out the race weekend. Tune in and we’ll keep you up to date on what’s going on. R&R will have Dave Estok and Mike Luke as the primary riders on the teams #1 Aprilia Tuono. The # 2 bike will be ridden by Brett Ray and a 2nd rider yet to be named. That is if we decide to field a second bike.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (February 16, 2007) Ready to once again battle their way to victory, the San Jose BMW Team were the first to enter this year’s season opener of the SunTrust MOTO-ST Series, March 3-4 at Daytona International Speedway. “We’re definitely ready to go for it,” says San Jose BMW owner Chris Hodgson. “Our bike is prepped, we’ve been practicing our pit stops every night and the entire team is 100% motivated. Winning the inaugural 8 Hours At Daytona was awesome and now our goal is to start the season off with another victory.” Just like in NASCAR, pit stops in the SunTrust MOTO-ST are all-important and can easily make the difference between winning or losing. “In this event, we will be pitting approximately every 40 minutes,” continues Hodgson. “And each stop will be critical. The rules allow us five people over the wall and doing well requires that all five work in perfect unison, very much like a well oiled machine. We won the 8 Hours At Daytona due to our pit work and we are hoping that once again it will give us the upper hand.” In addition to great pit work, the San Jose BMW team also boasts the racing skill of two top-notch pilots, Brian Parriott of Calistoga, Calif and Nate Kern of Doylestown, Pa. Racing since 1990, Parriott has carved an excellent reputation for himself over the past 17 years. “I’ve been riding bikes since I was five years old,” smiles Parriott. I raced motocross first and then moved into road racing. I’m definitely excited about this up coming season. The MOTO-ST looks like it is going to be an excellent series and I am pleased to be part of the San Jose BMW Team.” Married with a 16-month-old son, Parriott is also an avid golfer and loves to travel. “My wife is from Spain,” he continues, “and we live a ‘Spanish lifestyle’, going to Europe each year and traveling as much as possible. I’m really very lucky as my wife loves racing and comes to every event.” Twenty-nine year old Nate Kern has actually only been racing for the past five years. But once he started, it didn’t take long for him to prove his talent. “I was actually planning to be a history teacher,” explains Kern, who is a huge American history buff. “Then I got hooked on racing and my life took on a different twist. Now, when I am not racing, I spend as much time as possible working with underprivileged and handicapped kids.” Two top-ranked SuperSport riders, a proven winning BMW R1200S and an incredibly motivated crew are the ingredients that combine to make the San Jose BMW Team a top contender in this 500K race at Daytona Showcasing three classes, The Buell Motorcycle Company SuperSport class (SST) which includes motorcycles producing between 90-118 horsepower, the BMW Grand Sport Twins class (GST) covering motorcycles producing 75-90 horsepower and Sport Twins (ST) for machines under 75 horsepower, the SunTrust MOTO-ST Series offers fans a chance to see some of the best two-wheeled action in the country. To date, this year’s SunTrust MOTO-ST Series will include the 500K season opener, March 3-4 at Daytona International Speedway, the Homestead 500K, April 13-14 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, the VIR 500K, April 27-29 at Virginia International Speedway, the Road America 500K, July 7-8 at Road America, the Iowa Speedway 500K at Iowa Speedway July 12-13, 2007 and the 8 Hours at Daytona Finale, October 19-20 at Daytona International Speedway. MOTO-ST is organized and sanctioned by Professional Motorsports Productions (PMP) of Toronto, Ontario, Canada and the Grand American Road Racing Association, based in Daytona Beach, Fla., provides the series with administrative and commercial support. The MOTO-ST advisory board features some of the most respected individuals in the world of motorsports, including Hall of Fame members, respected motorcycle racing journalists and renowned officials from various forms of road racing. Learn more about MOTO-ST at www.moto-st.com. Tickets to the 8 Hours At Daytona may be purchased online at www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com or www.racetickets.com or by calling 1-800-PIT-SHOP.