It could be a nervous few weeks for Wellington’s Sloan Frost as anticipates the distinct possibility of winning his first New Zealand Superbike Championship crown.

With another unbeaten run, this time at the third round of four in the 2016 national series at Levels Raceway, near Timaru, the 34-year-old Suzuki star has further strengthened his grip on the premier title

Frost captured two race wins in the glamour superbike class at Levels Raceway – the weekend reduced from three to two races for each class after a serious crash incident on Saturday – and he now leads the series by 43 points over Christchurch John Ross, who is locked in a see-saw battle with nine-time former superbike champion Andrew Stroud, of Hamilton.

All three men are on board virtually identical Suzuki GSX-R1000 machines.

“Just a small change in temperature can make such a big difference with regards to tyre choice and it was really just a matter of getting that right,” said Frost.

“After that it was just a matter of riding my own race, checking my pit board each lap and staying in front.

“There are four races to go at the final round (at Hampton Downs on March 5-6) and I’m feeling confident. That’s my strongest track but there is still 100 points up for grabs, so it’s not done and dusted yet. I need to ride smart.”

Ross twice finished runner-up to Frost on Sunday and that was enough for him to leapfrog back past Stroud, who finished fourth both times on Sunday.

Stroud was beaten to the finish line by Whakatane’s Tony Rees in race one on Sunday, while Taupo’s Scott Moir took the third spot in race two.

Moir (Suzuki GSX-R1000) remains fourth in the overall championship standings, just 17 points behind Stroud.

The riders now have more than a month to re-gather their thoughts and re-tune their motorcycles as they prepare for the fourth and final round of the New Zealand Superbike Championships at Hampton Downs, near Meremere, on March 5-6.

The class leaders after two of four rounds are Wellington’s Sloan Frost (superbike class); Christchurch’s Cameron Hudson (supersport 600); Manukau’s Toby Summers (superstock 1000); Christchurch’s Dennis Charlett (pro twins); Upper Hutt’s Rogan Chandler (125GP); New Plymouth’s Shaun Harris (superlites); Charlett (lightweights); Ashburton’s Lewis Dray (250cc production); Auckland’s Colin Buckley and Tauranga’s Robbie Shorter (sidecars).

Previous article2016 Tokyo Auto Salon
Next article2016 All American Car Day (Trentham)
Fred Alvrez
How on earth to start this? I've been car/bike/truck crazy since I was a teen. Like John, I had the obligatory Countach poster on the wall. I guess I'm more officially into classic and muscle cars than anything else - I currently have a '65 Sunbeam Tiger that left the factory the same day as I left the hospital as a newborn with my mother. How could I not buy that car? In 2016 my wife and I drove across the USA in a brand-new Dodge Challenger, and then shipped it home. We did this again in 2019 in a 1990 Chev Corvette - you can read about that trip on DriveLife, and again in 2023 buying a C5 Corvette and shipping it home. I'm a driving instructor and an Observer for the Institute of Advanced Motorists - trying to do my bit to make our roads safer.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

 

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.