Waters holds off Halliday and Nahlous in tense SMP Superbike opener

2 months ago 47

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Round Two – SMSP – SW-Motech Superbike

Race One

The young guns may have shown the old guard the way at the Phillip Island season opener, but Josh Waters fired an emphatic warning shot back across their bows at Sydney Motorsport Park. The defending champion had already laid down a marker by taking pole in sketchy conditions under lights on Friday night, and when the field assembled for Saturday evening’s opening 13-lap Superbike race, Waters looked determined to remind everyone that experience still counts. The opening contest was run in much kinder conditions than qualifying, with sunny skies, ambient temperatures at 20.9 degrees and the track at 34.5 degrees.

Harrison Voight was superb away from the line and grabbed the holeshot, leading McMartin Racing team-mate Waters through the opening turns as the field charged into the first lap. Behind them, Cru Halliday immediately put himself in the fight, while Jonathan Nahlous and Jacob Roulstone also settled into the leading group. There was early drama further back when Cameron Dunker crashed at Turn 3, bringing a premature end to his race almost as soon as it had begun, while Josh Newman also failed to make it beyond the opening lap. It was a busy, nervous opening phase, with riders clearly still searching for grip and confidence as the race settled into shape.

Voight completed the opening lap in front, just 0.024 seconds clear of Waters, with Halliday third and Nahlous fourth. Roulstone was next in line, while Glenn Allerton was already beginning to move into contention from a little further back. The leading group was tightly packed as they started lap two, Voight still just holding sway, but Waters was right there, Halliday was looming, and Nahlous was not letting the leading trio out of his sight. Roulstone remained well placed, and Allerton was starting to wind up, clearly sensing that the front group was within reach.

The complexion of the race changed on lap three. Waters found a way through and took control at the front, finally dislodging his younger team-mate and moving into the lead for the first time. At the same moment, Allerton underlined his intent by punching in a 1m29.664, the fastest lap of the race at that point, as he closed on the leading quartet. It was enough to move him into fifth and keep him firmly attached to the fight, while Halliday and Nahlous continued to stalk the McMartin Ducati pair ahead of them. For a moment, it looked as though the race might become a genuine six-rider contest.

But while Voight had led the early running, the balance of power was beginning to change. Waters looked increasingly composed at the front, and although Voight initially tried to stay with him, Halliday and Nahlous were the riders carrying the stronger momentum. By lap five, the order behind Waters had changed decisively: Halliday had moved into second, Nahlous was up to third, and Voight had slipped back to fourth. It was a critical phase of the race. Waters was now in clean air, Halliday had the pace to stay in touch, Nahlous had also established himself as a genuine podium threat, and Voight’s early edge was beginning to fade.

Waters then delivered what proved to be the decisive blow. On lap five, he fired in a 1m29.471, the fastest lap of the race, and that was enough to create the small but vital margin he would defend to the flag. Halliday refused to let him get away and responded by determinedly staying within range, while Nahlous also remained close enough to keep both men honest. Their pace was relentless. By lap six, Halliday had closed to within 0.585 of the lead, with Nahlous just 0.854 behind Waters, and from there the race developed into a tense three-rider contest at the front. Voight, meanwhile, was no longer able to run with them and had to turn his attention to managing fourth place.

As the laps ticked down, Waters, Halliday and Nahlous began to break clear. Their advantage over Voight steadily grew through the middle and latter stages, and by the closing laps, it was obvious that the win and the podium would come from that trio alone. Waters never quite escaped, but every time Halliday looked like drawing him in, the defending champion had an answer. Nahlous, too, was close enough throughout to threaten if either of the Ducatis ahead made the slightest mistake. It made for a fascinating final third of the race: Waters measured and precise at the front, Halliday probing for an opening, and Nahlous shadowing the pair on the Yamaha waiting for an opportunity.

Further back, Voight was doing all he could to hang onto fourth as Allerton and Roulstone hovered within striking distance. Allerton had shown serious speed in the early and middle stages, but his pace began to ebb away over the final laps as his Ducati started to run out fuel. Allerton’s lap times climbed into the low 1m31s and then dropped away more sharply on the last two laps as his V4 starved for fuel, opening the door for Roulstone. The Honda rider had been consistently quick and tidy, and that paid off in the closing stages. On the final lap, Roulstone finally got ahead of Allerton to claim fifth, demoting the veteran Ducati rider to sixth after what had earlier looked like a likely top-five finish.

At the front, the final lap was exactly the sort of showdown the crowd wanted. Waters took the last-lap board with Halliday still firmly in the hunt, and with Nahlous close enough behind to capitalise on any mistake. Halliday gave chase all the way to the chequered flag, but Waters had enough in reserve to absorb the pressure and bring it home.

After 13 laps, Waters took the win by 0.656 seconds over Halliday, with Nahlous rounding out the podium another 0.556 seconds back. It was not a runaway victory, but it was a champion’s ride: controlled, clinical and delivered under pressure.

Voight ultimately came home fourth, 8.015 seconds behind Waters after leading the opening two laps.

Roulstone’s late-race persistence earned him fifth, Allerton had to settle for sixth, and Jack Favelle quietly banked a strong seventh after a solid, consistent ride.

Marcus Hamod won the scrap for eighth, heading Mike Jones and Anthony West in a tightly packed fight that ran all the way to the flag, with only 0.512 seconds separating that trio at the finish. It was exactly the sort of race that showed how much depth there is in this year’s field, even beyond the podium places.

Just as importantly, Waters’ win had immediate championship significance. Voight still left race one as championship leader on 85 points, but Waters’ victory, plus the bonus point for pole, lifted him to 76 and kept him right in the title hunt. Roulstone second in the standings on 78. Nahlous also strengthened his position with third, while Halliday’s runner-up finish brought him further into the conversation as the Sydney weekend gathered momentum. For all the talk of the new generation after Phillip Island, Waters had delivered a timely reminder that the established benchmark in Australian Superbike is not about to yield quietly.

Superbike Race One Results

Pos

Rider

Bike

Time/Gap

1	J Waters	Duc	19m33.255
2	C Halliday	Duc	+0.656
3	J Nahlous	Yam	+1.212
4	H Voight	Duc	+8.015
5	J Roulstone	Hon	+12.032
6	G Allerton	Duc	+13.766
7	J Favelle	Yam	+14.427
8	M Hamod	Hon	+17.066
9	M Jones	Yam	+17.224
10	A West	Duc	+17.578
11	J Lytras	Yam	+35.387
12	T Lynch	Yam	+51.361
13	D Adams	Suz	+1m09.088
14	C Holding	Yam	+1m13.651
15	B Wilson	Yam	+1m24.551
16	L Durning	Duc	+1m30.981
17	M Kemp	Yam	+1m35.679
18	M Rindel	Yam	1 Lap
Not Classified
DNF	L Jones	Yam	10 Laps
DNF	J Quinn	Yam	10 Laps
DNF	J Newman	Duc	11 Laps
DNF	C Dunker	Yam	12 Laps

Superbike Championship Points


pos	rider	Bike	Total
1	H Voight	Duc	85
2	J Roulstone	Hon	78
3	J Waters	Duc	76
4	J Nahlous	Yam	65
5	G Allerton	Duc	57
6	C Dunker	Yam	56
7	A West	Duc	56
8	C Halliday	Duc	55
9	M Jones	Yam	54
10	J Favelle	Yam	49
11	M Hamod	Hon	43
12	J Lytras	Yam	39
13	L Durning	Duc	28
14	B Wilson	Yam	26
15	C Holding	Yam	24
16	T Lynch	Yam	15
17	J Quinn	Yam	15
18	L Jones	Yam	10
19	D Adams	Suz	8
20	M Kemp	Yam	8
21	M Rindel	Yam	8
22	R Hudson	Yam	4
23	A Senior	Yam	3
24	M Carr	Hon	1

2026 ASBK Calendar


2026 ASBK PROVISIONAL CALENDAR
Round One	February 20-22	Phillip Island, VIC (WorldSBK)
Round Two	March 27-28	Sydney Motorsport Park, NSW
Round Three	May 1-3	The Bend, SA
Round Four	May 29-31	Morgan Park, QLD
Round Five	June 26-28	Queensland Raceway, QLD