Waters responds while Dunker banks breakthrough round win

Round Three – The Bend

SW-Motech Superbike Race Two

Race One at The Bend did not so much settle the ASBK Superbike order as throw the whole thing back in the air.

Cam Dunker was now an ASBK Superbike race winner, having pounced after Harrison Voight ran wide at turn one on the final lap, then holding his nerve to beat Cru Halliday and Glenn Allerton to the flag. Dunker had threatened this sort of result at Phillip Island, but this time the Blue Marlin Pools Yamaha rider had converted pace, tyre choice and late-race composure into a breakthrough victory.

Voight, meanwhile, was left to absorb the frustration of one that got away. The McMartin Racing Ducati rider had led much of Race One and still banked valuable points in fourth, extending his championship lead to 16 points over team-mate Josh Waters, but that final-lap mistake meant Race Two became an immediate test of response after his Sunday morning momentum had been interrupted.

Waters also had questions to answer, which was not something that looked likely after the defending champion topped every dry practice session, took pole in the wet, and launched strongly from the front row in Race One. The early pace had been there, but tyre life had not, and Waters faded to seventh after being demoted by Halliday, Dunker and Allerton in quick succession around mid-race.

The McMartin crew, therefore, had a short turnaround and a very important set-up call to make before Race Two. To further complicate matters, brief showers had moved through between races, the wind had dropped, the track temperature was cooler, and conditions were again different to anything the field had dealt with earlier in the weekend.

The Ducati contingent had still been well represented on the Race One podium, with Halliday and Allerton both coming home within 0.617 seconds of Dunker. Halliday had the straight-line punch but not quite enough drive when it mattered, while Allerton again showed that the Superbike Advocates Racing package was now a genuine podium threat.

Behind them, Jonathan Nahlous and Mike Jones completed the top six for Yamaha Racing Team, Jacob Roulstone salvaged eighth after starting from 14th, and Olly Simpson finished tenth on an unexpected Superbike debut after being called up to replace the injured Anthony West. Simpson had crashed out of the morning Supersport / Next Gen opener, then jumped on West’s V4 R and banked Superbike points only hours later, giving DesmoSport something to take from a bruising weekend.

So Race Two arrived with just about every major player carrying unfinished business. Dunker had to prove the first one was no one-off. Voight had to reset after letting a win slip. Waters needed to find out where his pace had gone. Halliday and Allerton knew they were close enough to win. Roulstone needed a stronger recovery ride, and the Yamaha Racing Team pair were looking to turn top-six pace into a podium threat.

Josh Waters, Harrison Voight and the SW-Motech Superbike field launch into Race Two at The Bend

The wind had dropped ahead of the second and final 11-lap Superbike bout of the day. Conditions were cloudy, the ambient temperature was 19.1 degrees, and the track was dry but cool at 22.6 degrees as 20 starters formed up for the final SW-Motech Superbike race of the round.

Waters again got a great run off the line, but Voight again seemed to find extra thrust as they hit second gear and slipped up the inside at turn one to take the early lead. Allerton made a much better start this time around and slotted into second through the opening sequence of turns, with Waters, Dunker and Halliday all in immediate attendance.

Harrison Voight led early as Glenn Allerton, Josh Waters, Cru Halliday and Cam Dunker formed the lead group

Both McMartin Ducati riders then ran a little wide, which opened the door for Allerton and Dunker to split them. Voight led Allerton across the stripe to start lap two, with Dunker, Waters and Halliday close behind. Roulstone had also made a much better start in this encounter and was up to sixth by the end of lap two, with Nahlous close enough to make that another Yamaha-versus-Honda fight just behind the lead group.

Jacob Roulstone and Jonathan Nahlous were locked into the fight behind the lead group

Allerton looked hungry as he clung to the back of Voight, while Dunker looked aggressive from third. Waters then pushed Dunker back to fourth as they started lap three, and Halliday was right with them as the leading group began to sort itself out.

Halliday underlined his intent with a 1m51.658 on lap three, which briefly stood as the fastest lap of the race. Waters was also beginning to settle into his rhythm, however, and steadily worked his way back to the tail of Voight as McMartin Racing again shaped up one-two at the front.

The order was Voight, Waters, Allerton, Halliday and Dunker as they started lap five, with only six-tenths covering the leading quintet. Roulstone and Nahlous were around a second and a half further back, locked into their own fight for sixth, while Simpson was running a highly creditable eighth with a useful advantage over Mike Jones and Jack Favelle.

Josh Waters hit the front on lap six and began to break away from Harrison Voight

Voight and Waters crossed the stripe almost side-by-side to start lap six, the margin only 0.019 seconds, with Allerton still right on their heels. That trio had by then opened a small buffer over Halliday and Dunker.

Then Waters made his move.

Glenn Allerton, Cru Halliday and Cam Dunker were all part of the podium fight before the late-race shuffle

The defending champion hit the front on lap six and immediately dropped in a 1m51.625 to make clear that Race One’s fade was not about to be repeated. A lap later, he went even quicker, setting what would stand as the fastest lap of the race with a 1m51.235 on lap seven. It was still 1.2 seconds outside Cru Halliday’s race lap record, but in the conditions, it was enough to break the race open.

Josh Waters bounced back from his Race One struggles with a commanding Race Two victory

From that point, Waters was gone. By the end of lap seven, he had stretched the gap to Voight to 1.582 seconds. One lap later, it was 1.849 seconds, and by the end of lap ten, it had blown out to 2.841 seconds. The pin had been pulled.

Behind him, the race began to change complexion. Allerton had been a threat early, but his lap times told the story as his grip faded. After running 1m52.0s and 1m52.3s in the opening half, Allerton slipped into the 1m53s by lap seven and the 1m54s by lap nine. That dropped him into the clutches of Nahlous, Roulstone and Simpson.

Cam Dunker followed his Race One win with fourth in Race Two, enough to secure The Bend round win

Halliday’s pace also started to tail off late. The Stop & Seal Ducati rider had been the fastest man on track on lap three and was still third at the end of lap eight, but the final laps were not kind. Nahlous, who had been quietly building his race from seventh on lap one, was now coming.

Jonathan Nahlous came on strongly late to move into podium contention

Waters started the final lap with almost three seconds over Voight, while the fight for the final step on the podium was still alive behind them. Dunker crossed the stripe third at the last lap board, Nahlous was only 0.424 seconds behind him, Halliday had slipped to fifth, and Roulstone was still close enough to threaten.

Waters pulled clear in the second half of the race to trim Voight’s championship lead

Nahlous made the final lap count. The Yamaha Racing Team youngster hounded Dunker across the last four kilometres, then found a way through to push the Race One winner off the podium. At the flag, Nahlous was third, only 0.186 seconds clear of Dunker after getting the better of him at the penultimate turn on the final lap.

Jonathan Nahlous chased down the podium fight and denied Dunker third place on the final lap

Waters took the chequered flag 3.375 seconds clear of Voight, a champion’s response after his Race One struggles and a badly needed 25-point haul. Nahlous completed the podium, Dunker finished fourth, and Roulstone got the better of Halliday to secure fifth.

Jonathan Nahlous celebrates after snatching the final Race Two podium place

Halliday came home sixth after fading late, while Allerton only just managed to keep Simpson at bay for seventh. The gap between them at the line was only 0.028 seconds, with Simpson again impressing on the DesmoSport Ducati after his last-minute call-up.

Waters and Nahlous get the champagne flowing after Race Two at The Bend

Favelle and John Lytras rounded out the top ten ahead of Marcus Hamod and Mike Jones. Jones’ 12th place capped a difficult weekend for the three-time ASBK Champion, who finished 33.492 seconds behind Waters and lost significant ground in what was already a difficult title chase.

The rear Pirelli on Waters’ race-winning McMartin Racing Ducati after Race Two

Ty Lynch and Luke Jones were the only non-finishers. Lynch completed nine laps before retiring, while Jones was out after two laps.

Josh Waters was back on top in Race Two after fading to seventh in the opening bout

Waters’ win trimmed Voight’s championship lead to 11 points, with the McMartin Racing pair now first and second in the standings. Voight leaves The Bend on 147 points, Waters is second on 136, and Roulstone remains third on 124.

Jonathan Nahlous, Josh Waters and Harrison Voight toast the Race Two podium

Dunker’s 25-17 race score across the two Sunday bouts gave him the round win and moved him to 113 points and fourth in the championship, ahead of Halliday on 108, Allerton on 103 and Nahlous on 99.

Ducati also strengthened its manufacturers’ championship lead, moving to 663 points ahead of Yamaha on 632 and Honda on 199. McMartin Racing continues to control the teams’ standings on 280 points, with Motocity second on 201 and Yamaha Racing Team third on 191.

Josh Waters celebrates a champion’s response after winning Race Two at The Bend

Race One belonged to Dunker. Race Two was Waters’ answer. And with two rounds still to run, Voight still leads, but the defending champion has cut the gap and The Bend has tightened the ASBK title fight again.

Images by RbMotoLens

Superbike Race Two Results

Superbike Round Points

Superbike Championship Points

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