DEBUT 2ND FOR NEW GSX-R1000
04 April 2005 - Suzuki Racing

Team Suzuki''s Shawn Giles raced his new GSX-R1000 into second overall at the weekend''s opening round of the Australian Superbike Championship at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit.

An all-new model, the 2005 Suzuki GSX-R1000 is at the beginning of its development phase, indicating that there is more speed to be drawn out of the machine and giving series rivals much cause for concern.

The three-time Australian Superbike Champion claimed pole position in convincing fashion and dipped below the previous race lap record set by him in 2003.

Said Giles: ''This new GSX-R1000 Superbike is amazing; to be this fast straight out of the box is fantastic for Suzuki and it''s certainly a promising start to the season.''

The year''s first Australian Superbike race saw Giles launch off the line and retain his advantage through turn one. He continued to hold the lead withstanding fierce challenges until midway through lap two.

Struggling with a lack of grip, he slid back to fourth place before re-claiming third place from reigning Superbike Champion Adam Fergusson on lap eight of 10.

Stepping up to the national Superbike class, Giles'' team mate Glenn Allerton made an impressive five-position gain during lap one, moving up into ninth place.

Allerton ultimately managed to defend his well-earned ninth place after being engaged in a series of battles throughout the race, including Anthony Gobert, whose disqualification from race one saw Allerton elevated to eighth.

Saturday afternoon''s second race saw Giles again rocket away from the start line for the five-lap contest.

On the second lap, he came under intense pressure from Fergusson with the pair swapping backwards and forwards for the lead over the ensuing laps as Josh Brookes joined the fray in third place.

The thrilling three-way battle eventually saw Giles greet the chequered flag in second place; the leading pair separated by a mere .044 seconds followed by Brookes a further .211 seconds down.

Again starting from 14th, Allerton made massive gains in his lap times and despite being caught up with traffic in the mid-pack, the young New South Welshman moved forward to seal 11th place.

Due to inclement weather conditions, the weekend''s third and final Australian Superbike race was cancelled for safety reasons.

Said Allerton: ''For my first on-track session with Team Suzuki, I was more conservative than usual throughout qualifying so I had my work cut out for me in both races.

''My times improved by nearly 1.5 seconds per lap in race two so I''m pleased with my progress at this early stage of the season.

''This is a great start to the season for the Suzuki team. We had some hard, close racing here this weekend and the new bike was absolutely brilliant. I''m really looking forward to the next round in Sydney where we should be very strong again,'' he added.

Team Suzuki Team Manager Phil Tainton said: ''The new GSX-R1000 is an incredible piece of engineering and has already achieved so much success globally. At this early stage in development we''re all very pleased with its performance here this weekend.''

The 2005 Australian Superbike Championship will continue later in the month with round two at Eastern Creek International Raceway on 29 April - 1 May.

TEAM SUZUKI RESULTS - ROUND 1:

QUALIFYING:

1st: Shawn Giles - 1:11.448
14th: Glenn Allerton - 1:10.998

RACE 1:

3rd: Shawn Giles - (Fastest Lap - 1:36.286)
8th: Glenn Allerton - (Fastest Lap - 1:38.657)

RACE 2:

2nd: Shawn Giles - (Fastest Lap - 1:35.431)
11th: Glenn Allerton - (Fastest Lap - 1:37.299)

CURRENT POINTS:

1 Josh Brookes (Honda) 45 points
2 Shawn Giles (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 43 points
3 Daniel Stauffer (Yamaha) 36 points
4 Jamie Stauffer (Kawasaki) 34 points
5 Scott Charlton (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 32 points
6 Shannon Johnson (Yamaha) 30 points
7 Adam Fergusson (Honda) 25 points
8 Shaun Geronimi (Yamaha) 24 points
9 Tony Rees (Yamaha) 23 points
10 Glenn Allerton (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 23 points

www.suzuki-racing.com

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