MIE Racing Honda Team is ‘down under’ for the final WorldSBK round
The MIE Racing Honda Team has travelled directly from the Mandalika Circuit in Indonesia to Phillip Island in Australia, where the final round of the 2022 Superbike World Championship season is scheduled to take place this weekend.
The penultimate round, held at Mandalika on Lombok island just a few days ago, brought mixed results for MIE Racing Honda riders Leandro ‘Tati’ Mercado and Hafizh Syahrin. Despite suffering a highside in Friday’s practice session, Syahrin went on to enjoy one of his best weekends to date, scoring points in both long Superbike races. Mercado was a little unlucky, but nevertheless cited progress in terms of his ability to be consistent in races. The two riders now hope to round out the 2022 season on a high at Phillip Island, a track they both enjoy.
Located roughly 140km south of Melbourne in the state of Victoria, the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit was inaugurated in 1956. Situated on the coast, this beautiful track is particularly appreciated by riders, teams and fans alike. Measuring 4.445km in length, the track incorporates 12 corners, seven of which left-handers and five right, as well as an 835-metre start/finish straight. The Superbike circus is very pleased to return to Phillip Island this season after the Covid-19 pandemic prevented the championship from travelling to Australia in 2021.
Hafizh Syahrin
“We had a positive weekend in Indonesia and I hope we can do even better in Australia. But we need to wait and see what conditions will be like, both in terms of the weather, which can be very uncertain, and tyre life, because this track can be a demanding one, so it will be important to choose the right spec. As for the track itself, it’s one I know very well so although it’s new for me with the SBK, it’s not a total unknown. I think we can do a good job, but we’ll see.”
Leandro Mercado
“I’m very happy to be back racing in Australia where I’ve not raced since 2019. It’s a fantastic track and I hope we can continue the good work and close the championship with some good races. The weather will likely be quite a bit colder than it is when we usually come here for WorldSBK. I’ve never raced here in November time and guess wind might also be a challenge but we’re about to find out.”
Track information:
Country: Australia
Name: Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit
Length: 4.445 km
Pole position: left
Corners: 7 left-hand, 5 right-hand
SBK RECORDS: Best lap – Rea (Kawasaki) 1’30.075 (2019). Superpole – Sykes (BMW) 1’29.230 (2020).
2020 SBK RESULTS:
Race 1 – 1. Razgatlioglu (Yamaha); 2. Lowes (Kawasaki); 3. Redding (Ducati)
Superpole race – 1. Rea (Kawasaki); 2. Razgatlioglu (Yamaha); 3. Redding (Ducati)
Race 2 – 1. Lowes (Kawasaki); 2. Rea (Kawasaki); 3. Redding (Ducati)
