Australian Broc Parkes ended his homecoming race at Round 2 of the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship at The Bend Motorsport Park on a high note when he picked up his first ARRC win on the 4.95km circuit.
Riding for the YAMAHA Racing Team ASEAN in the Asian series, the poleman went out on Race 2 with a different strategy after losing out to compatriot Bryan Staring in the previous race. A better start placed the R1 expert in the front group behind race leader Bryan and Apiwat Wongthananon.
Broc passed Apiwat on Lap 5 and began to close in on the leading Kawasaki. The gap between the two Aussie riders continued to narrow until Broc, having had enough of following Bryan around the track, powered his way into the lead at Turn 17 on Lap 10.
Broc kept his leading position to the chequered flag with a time of 22’54.902s.
“Today, I decided not to punish my tyre too early. Even so, I had a couple of hairy moments in the last two laps. Nevertheless, I’m very pleased with my first win in the ARRC,” said Broc in a post-race interview.
The weekend was also a tremendous success for second-placed Bryan Staring. The Kawasaki rider picked up four out of the five wins available at The Bend – one win in the ASB1000 Race 1 and all three race wins in the ASBK.
Yuki Ito also closed a successful weekend with a double podium in third place.
Broc Parkes has brought his points haul to 72 points. Malaysian Mohd Zaqhwan Zaidi, who finished fourth in both races, is second overall with 51 points.
While the Yamaha Racing Team ASEAN rider had taken control of the title chase, super-sub Bryan Staring had succeeded in his mission to keep Kawasaki Thailand Racing at the top of the team standings. The Thai outfit, led by the colourful Katsuaki Fujiwara, stands at the top of the team ladder with 85 points.