Aprilia's Dan Stauffer was absent from Phillip Island's two-plus-four round.

Trinder Brothers Racing Aprilia has been a notable absentee at Phillip Island’s sixth round of the Viking Group Australian Superbike Championship, opting to focus on development before returning for the series finale in Tasmania in November.

The high profile Queensland-based operation has endured a frustrating season to date in 2010 as Aprilia’s official ASBK effort, with Superbike team rider Dan Stauffer now focused on finishing the season with a solid performance at Symmons Plains.

“It’s a shame that we couldn’t make it [to Phillip Island],” he explained to MotoOnline.com.au via telephone direct from his home on the Gold Coast on Saturday afternoon. “But the plan is to develop the RSV4 further and then return to the final round at full strength.”

It’s expected that the team will carry out a test at Queensland Raceway before the Tasmanian hit out, also looking to build momentum heading into 2011 according to Stauffer.

The team started behind the eight ball awaiting important parts from Italy, starting with three riders including Stauffer on the Superbike, plus Jackson Leigh-Smith and Cole Odendaal in the Superstock category, however it’s now just Stauffer on the team.

Odendaal switched to a BMW S 1000 RR for the third round of the series at Queensland Raceway, while Leigh-Smith showed up to Phillip Island’s two-plus-four round on the privateer Yamaha YZF-R6 that he rode in Supersport last season.