Team Suzuki’s Superbike effort of former Australian Superbike Champions Josh Waters and Shawn Giles will enter this weekend’s Bel-Ray 6 Hour at Phillip Island as title favourites, Waters admitting it’s a dream come true to be teamed with one of his childhood heroes.
Waters, 23, sat out much of the 2010 ASBK season through injury, however the official Australian Endurance Championship event will mark his opportunity to claim a national title for the year.
“Shawn’s the most successful rider in Australia who has never won a world championship, so he’s always been a hero of mine,” Waters said in an official 6 Hour film at the Australian Motorcycle Expo Melbourne over the weekend.
“I remember standing outside his pit when I was younger and looking at him. Now I get to share the bike with him, so it will be unbelievable.
“The weekend will be something completely different for me, I’ve never done anything like this, so I look forward to it.”
Giles has experience at the world famous Suzuka 8 Hours event in Japan, and he too is hoping to finish season 2010 on a strong note after a difficult year to date.
“I’m really looking forward to The 6 Hour,” 40-year-old Giles said. “This year’s been fairly difficult since the young guys have been pushing really hard on the control tyre.
“I think it’s going to come down to a lot of factors, because in th epit stops the mechanics haven’t had a lot of time to do the tyre changes plus refulling.
“There are a lot of factors that will come into play – we’ll have to keep our fluids up because Phillip Island can either be really hot or extremely cold.”
With Giles’ experience comes a load of knowledge, and he is passing that onto Waters as well as Team Suzuki’s Supersport team of new ASBK Supersport champion Troy Herfoss and Brodie Waters.
“I’ve had the experience side of things in endurance racing as far as pit stops and rider changes go, so I’m passing all that information onto the boys,” Giles added.
The Bel-Ray 6 Hour will be staged this weekend on Sunday, 5 December.