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The Yamaha Racing Team is just days away from re-writing the history books in Australian motorcycle racing, with Jamie Stauffer set to record the double championship victory Æ Superbike and Supersport Æ at Eastern Creek this weekend.
After comfortably wrapping up the Supersport title at Winton, Stauffer's focus shifted immediately back to his Superbike campaign aboard the YZF-R1, and he knows there will still be strong pressure to score as many points as possible.
He currently leads the series by 37 points, with just 51 points on offer this weekend.
Joining him in the Supersport charge are form riders Mark Aitchison and Jason O'Halloran, who will look to complete the 1-2-3 finish aboard the dominant YZF-R6.
Unfortunately, as a result of injuries sustained at Winton Raceway, Dan Stauffer will be forced to look on from the sidelines at the final round. Medical specialists have ruled him out of contention as his injuries require extra time to heal.
Yamaha Racing Team Superbike
The Yamaha Racing Team is just two races away from claiming its first ever Australian Superbike title, with season standout Jamie Stauffer entering the Grand Final round at Eastern Creek with a strong points advantage.
It seems fitting that Stauffer should return to the circuit where he kick-started his amazing run of podium finishes and round wins, though he knows the task will not be easy with a number of top riders needing to prove their worth ahead of next year.
He is confident that the phenomenal race pace he quickly found at Winton will once again buoy him to a strong position, with the YZF-R1 proving the perfect racecraft.
"I'm feeling pretty good about the weekend, I've put in some extra training sessions and we're usually very quick at Eastern Creek so it's looking pretty good for the championship," said Stauffer.
"While I will be going for the win, I'll also be weighing up any moves on the track to maintain the buffer over second, it would be great to wrap things up in the first race."
Yamaha Racing Team Supersport
With the number 1 position already sewn up by team mate Jamie Stauffer, the Yamaha Racing Team's Mark Aitchison and Jason O'Halloran will unite this weekend to deliver the manufacturer the second and third position in the 2006 YMF Loan Australian Supersport Championship.
The YZF-R6 has blitzed proceedings at each and every round of the 2006 to date, proving the ideal race package in strong synergy with the Dunlop tyre selection.
Aitchison took two from two race wins at Winton, converting the form he has shown all year to a deserved maiden round victory.
He sits second in the championship, and is determined to maintain his hold on the position and indeed take another round win.
"We were lucky to get out to Eastern Creek for a ride day after the original test session was rained out, the times were very positive early on and we had really good pace," said Aitchison.
"We're very focused on winning at this final round, and building points to maintain the runner-up position in the championship, I'm very much looking forward to it."
Jason O'Halloran, currently sitting third in the championship, will exert every last ounce of effort into winning at Eastern Creek this weekend, and goes into the round with the knowledge that the season podium positions are still very much up for grabs.
O'Halloran has stepped up efforts to challenge for the win in each and every race, and is very well prepared for the final round of the season.
"I've been training very hard for this race, it's a home event so I'll have a lot of family and friends out there, we had a pretty good test last week which is encouraging," said O'Halloran.
"I'm going to be going for the win in the first race, I need as many points as I can to stay in third and then try and improve on this in the final race, obviously we would love to have the 1-2-3 in Supersport so it will be very much a team effort."
Yamaha R6 Privateer Jeremy Crowe will have some added motivation at this weekend's final championship round. Crowe was today announced as the fourth member of Yamaha Motor Australia's Factory Supersport team for the 2007 season.
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