Access Plus Racing Kick-Starts 2024 PSBK Season with Dominant 1-2 Finish at BRC

By motoph admin on May 15, 2024

Post Views: 3,625

Timothy Joseph “TJ” and Troy Alberto brought home a spectacular 1-2 finish for Access Plus Racing during Round 1 of the Philippine Superbike Championship (PSBK). The team launched their 2024 campaign in style, with the Ducati Panigale V4 dominating both races at the Batangas Racing Circuit (BRC).

The Alberto brothers were busy testing ahead of the season opener to continue the development of their race bikes. This also helped Troy Alberto reacquaint himself with the 3.500 km track after spending several seasons competing overseas. Despite the promising results from testing, the extreme heat took a toll on TJ, who fell ill days before the race weekend.

Pushing through his illness, TJ Alberto gave a stellar performance in qualifying, squeezing every ounce of performance out of his #77 Ducati. His blistering 1:33.691 lap was nothing short of a miracle and secured the defending 3-time PSBK champion pole position. Meanwhile, his younger brother Troy impressed with a 1:34.193, earning him a front-row start in P3.

As the lights turned green in Race 1, both Access Plus Racing riders stormed to the front, with TJ leading Troy into Turn 1. Troy then came under intense attack and dropped to P3 on lap 2 as Marvin Mangulabnan on the Aprilia found a way past. However, Troy on the #69 Ducati quickly regained the P2 spot, which he held until the penultimate lap. With only a few corners to go, Mangulabnan made a gutsy move on Troy, resulting in a solid 3rd place finish for Troy, while TJ secured Access Plus Racing’s first win of 2024.

With insights gained from the morning race, the team ensured a 1-2 finish for Ducati and Access Plus Racing in Race 2. The Alberto brothers made a quick getaway at the start, with TJ leading and Troy in tow. From then on, the pair sailed off into the distance and never looked back. Using Shell Advance’s fully synthetic lubricants for ultimate performance and protection under extreme conditions, they secured 1st and 2nd places with a dominant lead of over 8 seconds ahead of their nearest rival.

The Philippine Superbike Championship (PSBK) will return to the Batangas Racing Circuit (BRC) for Round 2 of the 2024 season. Action resumes on June 1st and 2nd, where Access Plus Racing aims to replicate their strong performance.

TJ Alberto, #77: “I’m honestly surprised with my results. I really worked hard for this one. I was under the weather at the start of the weekend after testing in extremely hot weather. I came into Friday practice still very weak and sick. But I’m happy to complete the triple this weekend despite all that. This one really took maximum effort out of me and I’m looking forward to doing the next races in full fitness! Good way to start the season and looking forward to Round 2.”

Troy Alberto, #69: “I had a lot of fun over the weekend racing with the other riders. It was nice to go out in Race 1 and swap paint. Race 2 was much simpler with TJ pushing the pace at the front, so I was just trying to hang on. I’m happy about the start of the PSBK season finishing 2nd and 3rd, but I’ll be trying harder to beat my teammate in the next race in June.”

Toti Alberto, Team Principal: “Honestly, I was a bit nervous as I was expecting TJ and Troy to race each other and compromise our results. Thankfully, common sense prevailed and they delivered a 1-2 finish for Access Plus Racing at the start of the season. I’m very happy for that and thank God that TJ was well enough to win.”

Access Plus Racing is sponsored by Ducati Philippines, Shell Advance, DID, Aella, Extreme Components, Macbeth, Motoworld, Sprint Filter, Bremo, and Öhlins Racing.