Motorsport: NZ Superbike Championship 2026 goes into final round in Taupō

Luca Durning is looking to secure his first New Zealand Superbike Championship title in Taupō this weekend. Photo / Derek Morrison, Motorcycling NZ

The New Zealand Superbike Championship is going into its fourth and final round at Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend.

Across March 14 and 15, six national titles, including TT titles, will be contested.

In the Superbike class, BMW rider Rogan Chandler goes into Taupō level on points with Luca Durning (also BMW), after losing his points lead last weekend at Hampton Downs.

Chandler and Durning have 184 points, but Durning leads on countback, as he won all three races at Hampton Downs, including the newly introduced Aaron Slight Trophy race.

In the Supersport 600 class, Yamaha rider Haydn Fordyce battled it out with points leader Jake Lewis before scoring a popular maiden national championship race win.

Lewis continues to lead the title chase with 212 points from Ashton Hughes (140) and Fordyce (132).

In race three of the Supersport 150 class, Billy MacRae nailed his first national win, ending Hunter Charlett’s eight-race winning streak.

However, Charlett added his name to the Supersport 300 championship national honours board after another podium-topping three-race streak.

Yamaha rider Harriet Grace, who celebrated International Women’s Day with her first two national championship podiums, climbed to third in the series standings.

Cameron Leslie (Yamaha), while still struggling after a serious leg injury sustained in the opening round, made a clean sweep in the ProTwin 650 class, and twice hobbled to the top step of the Supersport 600 podium.

Another triple winner was Aprilia’s Tyler King in the new Sportbike class, but Zak Fuller (Honda) still holds a narrow 16-point championship lead going into Taupō.

Multi NZ champion Dennis Charlett bagged three podium placings and holds a 51-point lead in the ProTwin 650 championship over Azlan Blackwell.

Spike and Bubba Taylor have stretched their Sidecar points tally to 190, followed by Barry Smith (163), who was joined in the outfit last weekend by Vaughan Maine after his brother Dave was injured.

Off-track, the inaugural MotoFest Bike Show also proved a massive success, organisers said.

The on-track action was complemented by the Legends Garage, comprising a custom bike show, road rides, off-road rides and a free track ride, which attracted over 400 riders across the two days.

At the upcoming third NZ Superbike Championship round at Taupō International Motorsport Park, riders will again have the opportunity to take part in the three-lap track cruise.

The first round of the 2026 NZ Superbike Championship was held in Christchurch in January, followed by round 2 at The Burt Munro Challenge in Invercargill in February.