With 2 equally-matched riders on near-identical machineries, neither TJ Alberto nor his brother Troy are expected to give an inch as both will be chasing after wins this weekend. This will make the the races very interesting as the 2024 Philippine Superbike Championship (PSBK) heads back to the Batangas Racing Circuit (BRC) for Round 2.
On paper it appeared that TJ easily soared through a perfect weekend during the season opener. Pole position in qualifying then 1st in both races made sure that he started his title defense on the right foot. However, it was far from the truth. The older Alberto was under the weather leading up to the race and had to squeeze every ounce of performance not only from his #77 Ducati Panigale V4, but also from himself.
His younger brother Troy, on the other hand, impressed on his first race in BRC since returning from his European campaign. He dropped to 3rd on the very last lap of Race 1, but ensured that there was no chance of it happening again in Race 2 and secured a 1-2 finish for Access Plus Racing.
Whoever comes out on top, all that matters for the team is that they’re able to repeat their dominant performance and hopefully score more 1-2 finishes.
TJ Alberto, #77: “Aiming to repeat the success I had last race. The level of the championship has definitely stepped up this year with Troy coming in and we need to be better prepared more than ever. Last round I was ill all weekend, but as I’m now fully recovered and feel quite good coming into this race.”
Troy Alberto, #69: “I’m really looking forward to Round 2 after the success we had last month. I have always been a bit unlucky during season openers in the past, so I’m happy to have secured 2 podiums in the PSBK’s first event. Target for this round is to go another step higher and hopefully get a win.”
Toti Alberto, Team Principal: “Praying that both TJ and Troy will have an easier and more importantly safer win. Access Plus Racing has been working hard over the short break to continue the development of our race bikes. We’ve made big steps, which we hope translates well this weekend. Happy that our team achieved a 1-2 finish last May and praying that we get the same 1-2 result again.”
Access Plus Racing is sponsored by Ducati Philippines, Shell Advance, DID, Aella, Extreme Components, Macbeth, Motoworld, Sprint Filter, Bremo, and Öhlins Racing.