Phillip Island Classic Australia team captain Rex Wolfenden believes that you can do all the best possible preparation to win but without lady luck shining down on you, it is a hard task.

And last year’s event was a prime example. Beau Beaton took out the opening two races at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, and looked like he was going to be the man to beat for the weekend.

However, while running in third place his Austart Air Starters/K.H. Equipment Irving Vincent dropped a valve while running in third place, resulting in a DNF. Beaton, who hails from Coffs Harbour in New South Wales, bounced back to finish in third place in the fourth and final race, .768sec behind Jeremy McWilliams. Overall however Beaton had to settle for ninth place after scoring 118-points, one point behind James Hillier.

“You can do all the preparations, you can have the best bike, the best rider, but you just need lady luck on your side to get you through the weekend without any dramas,” Wolfenden told BSN today.

He also explained that everything leading up to the four races has a lot to play into account as well. In 2015, Jed Metcher, Cameron Donald and Steve Martin all hit the deck early in the weekend on the Friday during qualifying one at Doohan corner because of an oil spill. That crash simply trashed all three bikes which put those riders and the Australian team behind the eight ball.

“You don’t wish anything like what happened in 2015 on any of the teams for something like that to happen. But that is how quickly the weekend can be turned around when something like that happens,” explained Wolfenden.

Metcher, the 2011 FIM European Superstock 600 Champion, echoed Wolfenden saying: “You have to finish every race to get a good result. The way the points system works it makes for very exciting racing. However, any issues with machinery will cost big time to the overall result.”

In terms of the Aussie team itself, Wolfenden, a former racer himself and a highly respected tuner said he believes that most of his riders will be able to do sub-1’40s laps around the 4.445km seaside circuit.

“While lap times are important, you still have to keep in mind that the International Challenge is an endurance event and it is so important that you finish every race and score points. Jed and Jeremy both crossed the line on equal points because they both finished all the races inside the top three which played dividends to the overall results.”

Wolfenden also added that the British team are once again bringing a good strong line-up and their bikes are good, so just like the previous years, they will be hard to beat.