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CSBK By the Numbers: Round three at RAD Torque

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Category: CSBK News

Published: July 11, 2025

A rare tripleheader in the pro classes meant more opportunity for records to be broken this past weekend at RAD Torque Raceway, and the Bridgestone Canadian Superbike Championship did not disappoint.

Below are just some of the key numbers from round three of the 2025 CSBK season.

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Young ends ten-year Honda drought

When Jodi Christie won the last race of the GP Bikes Pro Superbike season in 2014, celebrating his first career Canada Cup, it would have been fair for Honda to envision many more feature class victories down the line.

Instead, Christie was in the crowd on Saturday cheering on his friend Ben Young as he became the next Honda winner – over ten calendar years later.

Young’s first victory with his new manufacturer came 3,975 days after they last won to close out 2014, ending an unfortunate dry spell for one of racing’s most iconic brands and one of the most successful in CSBK history.

The result is just the latest turnaround for Honda since signing Young this offseason, having scored the company long-overdue podiums, pole positions, and now victories already in 2025, all whilst still learning the CBR1000RR-R.

Honda’s 34th victory in Pro Superbike history also moved them closer to a potential dream championship, as Young enters the last round with a solid chance to become only the third Honda champion since 2001.

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Dumas continues rapid climb up Superbike ladder

It’s only been four years since Alex Dumas made his debut north of the border, but you wouldn’t know it based on a quick look at his Superbike resumé.

The 2021 champion added his 17th career victory in race three on Sunday to move out of a tie with Pacal Picotte for the fourth most all-time, now just five behind rival Ben Young (22) and nine away from Steve Crevier (26) for the second-most in history.

Even more impressive is that Dumas has reached the top-four just prior to turning 23 years old, meaning at his current rate he would surpass Crevier for second all-time by the end of 2027 – then only age 25. 

He will have a long way to go to even threaten Jordan Szoke’s record of 78 victories, even trailing Szoke on a “win percentage” basis (Szoke at 46.2%, Dumas at 41.5%), but the Quebec City native will have a chance if he chooses to pursue it.

Regardless, his strong weekend – where he also moved into the top-seven all-time with 36 podiums – has already put him amongst CSBK’s best in history, something that can be further added upon if he wins a second career Canada Cup in 2025.

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Suzuki reaches record Supersport win streak

The “next-gen” era of the Supersport class has largely been dominated by Suzuki and their GSX-R750, and they now have a record-breaking win streak to prove it.

The brand won their 12th consecutive race on Sunday when Andrew Van Winkle claimed his second victory of the season – ironically, aboard an old-gen GSX-R600 – to surpass Honda’s previous record of eleven wins in a row, set mostly by Jodi Christie between St-Eustache 2012 and Mont-Tremblant 2013.

The stretch began with Sebastien Tremblay’s race two win in AMP last season and has been added on to by Trevor Daley, Torin Collins, and Van Winkle, though it was Van Winkle who preserved their shot at history with his AMP win earlier this year over Alex Michel (Kawasaki) and Laurent Laliberte-Girard (Yamaha).

Suzuki will now set their sights on a record-breaking podium streak, though they have more work to do in that department as they currently ride a 22-race stretch of podiums – twelve off Kawasaki’s record set between 2018 and 2023.

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Young’s podium streak comes to a surprise end

It had been a while since Ben Young had gone straight to the Van Dolder’s Home Team tent following a race, but he was forced to do just that on Sunday after finishing a surprising fourth in race two – his first time missing the podium since CTMP 2023.

Young had compiled a 23-race podium streak over the last two seasons, the best stretch of his career, and was beginning to close on Jordan Szoke’s record of 36 races in a row when his momentum was suddenly stopped in RAD Torque.

The absence of the three-time reigning champion on the podium signifies just how unpredictable the last two seasons have been in the Superbike class, with Sam Guerin now inheriting the longest active streak at just five podiums in a row.

Young did rebound with a second-place finish in race three, perhaps the start of a new multi-year streak, though his focus will instead be on becoming only the second rider to ever win four consecutive championships at CTMP.

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Bridgestone celebrates incredible lap record haul

The Bridgestone era has been a resounding success through the first three seasons, though mother nature hasn’t always allowed the lap record sheets to reflect that.

That changed at RAD Torque this past weekend, and it changed in a massive way.

Lap records were broken an astounding 17 times in round three, with every single class reaching new marks over the course of the weekend – in some cases over a full second faster than their previous bests.

Favourable weather on Friday and Saturday contributed massively to the record haul, as did revamped curbs in the tight bus-stop, but the field of national riders also showed plenty of confidence in their BATTLAX rubber after the series debuted at RAD Torque (then called Castrol Raceway) in 2015.

The pace was especially noticeable in the Pro Superbike and Pro Supersport classes, where Sam Guerin went nearly 1.3 seconds quicker and Torin Collins lowered the mark by over 1.7 seconds compared to the top times from the previous spec tire.

The entire lap record sheet at the Edmonton venue now belongs to Bridgestone, surpassing their previous best weekend to end the year at Shannonville in 2023 when they set six lap records (three of which were broken the next year).

CSBK Untold: Extra storylines from round 3 at RAD Torque

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Category: CSBK News

Published: July 10, 2025

With seven national classes battling it out across only a three-day doubleheader weekend – this time, a tripleheader in the pro categories – it’s easy for a few stories to go understated during each round of the Bridgestone Canadian Superbike Championship.

From the major headlines that require a bit more detail, to the hidden gems that are left out of the spotlight, here are some added notes from the third round of the 2025 season at RAD Torque Raceway

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Young/Dumas rivalry reaches new territory

Despite their close results, it hasn’t always been easy to call it a rivalry between Ben Young and Alex Dumas. Considered two of the most easy-going, friendly, and professional riders in the paddock, Young and Dumas have rarely had any animosity between them. 

That changed slightly on Saturday in Edmonton. 

Make no mistake, the two former champions still hold plenty of respect for each other. But Young’s bold race-winning pass on Dumas changed the tone at the podium and afterwards, something many other riders and team members commented on throughout the weekend.

Both sides were justified; Dumas was far from bitter, accepting that the pass was within the rules but closer than you would like as both riders went wide in a tight turn two. As for Young, the reigning champion admitted himself that it was perhaps as aggressive as he’s ever been, but maintained it was a clean pass that you “have to go for” when a win is on the line.

It’s a defining moment in what has become one of the biggest rivalries - now undeniably - in CSBK history, with two of the most successful riders in series’ history at the top of their games, often split by just thousandths of a second. 

Regardless, the result seemed to fuel Dumas even more on Sunday, as he took 41 of a possible 50 points in races two and three to take over a slim championship lead and set up yet another dramatic finish at CTMP.

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Gold-medal Paralympian Tristen Chernove makes CSBK debut

There are always inspiring stories to come out of the CSBK paddock on any given weekend, but few in history stack up to the story of debutant Tristen Chernove.

The Cranbrook, British Columbia native was diagnosed in 2009 with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, a rare neurological disorder that affects muscle control throughout the nervous system, typically affecting strength and causing symptoms similar to muscular dystrophy.

Chernove responded to the diagnosis – which affects his lower legs – like a true fierce competitor, taking up competitive cycling to both serve his passion for the sport and slow the symptoms of CMT. 

He would qualify for the Canadian National Team on his first attempt in 2016, and his resumé since is nothing short of astounding: three Paralympic medals in Rio De Janeiro 2016 (including gold in Road Time Trial), another Paralympic silver medal in Tokyo 2020, five World Track Championships, two World Road Championship medals, and two Canadian Para-Cyclist of the Year awards.

Chernove would also put in a strong weekend at RAD Torque, finishing fifth in each race, though he would have cemented himself as one of the greatest and most inspiring athletes in CSBK history even before turning a wheel on Friday.

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Verbeek braves the elements for first national win

Much has been made of the exclusive company Bronti Verbeek has joined in her brief CSBK career, becoming one of the few female Pro Superbike competitors in history last season before taking a historic podium in her Twins Cup debut at round one.

Her victory on Sunday put her in even more rarified air, but just adding Verbeek’s name to a list doesn’t do her performance justice. 

In what was the first race of the day in very heavy rain, Verbeek hit the front right away and quickly threatened to escape from championship leader J.P. Tache – a rider who looked practically unbeatable coming into the weekend.

Her chances were helped slightly when Tache crashed at the end of lap two, but it may have made no difference as Verbeek won by a ridiculous 41.796 seconds over race one victor Dante Bucek, one of the largest margins of victory in CSBK history. 

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Laliberté-Girard battles through six-race weekend

If there was an Ironman award handed out at RAD Torque Raceway, it’s safe to say Laurent Laliberté-Girard would have been the unanimous winner. 

The reigning Amateur Supersport champion completed all six pro races that were held this weekend, making the most of his trip west with tripleheaders in both the Pro Supersport and GP Bikes Pro Superbike classes. Only one other rider (Torin Collins) completed even four races, making his “triple-double” all the more impressive.

Laliberte-Girard wasn’t just putting around, either. The Nadon Sport Yamaha rider earned his second career Supersport podium in a great race three performance, battling with championship leader Torin Collins early on, just hours after a career-best finish of fifth in Superbike race two, extending his lead atop the Pro Rookie of the Year standings. 

The 21-year-old wasn’t fazed by the marathon, hilariously brushing it off on his way to the podium on Saturday. “I’m fine - the bike was holding me up!” he said. 

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Laflamme makes massive Sunday comeback

The breakout season of Cole Alexander has overshadowed what has also been a largely impressive campaign for Zaim Laflamme, one of the early championship hopefuls who has endured his fair share of bad luck in 2025.

Laflamme had compiled an impressive nine podiums in ten races entering Sunday at RAD Torque, missing out only when he ran out of fuel while leading in round one. Still, it would have been easy to write off the 23-year-old with Alexander winning eight of those ten attempts over Laflamme to take a pair of championship leads.

Instead, the Triumph rider responded with perhaps the best day of his CSBK career.

Laflamme would win both the Amateur Superbike and Amateur Supersport contests by a combined eleven seconds, looking far more comfortable than Alexander (fourth in each race) in the changing weather conditions as he got himself back into the title mix in both classes.

The Longueuil, Quebec native will now have a bit of the momentum in his favour entering the season finale at CTMP, a gutsy turnaround after having his back against the wall on Sunday.

Van Winkle dominates Supersport race three, Verbeek headlines support class winners on Sunday

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Category: CSBK News

Published: July 6, 2025

The near-unbeaten streak of Torin Collins came to an end on Sunday, as Andrew Van Winkle dominated the third race of the weekend in the Pro Supersport class at RAD Torque Raceway.

Collins entered the day with five victories in six attempts to begin 2025, only losing out when he was caught up in a lap one crash at AMP – a race Van Winkle won – but it didn’t look that way in race three as Van Winkle grabbed the holeshot and instantly stretched out a comfortable lead.

The 18-year-old faced almost no pressure the entire way, navigating a wet but drying track for a crucial start-to-finish win aboard his Mountainview Motorsports Suzuki.

Even Van Winkle himself was surprised by the performance, winning by nearly seven seconds for his third career victory in the Supersport ranks.

“That was pretty wild. I expected a pretty tough battle with Torin, but I looked back and no one was there,” Van Winkle said. “I just tried to keep my head down and manage the rain tires. I was pretty nervous with how slick it was getting at the end.”

The victory keeps his title hopes in relatively decent shape as he cuts the deficit to 24 points behind Collins, who eventually limited the damage in second but was no match for Van Winkle on Sunday.

The Octagon Energy Services Suzuki star was nearly going backwards as local rider Justin Knapik escaped in second early on, with Collins scrapping in a five-rider group for third, but the championship leader smartly motioned for them to follow him as he clawed his way back into second.

“That was a tricky race. I had an awful start, per usual, and Andrew just got away on lap one,” Collins admitted. “He had it today and I didn’t, so props to him.”

Collins and the chasing group would quickly move through on a fading Knapik, dragging rookie Laurent Laliberte-Girard and Alex Michel into a fight for the last podium spot.

Laliberte-Girard nearly had a go at Collins into turn four before settling back into the fight for third, fending off a number of attempts from Michel in the final laps to secure the second podium of his young career for the Nadon Sport Yamaha team, despite doing double-duty in Superbike and Supersport this weekend.

“I honestly just wanted to have fun in the six races, I didn’t really know what to expect,” Laliberte-Girard said. “I just started catching, and catching, and catching, and then realized I was third. And then I realized ‘damn, that’s Torin!”

The impressive performance came at the expense of Michel, who had to settle for fourth despite a late push on Sunday. Still, the SpeedFactory67 Kawasaki rider will exit perhaps a career-best weekend in third in the overall championship, a breakthrough round for the emerging star.

Rounding out the top five in an unusually quiet day was Sebastien Tremblay, who got bogged down early on in the five-rider battle but couldn’t find the necessary pace to hang with Laliberte-Girard and Michel.

The reigning Supersport champion will now be mathematically eliminated from defending his title, exiting Alberta with a 63-point deficit to Collins for the S.T. Motosport Suzuki team.

The changing weather conditions on Sunday also shook up the support classes, with local fan favourite Bronti Verbeek stealing the show with a maiden national victory in the Importations Thibault Twins Cup class.

Verbeek got a terrific start in what was a full rain race, leading championship frontrunner J.P. Tache through the opening two laps and beginning to stretch a slight advantage aboard her Yamaha.

She would get a bit more breathing room as Tache crashed at the very end of lap two, but that would be the last anyone would see of Verbeek as she cruised to an incredible 41-second victory – one of the largest in CSBK history.

The popular win puts Verbeek in an exclusive list of female national winners, joining Stacey Nesbitt as the only riders in the last two decades to win a CSBK race across any class.

The outcome was also a significant one in the championship, as Tache remounted to salvage fifth but will see his points grasp shrink to just 20 over Dante Bucek, who fought his way to second in the rain on Sunday.

Reigning amateur Twins champion Sebastian Silva was third, only narrowly beating Justin Marshall at the line by 0.018 seconds in a thrilling battle for the final podium spots.

The momentum shifted drastically atop the two amateur championships on Sunday, with Zaim Laflamme responding with his own “daily double” as he claimed victories in both the AIM Insurance Amateur Superbike and EBC Brakes Amateur Supersport classes.

Laflamme had needed a big day to save his title hopes with rival Cole Alexander controlling all the momentum, but the 23-year-old did exactly that by running away with a pair of impressive wins while Alexander struggled in the changing weather.

Alexander had a bit more wiggle room to work with in the Superbike category, though he will see his gap shrink to 23 points as Laflamme scored his second victory in the class while Alexander could only muster fourth.

Taking an equally significant second-place finish was Nicolas Audet, who will climb back into the mix for third in the overall championship and a pro license for 2026 with his best result of the season.

Season debutant Jason Langeveldt would take a maiden podium in third, setting the fastest lap of the race but having too much work to do as he couldn’t fight his way back towards Laflamme and Audet in the final laps.

Laflamme got a bit of luck to go his way in Supersport after Alexander missed the warmup lap and was forced to start from pit lane, though he may not have had any challenge for Laflamme anyways as the Triumph rider lapped much quicker than anyone else on circuit in a comfortable victory.

Alexander would claw his way back to fourth once again, helped by a late crash from Alexis Beaudoin as they battled for position. While the 18-year-old was frustrated with the outcome, the damage limitation was enough to keep him atop both championships heading into the final round at CTMP, though by just three points in this category.

Bucek would add on to his Twins podium with another dominant victory in the Super Sonic Road Race School Lightweight Sportbike class, cruising clear of Norbert Joo to put one hand on the national title.

The 16-year-old opens up a massive lead over the absent Gary McKinnon, already clinching top amateur honours and looking set to add the full championship to his resumé next month.

Joo would climb to fourth in the overall championship while third-place finisher Scott Szollos becomes Bucek’s closest challenger in the standings, leapfrogging McKinnon in the scrap for top pro honours.

Rob Cousineau followed up his first ever national podium on Saturday with a first career victory in race two of the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-4RR Cup, cruising clear of championship leader Jacob Black in the rain.

Neither Black nor Jean-Pascal Schroeder could match the pace of Cousineau at the front, but the duo enjoyed a battle of their own for second with Black coming out on top in the end, stretching his lead to 31 points ahead of the last round in CTMP.

The support classes will now prepare for their last two races of the season next month, August 7-10, as the series shifts to historic Canadian Tire Motorsport Park near Toronto, Ontario.

Full results can be found here.