Altherm Yamaha KMD Team Manager Grant Shivas had several good reasons to celebrate after the New Zealand Superbike Championship wrapped up at Taupo Motorsport Park yesterday.
His debut season running the road racing team resulted in two out of his four riders winning their classes and a third racer finishing runner-up in the premiere category.
Yamaha YZF-R1 rider Alastair Hoogenboozem moved up two positions in the championship after a fourth place finish in 2024, to notch a runner-up result in the top-tier Superbike class.
The fourth and final round went well for him, beginning with a PB lap time on Saturday. Then it was a case of consistent riding as Auckland-based Hoogenboezem recorded a trio of runner-up results in the three races.
“I was happy to get second in the championship. The team worked really well together and Av [Avalon Lewis, nee Biddle] and Jake [Lewis] smashed it,” Hoogenboezem says.
Altherm Yamaha KMD Team rider Jake Lewis, who recently moved to Australia, did indeed smash it, with an unbeaten 12-race winning record and claiming 3 out of 4 pole positions over his stellar season in the Supersport 600 class.
He describes the final Taupo round where he clinched the Supersport 600 Championship, as “another fantastic weekend.”
“Wrapping up the 2025 Supersport 600 Championship, I qualified in pole position with the fastest-ever Supersport 600 lap at Taupo Motorsport Park. Then I went on to win three from three, along with grabbing the lap record in the final race,” Lewis says.
“Our whole team has been exceptional this year and it shows from the results we were able to get. A big congrats to Al and Dale [Finch] for their great season on the Superbikes and to Avalon for wrapping up the Pro Twin Championship. Big thank you to all our sponsors who help make this all happen. Especially Altherm Window Systems and Yamaha NZ,” he wraps up.
Shivas credited Hoogenboezem for finishing 11 of the 12 races on the podium and not having a single DNF.
Lewis’ epic results spoke for themselves, while his wife Avalon had a convincing 69-point winning advantage over her Pro-Twins runner-up rival Billie Fuller. These two talented ladies will take to the world stage this year, after being signed by the Carl Cox Motorsport Women’s Circuit Racing (WCR) team. The WCR series brings the best female racers together for their own world series at key World Superbike Championship rounds.
The Altherm Yamaha KMD Team’s supported rider, Christchurch’s Dale Finch, had the honour of being the only racer to blight Superbike Championship winner Mitch Rees’ perfect race victory record, taking a win off him at the second round.
Shivas credited the “really great team environment” for the outstanding performances.
“This was my first year with Altherm Yamaha and we’ve had absolutely amazing results. Thanks to [Yamaha Motor New Zealand Motorsport Manager] Josh Coppins, Altherm and all the sponsors for their support. We are looking forward to doing it all again next year,” Shivas signs off.
Over the off-season the team will be testing a new tyre brand ahead of the 2026 NZSBK Championship. Shivas also hoped to get Hoogenbooezem, Finch and potentially Lewis as well, racing in selected rounds of the Australian Superbike Championship.
Pics: ASP (Aaron Staples Photography)
NZSBK Round Four Results:
Superbikes
1st Mitch Rees – 76
2nd Alastair Hoogenboezem (YZF-R1) – 60
3rd Rogan Chandler – 48
8th Dale Finch (YZF-R1) – 13
SuperSport 600
1st Jake Lewis (YZF-R6) – 76
2nd Ashton Hughes – 60
3rd Luca Durning – 48
Pro Twins
1st Avalon Lewis (YZF-R7) – 76
2nd Scott Findlay – 49
3rd Sam Guthrie – 45
NZSBK Championship Overall Results:
Superbikes
1st Mitch Rees – 299
2nd Alastair Hoogenboezem (YZF-R1) – 215
3rd Rogan Chandler – 156
6th Dale Finch (YZF-R1) – 117
SuperSport 600
1st Jake Lewis (YZF-R6) – 303
2nd Luca Durning – 225
3rd Dylan Byrne – 124
Pro Twins
1st Avalon Lewis (YZF-R7) – 279
2nd Billie Fuller – 210
3rd Scott Findlay – 189
