The Pro Supersport championship battle in the Bridgestone Canadian Superbike Championship (CSBK) took an exciting turn on Saturday at Atlantic Motorsport Park (AMP), as 18-year-old Andrew Van Winkle powered his Mountainview Motorsports Suzuki to a thrilling victory in race one of the second round.

Starting from fourth on the grid, Van Winkle launched superbly, overtaking the leaders in turn two to take the holeshot ahead of Alex Michel and Torin Collins. A chaotic first lap followed — Collins struggled in the damp, drying conditions, leading to a collision between Sebastien Tremblay, John Laing, and himself, knocking all three riders down.

Trevor Daley temporarily inherited third place but soon crashed as well, giving Elliot Vieira a podium spot. Up front, Van Winkle and Michel began to pull away, with rookie Laurent Laliberte-Girard climbing through the field behind them.

Michel looked poised to challenge Van Winkle midway through the race, but strategic use of lapped traffic allowed Van Winkle to create a crucial gap. Capitalizing on the moment, he extended his lead and secured his second career Pro Supersport win, moving to within four points of the championship lead.

“I knew I had to take advantage of the lapped riders,” said Van Winkle. “It gave me the cushion I needed.”

Michel, riding for SpeedFactory67 Kawasaki, settled for second after a strong effort but couldn’t find a clean passing opportunity. “Traffic hurt my chances, but I’m happy to be back on the podium,” he said.

Rookie Laliberte-Girard stunned with a late charge to claim third aboard his Nadon Sport Yamaha, moving past Vieira as the track dried. Unaware of his podium finish until after the race, he joked, “I honestly didn’t believe it when they told me I was third.”

The podium featured an all “old generation” lineup: Van Winkle’s GSX-R600, Michel’s ZX-6RR, and Laliberte-Girard’s YZF-R6 — marking the first time a “next-gen” bike missed the podium since the class rules changed in 2023.

Vieira led the next-gen machines in fourth for GP Bikes Ducati, followed by Nathan Playford in fifth after recovering from an early off-track excursion. Daley remounted impressively to salvage sixth despite sustaining an injury in the first-lap incident.

Marco Sousa finished seventh, while Mackenzie Weil had to pit for mechanical repairs, dropping him behind. Tremblay recovered to ninth, preserving his title hopes. Collins, despite finishing the race, was not classified due to completing fewer than 70% of the laps.

Despite his DNF, pole-sitter Collins retains the championship lead heading into race two, though just 13 points separate the top five riders — setting the stage for another intense battle on Sunday.

Race two is scheduled for 1:00 pm AT on Sunday at AMP, just north of Halifax.

Original article: Van Winkle fends off Michel in chaotic Supersport race one at AMP – CSBK.ca