Latest News

Home/Latest News/

2019 Season – Round 4 Preview!

This weekend sees the fourth round of the Victorian State Race Series being held at Sandown Raceway, with the 944 Challenge again competing as one of the staple categories of the series – for the first time with the backing of Porsche Australia on board!

Here is a preview of the competitors who will be on track this weekend:

#1 Cameron Beller – Cameron had two perfect rounds to start the year, but WInton was even more of a horror for him than 2018 – this year returning zero points for the weekend. While he is able to fall back on the dropped worst round rule for the 944 series keeping him on top in that pointscore, he has slipped to second in the Victorian State Circuit Racing Championship Points with only two rounds remaining. He will hope to replicate his perfect Sandown performance from Round 1 as he looks to claw back the points deficit.

#5 Lyndon Watson – Lyndon had a perfect Saturday at Winton, scoring Pole Position and the Race 1 win, but had to settle for second and third positions on Sunday. Nevertheless, he now sits second in the 944 points after factoring in the dropped worst round after his non attendance at Sandown at Round 1. Would this put him at a disadvantage this weekend against his rivals?

#28 Tony Westaway – Tony had an outstanding weekend at Winton with two race victories securing him the Round win also – the first wins of his career. With a lead in the Vic State Series Pointscore, Tony will be holding nothing back as he looks to stay at the top of the points ladder at the end of the weekend.

#4 Ken Rowland – Ken also had a great weekend at Winton, with a solid weekend ending on the highest point as he finished second in the final race, setting the fastest lap across the three races – these results moving him up to fourth in the series points.

#3 Mark Taubitz – What started out as a great weekend at Winton for Taubitz with a front row qualifying start converting to an early race 1 lead all came unravelled in a matter of laps as his car lost speed and he was hauled in and quickly overtaken by the lead pack – pulling into the pits and out for the weekend – dropping him back to fifth position from second in the points. A borrowed engine courtesy of Andrew Jackman sees Taubitz on the grid for this round, and looking to make amends for his WInton disaster.

#99 John Kennedy – John had another great weekend at WInton scoring two more podium finishes, and now heads to Sandown for his first outing at the fast Melbourne circuit. Johns car was on the podium at Round 1 when driven by Paul Crocitti – and John will be keen to get the car onto the top step of the podium this weekend and move into the top five in the points.

#27 Toni Andreevski – Toni’s strong season continued at WInton as he consistently improves during his weekends racing – seeing him into seventh position in the series pointscore after the three rounds so far. Toni will aim to improve on his Round 1 results at Sandown and will have his targets set on some top 5 finishes this weekend.

#66 Tim Wolfe – TIm also improved during the course of his Winton weekend, and a good collection of results in the top ten despite a huge moment resulting in a spin in race 2 sees Tim sitting in eighth in the points. Returning to a circuit he has raced at for the first time will no doubt benefit Tim this weekend and he will also look to improve on his results at Round 1.

#64 Keith Marriner – Keith again started his weekend slowly at Winton but improved during the course of the running and left the weekend sitting in ninth position in the points. Keith will look to emulate some of his previous good form at Sandown to move up int he points come the end of the weekend.

#31 Adam Brewer – Adam is another who had a frustrating weekend at Winton with mechanical dramas resulting in two DNF’s. Adam had a strong outing at Sandown at Round 1 dicing in and around the top 5 – some reliability should see him repeating that form this weekend as he has his eyes on his first podium finish.

#46 Jim Mitchell – Jim had a better weekend at Winton than he had at Phillip Island, with no reliability issues to speak of and sees him in eleventh position in the points. Jim will look for some solid top ten results at what is traditionally his strongest circuit on the schedule to move into the top ten in the points.

#98 Pedr James – Pedr was back aboard his old faithful white and green car at Winton, and showed great speed with Pedr on the lead pack all weekend – but his weekend was soured by an off track excursion in Race 2 and a spin on the last lap of the final race while sitting fifth resulting in a DNF. Pedr will hope to string a series of three finishes together this weekend and hope to move into the top ten in the series points.

#20 Andrew Jackman – Andrew had a so-so weekend at Winton, struggling for ultimate pace while complaining of understeer hampering his pace, Three finishes nevertheless moved him up to thirteenth in the points after missing the Sandown round at the start of the year.

#32 John Vainoras – John had his highest pointscore for the year at Winton, finishing all three races and battling hard all weekend with Andy Jones. Round 1 at Sandown was a testing time for John so he will look to make up for that this weekend and have some good battles with his competitors this weekend.

#21 Clayton Sinclair – Clayton also had mechanical issues at Winton and was forced to sit out Sundays action – hopefully some better fortune will fall Claytons way this weekend at Sandown as he looks to improve on his best results so far from Round 2 at Phillip Island and move up in the points.

#12 Marius Catrina – Marius returns after missing round 3 at Winton, and some good finishes will move him up ion the points order. Marius qualified a fantastic sixth at Round 1 at Sandown so he will hope to replicate or improve that performance this weekend and back it up with three strong finishes.

#8 Dick Howe – A bad weekend at Winton for Dick, suffering two DNF’s and unable to start the final race after an off track excursion on the final lap of race 2 caused some exhaust damage that was unable to be fixed for Race 3. Dick’s season has been hampered with bad luck – no more so than at Sandown Round 1 when he blew an engine in qualifying. Making it to grid for Race 1 will therefore be an improvement for the veteran as he looks to get the second half of his season off to a better start than the first!

#14 Paul Greer – A welcome return is Paul Greer in his stunning Gold 944 – fingers crossed Paul has gotten to the bottom of his fuel issues which saw him able to finish some of the races at Phillip Island, despite the problems still present – perhaps in a lesser capacity. At a track he has produced great results in the past, hopefully Paul will be able to be a factor up the front of the field this weekend.

#97 Rob Holding – Another welcome return to the circuit for the first time in 2019 is Rob Holding – with a fresh engine on board Rob will no doubt be dicing up the point end of the field after his impressive performances the last few times on track in 2018.

#53 Peter Doherty – Peter is yet to be confirmed for the weekends entry list, but will be at the circuit on Friday to test and hope he has solved the niggles he has experienced on board his car the past few rounds. Fingers crossed Peter has exorcised the cars demons and will be on the grid with the 19 other cars on Saturday,

Missing this weekend will be the two orange cars – Andy Jones who is out of action for the next few rounds after having an operation on his achilles, and Michael Westaway who is heading overseas when the round is taking place.

The forecast is for a clear Friday and Saturday – but there are some showers predicted for Sunday… and there is always some extra excitement with some water added…

944 Qualifying kicks off at 11:40am on Saturday morning with Race 1 at 3:40pm. Come on down to Sandown Raceway for a great weekend of racing!

By |July 17th, 2019|Categories: 2019, News|0 Comments
Read More

Porsche Cars Australia to support the 944 Racing Association in 2019!

Some very exciting news for all drivers of the 944 Challenge series with a new announcement surrounding a fantastic new sponsorship arrangement with Porsche Cars Australia!

Porsche Cars Australia will include the 944 Challenge in the young driver development program for 2019. At the conclusion of the 2019 season (Vic State Race Series), the champion driver from the competition* will be offered a Porsche GT3 Cup Track Experience valued at approximately $7,000 each.

The GT3 Cup Track Experience involves a full day behind the wheel of a current-specification Porsche 911 GT3 Cup Car (Gen II), the same car used in highly competitive Porsche Carrera Cup Championships campaigned around the globe. The GT3 Cup Track Experience is the perfect stepping stone for both young drivers seeking to progress their careers and more experienced drivers to elevate their racing to the next level.

“We are pleased to expand our support of Australian Motor Sport to three exciting categories,” said Motorsport Manager for Porsche Cars Australia, Troy Bundy.

“The Porsche 944 challenge is also the first step on the Porsche Motorsport pyramid and an affordable introduction for drivers of all ages to one-make Porsche racing. We are proud to support this great class.”

“Porsche and our partners have made a significant investment into driver development locally and we are proud to expand that further this year.”

The announcement increases an already significant investment in junior driver development within Australian Motorsport. Working with major partner Michelin, Porsche’s Michelin Junior Program supports a total of eleven young drivers competing in the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia and Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge this year, with approximately $300,000 in support and prizes on offer.

As part of the program, Michelin Junior driver Jordan Love received a trip to Germany to experience the Formula E Berlin E-Prix on May 25 by virtue of winning the ‘Michelin Super Round’ at the Australian Grand Prix. As in previous years, the leading Porsche Michelin Junior competing in Porsche Carrera Cup Australia will receive a nomination to the Porsche Motorsport Junior Program Shootout in Europe later this year.

The winner of which will receive a scholarship to contest the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup in 2020, following in the footsteps of both Jaxon Evans and Matt Campbell.

*Previous winners will be excluded from eligibility for winning the prize a second time. In this instance, the prize will be offered to the next highest place eligible driver.

By |July 10th, 2019|Categories: 2019, News|0 Comments
Read More

2019 Season – Round 3 Preview!

One more sleep until the 944 Challenge field set off to begin Qualifying for Round 3 of the 2019 season at Winton Raceway. 18 cars and drivers are entered which bodes for a great weekend’s racing ahead. Let’s go through the drivers entered for the round.

#1 Cameron Beller – Cameron has had two perfect rounds so far, but returns to the scene of what was to be his downfall in his quest for the 2018 Vic State Series Title in Winton Raceway. He will look to keep his perfect streak for 2019 going and avoid the dramas of last year.

#3 Mark Taubitz – Two consistent rounds so far in 2019 sees Mark second in the pointscore despite struggling with power on the two high speed tracks. He will look to return to the podium this weekend at Winton where power is less of a top level concern.

#28 Tony Westaway – Tony finished third outright for the weekend at Phillip Island which sees him move up the pointscore into third position outright. Tony had some issues at his Winton appearance last year, so will look to have a smoother run on his return to the regional circuit in his attempt to move further up the standings.

#27 Toni Andreevski – Toni continues his strong start to the 2019 season which after scoring a top 5 result at Phillip Island, sees him up to fourth in the points. This will surprisingly be his first visit to race in the 944’s at Winton Raceway, will he be able to get to grips with the tight layout to maintain his championship position?

#64 Keith Marriner – Keith had an ordinary start to the weekend at Phillip Island, but improved for Sunday which sees him in fifth position in the points after the first two rounds. Winton was the scene of Keith’s best round result last year, he will be keen to replicate that result this weekend!

#31 Adam Brewer – Adam is another driver competing in the 944 Challenge for the first time at Winton this weekend. Some mechanical issues hampered Adam in Race 1 at Phillip Island which saw him slip a couple of positions in the points – fingers crossed for a reliable weekend for Adam as he will aim to claw back some of the lost positions.

#66 Tim Wolfe – Continuing the theme of drivers having their first outing in a 944 Challenge race at Winton this weekend, Tim is another who will be doing just that along with Toni & Adam. A DNF in Race 2 at PI cost Tim some points, but he is still sitting a credible seventh after the two rounds.

#4 Ken Rowland – Ken had a weekend to forget at Phillip Island and will look to get his season back on track at Winton Raceway – a track where he has previously shown some very impressive speed at in the past – can he get himself back on the podium again this weekend?

#98 Pedr James – Pedr unfortunately had some engine issues at the end of the final race at PI, which will see him possibly return to his ‘old faithful’ white & green car for this weekend – Pedr also had good speed at this last Winton outing behind the wheel of that car and will be aiming to have a reliable weekend and push into the top 5 over the weekend.

#5 Lyndon Watson – Lyndon had a good return to track at Phillip Island after missing Round 1, and after a good showing at Winton in 2018 which was unfortunately hampered by a failed fuel pump at the end of Race 2, Lyndon will hope to get onto the podium this weekend and vault further up the pointscore.

#46 Jim Mitchell – Jim had a weekend to forget at Phillip Island last round, but will be energised with the memory of a strong showing at Winton in 2018 when he finished fifth outright at the State Round and fourth in the reverse grid race at the Shannons Round in August to encourage him for the upcoming round.

#21 Clayton Sinclair – Clayton is yet another having is first race at Winton aboard a 944 – and he will want to wipe away his most recent memory of pitting in the final race at Phillip Island to address a black flag… which wasn’t intended for him… Good pace as the weekend continued for Clayton will give him some optimism to have a strong showing this weekend.

#8 Dick Howe – A strong showing from Dick at Phillip Island last round after the disappointment of his engine failure in qualifying at Sandown saw him finish fifth for the round despite a race 1 spin in the wet dropped him down the pack, he was able to move up to dice in the leading pack in the final race, ultimately just missing out on a podium. He will look to continue the momentum from that round.into Round 3.

#33 Andy Jones – Andy is yet another first timer at Winton, and after suffering some car issues at Phillip Island will be back on track and ready for a reliable weekend as he will come to grips with Winton for the first time under race conditions.

#32 John Vainoras – John had a more encouraging weekend at Phillip Island, finishing all three races which was a good result after a troubling Sandown. Showing a good increase in pace across the weekend, John will hope that momentum continues at Winton this weekend.

#99 John Kennedy – The sixth driver having his first race weekend at Winton will be John Kennedy – fresh off a fantastic debut performance at Phillip Island which saw him snare a pair of podium finishes before being black flagged in the final race. John will hope he can maintain the impressive showing this weekend around the twisty Winton circuit.

#20 Andrew Jackman – Andrew has bit the bullet and upgraded to the Motec ECU unit for this round, and will be looking to have a good showing after preparing the car for the round ahead. A good showing at Winton last year is something he will be looking to further improve on this weekend.

#45 Michael Westaway – Michael had a stunning qualifying at Phillip Island putting the car third on the grid, but unfortunately it was downhill from there as he suffered mechanical issues bringing his weekend to a premature close. There were similar issues for Michael at Winton last year, so he will be hoping they have been well and truly solved to avoid a repeat performance from then.

A few drivers are missing this weekend from Phillip Island, with Marius Catrina, Peter Doherty, Paul Greer, Campbell Hammersley-Alderson & Paul Crocitti not entered for this round – hopefully we will see these drivers back for Round 4 at Sandown in 5 weeks time.

The forecast is for no rain this weekend, but there is always some extra excitement with some water added…

944 Qualifying kicks off at 10:45am on Saturday morning with Race 1 at 3pm. Come on down to Winton Motor Raceway for a great weekend of racing!

By |June 14th, 2019|Categories: 2019, News|0 Comments
Read More

2019 Season – Round 2 Preview!

Less than one week remains until the 944 Challenge field set off to begin practice for Round 2 of the 2019 season at Phillip Island. 22 cars and drivers are entered, the highest field since Round 1 of the 2017 Season!

#1 Cameron Beller – Cameron continued on his winning ways at Round 1 of the season at Sandown with a perfect result with 3 wins from 3 races Will he be able to replicate this performance at Phillip Island?

#4 Ken Rowland – Ken showed impressive pace as he secured his first front row starting position and also his first podium finishes to make a strong start to the season after missing the first half of the 2018 season. Ken will be looking to keep the momentum up at Phillip Island, a track he historically has performed well at.

#31 Adam Brewer – Adam performed extremely well at his first outing at Sandown raceway at Round 1, and will be looking to repeat the performance as he returns to a track he has competed at previously in Phillip Island. One driver who suffered cooling dramas in the heat of the Sandown weekend, he will look to have put those issues behind him and improve further on his pace.

#3 Mark Taubitz – Mark was another who struggled with engine temperature and performance at Sandown which left him slightly off the pace he was expecting. He will also hope to have solved those issues for Phillip Island and will look to get onto the podium for the first time this weekend.

#66 Tim Wolfe – Tim was the highest placed of the 944 rookies who had their first outing at Sandown and performed extremely well in his first outing. Some further comfort tweaks in the gap between Rounds 1 & 2 will surely mean he will find some more pace on board the Pipecraft 944 as he has first outing at Phillip Island.

#64 Keith Marriner – Keith had a solid performance at PI, though a spin in Race 3 prevented him from having a better result for the round. Some vehicles upgrades have given Keith further confidence which will have him chasing some personal best records at Phillip Island this coming weekend.

#46 Jim Mitchell – Jim again had a solid weekend at Sandown to commence the first round, highlighted by a seventh position in Race 2 bookended by a pair of ninth place finishes after qualifying dramas saw him at the back of the pack. Jim will be looking for another trio of top ten finishes this weekend at PI.

#27 Toni Andreevski – Toni also had a strong opening round at Sandown as he improved throughout the weekend, culminating in an eighth place finish in the final race of the weekend, Toni will be returning for Round 2 as he attempts to complete as many rounds as possible this season.

#28 Tony Westaway – Tony was on track for a great weekend after finishing Race 1 in second position, however a part failure on the first corner of Race 2 put him out of that race, though recovered strongly to finish fifth in the final race. Tony will be hoping to retain the strong pace shown across to Phillip Island to move himself up the points order.

#98 Pedr James – Pedr ran his new car for the first time, as he acclimatised to left hand drive for the first time. Struggling with pace however, Pedr will no doubt have made some tweaks in an attempt to find some more speed for Round 2, at a track he has had good recent form at.

#57 Campbell Hammersley-Alderson – Taking over behind the wheels of Pedr’s familiar white & green PKJ Fencing 944, Campbell put on a good showing in his first round behind the wheel of a 944 – he will also be looking to close the gap on the mid pack as he gets more familiar with the car on his first visit to Phillip Island.

#33 Andy Jones – Andy also debuted with the series behind the wheel of a car returning to the series for the first time in 8 years – albeit with a number of upgrades. Andy also put on a good performance, battling with Campbell for the weekend and also improving as the weekend went on – Andy will also be looking to get more comfortable with the car as he improves his pace and move up the order this weekend.

#12 Marius Catrina – Marius put on a great performance in qualifying to slot himself sixth on the grid, unfortunately though a spin in Race 1 put him back in the pack, with a Race 3 DNF affecting his Round pointscore. Marius will be hoping to revisit that qualifying pace on his return to Phillip Island

#21 Clayton Sinclair – Clayton was another series debutante who performed very well – actually taking the gong of the highest qualifying of the four first time drivers on the weekend, but a race 2 engine blow up on the last lap ended his weekend early after a strong Race 1 on Saturday. Armed with a fresh engine, Clayton will be ready to hit the track and repeat the performance this weekend.

#32 John Vainoras – John had a disappointing weekend at Sandown as he struggled with car issues all weekend in the heat, only managing to complete the first race on Saturday with two DNF’s on Sunday – he will be hoping for a turnaround of fortunes this weekend and to finish all the sessions.

#8 Dick Howe – Dick was out of the Sandown weekend early, after an engine failure on Saturdays qualifying session both laid down an impressive smokescreen, but caused Dick to put the car on the trailer. Ready and raring for Round 2, Dick will be back to make amends for the early demise with a strong Round 2 showing.

#53 Peter Doherty – Packing up from the Sandown weekend even earlier was Peter Doherty, as persistent fuel pickup and misfire issues throughout Friday practice led Peter to pack up to take the car home to fix it properly – hopefully no further issues will befall Peter this weekend..

#14 Paul Greer – Paul has hopefully fixed his fuel issues on his 944, and returns to the circuit for the first time in a couple of years – the distinctive Tiger Mica coloured 944 a welcome return to the circuit, and will be looking for some reliability this weekend as he has hopefully solved the issues that have plagued him in recent showings.

#5 Lyndon Watson – Lyndon was a last minute withdrawal from Round 1, so will be looking to start his 2019 season at Phillip Island, a track where he showed good speed in 2018 and will no doubt have a podium finish in his sights for the weekend ahead.

#20 Andrew Jackman – Fresh from a run around the famed Mount Panorama circuit aboard his 944 as part of the Porsche regularity meeting, Andrew will also be starting his 2019 944 Challenge campaign at Phillip Island – another who has had some of his strongest finishes at the historic circuit, AJ will be looking to be firmly inside the top ten – and will be one smiling if the skies turn grey and the track turns wet…

#45 Michael Westaway – A trio of podium finishes was the results for Michael at his last outing – which having missed Round 1 this year, was achieved at the final round of the 2018 season – at Phillip Island… Michael will be another who will be surely looking to put himself back on the podium this weekend as he looks to make up for missing the first round.

#99 John Kennedy – Another series debutante this weekend comes in the form of John Kennedy – John is no stranger to pedalling a 944 around the race circuit however, as he has completed many track days in his 944 S2. How will John adapt to the lower powered 2.5 litre Challenge car? His new steed has got great form – having sat on the podium at Round 1 in the hands of its builder, Paul Crocitti.

As a result of the sale, missing from the round is Paul Crocitti on the heels of his best ever race and round results at Round 1 at Sandown, Paul will be on the sidelines and will wave goodbye to his second position in the points standings as a result. Hopefully we will see Paul on track behind the wheel of another car later on in the year…

944 Qualifying kicks off at 10:25am on Saturday morning with Race 1 at 2:25pm. Come on down to fantastic Phillip Island for a great weekend of racing!

 

By |April 27th, 2019|Categories: 2019, News|0 Comments
Read More

2019 Season – Round 1 Preview!

On the eve of Practice before the first round of the 2019 944 Challenge season, we will go through a quick preview of the drivers entered for Round 1 at Sandown – with a higher number of entries than any round in 2018 a positive way to start the new year!

#1 Cameron Beller – Cameron returns for 2019 after clinching his third consecutive 944 Challenge Series Championship – and will have his sights on Championship number 4 this year.

#74 Mark Taubitz – Mark was able to win the unofficial ‘over 20’s’ championship last year with third in the series behind Beller and Jamie Westaway. He will be looking to start his season strongly and will be aiming for podium finishes this weekend.

#64 Keith Marriner – Keith had a strong 2018 season with fourth in the season standings at the end of the year – some further upgrades to his car in the off season have taken place to help him as he attempts to repeat this result for the 2019 Championship.

#8 Dick Howe – Dick showed good speed at times throughout the year but was hampered by a couple of DNF’s that stopped him from placing higher in the points. He will be looking to get the season off on the right foot at Sandown this weekend.

#46 Jim Mitchell – Jim had another very consistent season and fought adversity with a number of mechanical issues to keep running all year – sixth in the pointscore a good reward for his efforts to keep the car on the circuit. With his best result of 2018 coming at Round 1 at Sandown, Jim will look to replicate that performance this weekend.

#98 Pedr James – A good season for Pedr with a season result of 7th despite missing two rounds of the season – he will hand over the reigns of his trusted 944 in exchange for the ex-Ryan Woods machine that Pedr will take control of, as he looks to become familiar with the Left Hand Drive configuration in anticipation of a new build in the works to come on circuit later in the year…

#4 Ken Rowland – Ken sat out the first half of the 2018 season, but proved he hadn’t lost any of his pace as he returned to the circuit in the second half of the year in anticipation for a full season campaign in 2019. Ken will have his eyes on some top 5 finishes this weekend at Sandown.

#32 John Vainoras – John was away from the championship for the second half of 2018, but returns at Sandown for Round 1 and will look for a good start to 2019 this weekend.

#27 Toni Andreevski – Toni only managed to attend three rounds last year, but is hoping to get to more rounds this season – and a good result as he unlocks more speed on his 944 will be the perfect way for him to start the season.

#28 Tony Westaway – Tony handed over the keys of his trusty 944 to son Jamie who took the car to the 2018 Vic State Championship and 2nd place in the 944 Challenge title. Tony only was able to get into the seat for the Tailem Bend round, where he showed he hasn’t lost his speed with a series of podiums on the weekend. He will return behind the wheel for the full season in 2019.

#12 Marius Catrina – Marius was only present for two rounds in 2018 at the start and end of the season, though encountered issues at the final round at Island Magic. He will look for some top tens at Sandown – a track he has had some good performances at in the past.

#31 Adam Brewer – Adam showed good pace in his first race at Island Magic and will be a force to be reckoned with as he gets more experience behind the wheel of his 944 and familiarises himself with the circuits. His first 944 race at Sandown this weekend will prove a new challenge, but Adam will no doubt be up to the task with results in the top half of the field as his intention for the weekend.

#16  Paul Crocitti – Paul sat out the majority of the 2018 season bar the Tailem Bend round – but returns for Round 1 of the 2019 season Paul has shown good speed at Sandown in events gone by, and will be another with aims of a top ten this weekend

#53 Peter Doherty – Peter attended a couple of rounds in 2018 in a season that was highlighted by taking out victory in the final race of the Dennis O Keeffe Cup at Winton. Fuel issues at Island Magic cut his weekend short, he will hope for more reliability this weekend.

#14 Paul Greer – Paul returns to the circuit for the first time in a couple of years – the distinctive Tiger Mica coloured 944 a welcome return to the circuit, and will be looking for some reliability this weekend as he has hopefully solved the issues that have plagued him in recent showings.

We have four drivers making their debut in the 944 Challenge this weekend!

#21 Clayton Sinclair – Clayton is behind the wheel of the Guards Red #21 944 that was last raced by Jim Gallagher and being run out of the Beller Motorsport camp. Clayton has had some track experience behind the wheel of a very potent Nissan – and will find a different experience racing the nimble but underpowered in comparison 944s!

#66 Tim Wolfe – Tim has purchased the ex-Vince Misuraca 944 and returns it to the track with #66 on the door. Coming over from Western Australia, Tim also has experience in WA, but is pumped at the prospect of close racing on the nations best circuits as he takes on the full 2019 season in his 944!

#57 Campbell Hammersley-Alderson – Taking over behind the wheels of Pedr’s familiar white & green PKJ Fencing 944, Campbell has had some experience getting used to the car he will be racing after helping Pedr with crewing on the car over the past couple of seasons before taking over behind the wheel!

#33 Andy Jones – Andy will also debut with the series behind the wheel of a car returning to the series for the first time in 8 years – albeit with a number of upgrades. Andy is also not a complete stranger to Porsches’ and the 944, having done track days in a club spec 944 before taking the plunge to purchase his new steed to get out for some door handle to door handle racing!

944 Qualifying kicks off at 9:10am on Saturday morning with Race 1 at 1:35pm. Come on down to fantastic Phillip Island for a great weekend of racing!

By |February 28th, 2019|Categories: 2019, News|0 Comments
Read More

2018 Season – Round 5 Preview!

We are on the eve of practice as the 944 Challenge hit the track to prepare for the fifth and final round of the 2018 Victorian State Circuit Racing Championships!
 
Here is the preview for this round as we look back to Round 2 of the series at Phillip Island in May this year as a form guide.
 
#28 Jamie Westaway – Jamie holds a slender points for the Vic State Series heading into the title deciding round, with a trio of third place finishes will be enough to secure him the title regardless of what title rival Cameron Beller can muster. Will Jamie run a conservative weekend to take the title, or will he fight hard to turn the tables from the earlier visit to Phillip Island in May?
 
#1 Cameron Beller – Cam has nothing to lose as he will have an attitude to repeat his earlier results from Phillip Island, and win all three races, and see what fate deals for the title results.
 
#74 Mark Taubitz – Mark had a strong run at Phillip Island in May, earning his first podium finish and now sits in a comfortable third position in the points. A consistent weekend will ensure he secures that position for the State Season pointscore.
#5 Lyndon Watson – Lyndon has shown plenty of speed and had some great results at Phillip Island in May, but some unreliability at Sandown has hampered his points tally, and he will need problems to befall Taubitz to have any chance of stealing third position in the points score from him. He will look for a strong result this weekend as a good springboard for season 2019. 
 
#64 Keith Marriner – Keith slipped back a couple of positions in the points after a DNF in the final race at Sandown, and leads the charge to fifth in the season points for the State Series for the year. He will need to fend off some stiff competition in Jim Mitchell and Dick Howe if he will do that however!
 
#46 Jim Mitchell – Jim enters the final round of the State Series a few points adrift of Marriner as he will look to take fifth for the season – but as well as overcome Marriner, Mitchell will also need to beat Dick Howe – with whom he is even on points going into the round! 
  
#8 Dick Howe – Dick missed the Winton round which has hurt his points tally, but nevertheless he is poised to fight for fifth in the State series points for the season. Dick has arguably the most speed amongst his rivals for the points position, but he will need to finish all three races to have a chance to take the outright result!
#98 Pedr James – Pedr missed the last round at Phillip Island and is thus mired back in the points for this season, but has always had good results at Phillip Island and will look to a good weekend and some good racing and to improve on his best race results of fifth that he has now achieved in back to back events at Sandown and Winton.
#27 Toni Andreevski – Toni returns after missing the Winton Shannons Invitational round for his second venture to Phillip Island. The last time here, Toni had an impromptu BBQ at the end of the second race which resulted in a birthday for his venerable #27 racer. He will now look to improve on his times and results this weekend and hope the only cooking on the weekend will be at dinner time away from the racetrack!
#4 Ken Rowland – Making his first outing for 2018 is Ken Rowland. Great to see Ken back on track in the Hire Depot car, at a track he historically performs well at. Will he have to blow off some cobwebs before he is in the thick of the action competing for a Top 5 result?
#31 Adam Brewer – A welcome new addition to the series is Adam Brewer – fresh from completing his OLT on Thursday, Adam is heading from Benalla to Phillip Island for practice on Friday for his first race event. Piloting the car at Winton, Manny Mezzasalma gave the car its first race weekend for 4 years at Winton, and now Adam makes his debut. Some impressive times at a Phillip Island test day should see Adam firmly in the thick of the action this weekend.
Missing for the round is Michael Westaway, who is venturing around on Holiday with brother Tony Westaway, with a number of other competitors saving their pennies to venture off to Tailem Bend in three weeks!
Mixed weather is forecast for the weekend, with rain scheduled for Friday practice… 944 Qualifying kicks off at 9:25am on Saturday morning with Race 1 at 1:25pm. Come on down!
By |September 27th, 2018|Categories: News|0 Comments
Read More

Shannons Nationals Invitational Round – Race 3

The third and final Race of the 944 Challenge event at the Shannons Nationals was run as a reverse grid handicap race, again over 9 laps on Sunday afternoon, with the grid and handicaps set by the fastest laps set during Saturdays first race.

Thus it was Jim Mitchell who would start from pole position, with Peter Doherty alongside him on the front row. The second row would consist of Manny Mezzasalma with Keith Marriner for company next to him in grid spot four.

There would be a 15 second delay before the second group would commence, with Dick Howe, Michael Westaway and Mark Taubitz in that group, with a five second gap before the next group would head off, with that group containing Pedr James, Paul Crocitti and Tony Westaway. There would then be a further 15 second gap before the final group of Rob Holding, Chris Lewis-Williams and Cameron Beller rounding out the final group.

Jim Mitchell took the lead off the start from Doherty, Mezzasalma and Marriner, though Doherty would make his way past Mitchell into the lead into turn three with Mitchell slotting into second position.

Howe, Michael Westaway and Taubitz were all ducking and weaving for the first half of the lap as all three wanted to be at the head of the pack before Westaway took the lead of the group from Howe & Taubitz. A heavily patched up car of Crocitti took the lead of group 3 from James and Tony Westaway, while Lewis-Williams again got a great start to take the lead in the final group from Beller and Holding.

The first position change was on lap 3 when Tony Westaway moved ahead of James for ninth position. Beller was desperately trying to find a way past Lewis-Williams, with Lewis-Williams defending just as fiercely – both drivers knowing that the higher placed of the two would likely take home the silverware for the weekend.

At the end of lap 5 and Doherty led Mitchell by a second, with Mezzasalma and Marriner both within a further second behind him. The gap to the next group was only a further four seconds, with Howe and Taubitz all within a second of the Orange Westbon car. Crocitti was a further three seconds away, though there was another five seconds between Crocitti and Tony Westaway. James was another two seconds behind with Lewis-Williams and Beller now right on James’ tail.

The groups started to condense as the race went on between the groups, though Howe was wide on the exit of Turn 4 on lap 6, and spun off to the infield and the back of the pack. Lewis-Williams and Beller both also overtook James at Penrite corner him on lap 6, now into  ninth and tenth positions respectively.

As lap 7 began, Taubitz moved past Michael Westaway the into turn 1, with Michael then slowing and retiring later in the lap with mechanical gremlins. Beller was still looking every which-way to get past Lewis-Williams, but couldn’t find a clean way to make a pass. As this group caught the slowing Michael Westaway at Penrite corner, dramas befell James who looped around, with Holding moving up to tenth position as a result, and Howe up to eleventh position, James back to twelfth. Lewis-Williams got a great run out of turn 10 and pulled alongside Tony Westaway with Beller in his slipstream, the paid moving past as Tony succumbed to the two faster cars – moving them up to seventh and eighth spot.

Up front meanwhile, and Taubitz had caught the back of the leading group – and made the pass on Marriner for fourth position in the final corner. Crocitti moved past Marriner also under brakes for turn 3 on the second last lap. Taubitz could see Doherty stretching the gap up front, and was keen to get past Mezzasalma and Mitchell to set after the leading 944 – though a small touch from Taubitz after poking his nose to the inside going into turn 9 sent the car of Mezzasalma into a slow spin – dropping him back down to eleventh position. 

The most dramatic moment occurred a few corners later – as Marriner had a spin in turn 11 while sitting behind Crocitti, with the #64 PAS car stationary in the track as the pair of Lewis-Williams and Beller rounded to corner. Beller went to the left, and Lewis-WIlliams to the right – though it was Lewis-Williams who made contact with the right front of his car against Marriners – breaking his front suspension and putting him out of the race – and contention for the Dennis O’Keefe Cup immediately. CLW parked the car on the grass between the circuit and pit entry and walked to safety – a cruel blow as he looked poised to take home the prize for the weekend.

Up front and Taubitz was back onto the tail of Mitchell, and made hi move for the position on the exit of turn four, with Crocitti following him through into third position. Noone was catching Doherty up front however, as Peter crossed the line to take his first race victory by 2 seconds from Taubitz. A very popular result for the series veteran, which also earnt him third outright for the weekend – a great reward for a weekend of smart driving where he kept out of trouble without a mark on the car, and ran the consistent times and didn’t put a foot wrong when it mattered.

Second was a good result for Taubitz after his bad luck in Race 2, with the other driver who suffered poor fate in Race 2, Paul Crocitti – also taking home a well earnt podium result – his first in the 944 Challenge series – after showing great speed all weekend, only one second behind Taubitz at the end.

Holding onto fourth position was Mitchell – just – with Cameron Beller closing in and the pair crossing the line side-by-side  Mitchell getting the nod by only one hundredth of a second at the line! Beller would take solace in the fact that his fifth position finish was enough for him to take home the Dennis O’Keefe Cup courtesy of aPorschapart for the weekend.

Sixth position went to Tony Westaway, three second adrift of Beller, with Holding just behind him after showing very impressive speed all weekend – a second position for the weekend a great reward for the weekends efforts. Eighth was Dick Howe after his mid race spin, with Mezzasalma ninth and James tenth after they also had spins in the latter part of the race. Marriner was the final finisher a further twenty seconds back after his late race drama – with Chris Lewis Williams and Michael Westaway the two DNF’s for the round.

So the Shannons Nationals event was run and won – a huge thanks to CAMS, the Shannons Nationals series, Winton Raceway and the Benalla Auto Club for inviting us to be part of this great event. We can’t wait to come back for future events!

Next though, would be the final round of the Vic State Race Series on the final weekend of September, and Jamie Westaway will be back behind the wheel to try to protect his points lead from Cameron Beller – who will be looking to repeat his Phillip Island clean sweep from earlier in the year as he attempts to snatch back the title from Jamie’s grasp. Head down to Phillip Island on September 29/30 to watch all the action!

By |September 2nd, 2018|Categories: News, 2018, 2018 Race Results & Reports|0 Comments
Read More

Shannons Nationals Invitational Round – Race 2

Race 2 of the 944 Challenge event at the Shannons Nationals was run as a reverse grid event over 9 laps on Sunday morning. As a result of Race 1’s finishing order, Tony Westaway lined up on the pole position, with Keith Marriner lining up alongside him on the front row with Manny Mezzasalma and Jim Mitchell lining up on the second row. Peter Doherty and Pedr James would share row 3, with Dick Howe and Michael Westaway on the fourth row. Row 5 would be made up of Mark Taubitz and Paul Crocitti, with the race 1 podium finishers Rob Holding, Chris Lewis-Williams and Cameron Beller rounding out the grid.

Jim Mitchell got his customary drag-car-like start off the line to split the front row starters and then dived to the inside of  Tony Westaway to lead into Turn 1. Keith Marriner slotted into third position with Mezzasalma fourth, and Doherty and James side by side through the first corner complex. Getting a fantastic start was Chris Lewis-Williams, who took the outside line to follow Doherty and was in seventh position already, with Dick Howe on his outside on the run to turn 3. Crocitti also got a good start down the outside and was next, with Holding also moving up a few spots. The biggest losers off the start were Michael Westaway who got an ordinary getaway, and Mark Taubitz who was boxed in behind him – Cameron Beller also suffered stuck behind those who were slower away, though was able to take the inside run on Taubitz and then out-run Michael Westaway under brakes for turn 3 to move to eleventh position.

Tony Westaway ranged up alongside Mitchell and took the lead under brakes into turn 3 with James pulling ahead of Doherty and into fifth position, with Howe also making the pass around the outside of turn three as Doherty was deciding discretion was the better part of valour, and chose to let the faster cars through then press on. Crocitti and Holding were side by side through turn 3, before Holding followed Lewis-Williams through with a pass around Doherty at turn 4, while Taubitz also followed Beller through and made the pass on the inside of Michael Westaway.

Thus on the run to the sweeper for the first time it was Tony Westaway from Mitchell, Marriner, Mezzasalma, James, Howe, Lewis-Williams, Holding, Doherty, Crocitti, Beller, Taubitz and Michael Westaway. Marriner had a look on the inside of Mitchell under brakes for Penrite corner but backed out of the move, while Lewis WIlliams was scything through the field, taking the long way around Penrite corner to pass Howe, then translated that to an inside move on James around the gumtree, and then again around the outside at turn 9, this time on Mezzasalma – putting him in an incredible fourth position!

Crocitti made a move to the inside of Doherty into Penrite but had to go around the outside of gumtree to complete the pass. Beller tucked in behind Doherty but Taubitz moved to the outside and passed Beller around gumtree which put him on the inside of Doherty for turn 9, putting him up to tenth position on Crocittis bumper, with Beller then following Taubitz through underneath Doherty.

Holding moved alongside Howe on the run to turn ten, with Howe running wide and allowing Crocitti to range up alongside on the run down the back straight. Taubitz was slightly baulked and Beller moved alongside and retook the position into brakes for turn 11.

At the end of lap 1 and Tony Westaway was extending his lead from Mitchell and Marriner, now with Lewis-Williams for company. A small gap to Mezzasalma who had James and Holding behind him, with Howe and Crocitti side by side through the final corner, and Crocitti put his left side tires into the dirt allowing Howe to move ahead. This baulked Beller slightly, and Taubitz took advantage to pull back alongside down the main straight on the far right of the track, three wise with Beller and Crocitti.

Lewis-Williams moved past Marriner under brakes for turn 1 and was up to third, while James did the same thing to Mezzasalma to move into fifth.

Beller could see there was trouble brewing and backed out of the three-wide situation – as Crocitti, seeing this moved across to take the racing line for turn 1 – unbeknownst to him though, Taubitz was in his blind spot of the far right of the track – and slight contact was the result. Crocitti did a masterful job to keep the car on track and not spin off, as his right rear wheel contacted Taubitz on the left front, sending Taubitz off into the grass. The impact broke the steering on Taubitz’s car, and he limped slowly around the pits.

Lewis-Williams continued his onslaught, and passed Mitchell for second position into turn three, while Beller made his way past Crocitti, and Michael Westaway passed Doherty. Holding was trying to find a way around Mezzasalma, which allowed Howe to sneak inside on the run to turn 9, escorting Holding wide. This allowed Beller to move inside and overtake the pair of them, moving him to seventh position, while Holding sliopped back behind Howe, Crocitti and Michael Westaway to eleventh position.

Up front, and Lewis-Williams put himself into the lead with a pass on Tony Westaway on the run to turn 10 – a very impressive two laps from the three time series champion. Beller pulled past Mezzasalma under brakes for turn 10 also, while Howe followed him through, as did Crocitti. Michael Westaway was the next one to make the pass on the run to turn 11, with Holding also finally getting past to move back to tenth position.

So at the end of lap 2 it was now Lewis-Williams opening up a gap from Tony Westaway, Mitchell, Marriner, James and Beller, with Howe, Crocitti, Michael Westaway, Holding, Mezzasalma and Doherty rounding out the field.

Beller moved into the top 5 when he passed James into turn 3, and quickly ranged up to the tail of Marriner who was still staring at the tail of Mitchell. Holding managed to find a way around Michael Westaway to go back to ninth position, while Beller then passed Marriner under brakes for turn 10, and did the same to Mitchell one corner later.

Doherty made a move past Mezzasalma under brakes for turn 1, while he battle for fourth was now heating up as James, Howe and Crocitti closed up to Mitchell and Marriner, though into turn three Howe exited the battle when his car spun to the inside of the circuit. Crocitti was right behind and went to the dirt on the outside of the circuit.

Beller continued his charge forward and passed Tony Westaway under brakes for turn 10 and began his chase of Lewis-Williams. Behind him, there was dramas as Marriner looked to challenge Mitchell for position, with Mitchell spinning under brakes, with Crocitti being unsighted running into the back of Marriner, which caused some significant damage to the front of the Gasgep machine. James was the biggest benefactor as he moved past both of them into fourth position, with Holding also taking advantage and into fifth. Michael Westaway moved up to sixth, ahead of Doherty, and Mezzasalma, and the wounded Marriner. Mitchell re-joined to tenth with Howe next after recovering from his spin, with Crocitti pitting to have a flailing front guard attended to. Marriner was severely off the pace after the contact and circulated slowly to finish the race, dropping behind Mitchell and Howe on the next lap.

At the end of lap 5 it was now Lewis-Williams from Beller, Tony Westaway, James, Holding, Michael Westaway, Doherty, Mezzasalma, Mitchell, Howe, Marriner and Crocitti with Taubitz still in pit lane.

Beller was closing on Lewis-Williams as the gap was now 3.3 seconds, while Holding was harassing James for fourth position, ultimately making the pass under brakes for Penrite corner on lap 6. The main action was now at the head of the field, with Beller breaking the lap record on consecutive laps on laps 6 & 7 in his pursuit of CLW. By the end of lap the pair were separated by less than half a second, with Tony Westaway a further  seconds back in third, with a further 5 seconds hack to Holding in fourth. James and Michael Westaway weren’t too far adrift, with a large gap back to Doherty, a couple seconds ahead of Mezzasalma in eighth position. Mitchell was a further few seconds back, with a 9 second gap back to Howe who was also nursing an ailing car, and the wounded Marriner, and the battle scarred Crocitti. Taubitz meanwhile ventured back out onto the circuit on the penultimate lap to slowly complete the final lap and take the chequered flag.

Try as he might, Beller was unable to find a way past Lewis-Williams and crossed the line .2 of a second behind, with a huge 16 second gap back to Tony Westaway, with Holding only a second behind him at the end in fourth. James and Michael Westaway were close together a further fixe seconds back at the finish, with Doherty, Mezzasalma, Mitchell and Howe rounding out the top ten. Marriner and Crocitti were both a lap down, with Taubitz 6 laps down.

So it was a win apiece, and a second apiece between Lewis-Williams and Beller in the quest for the Dennis O’Keefe Cup on offer this weekend. The higher of the two finishers in the final race would likely take the Cup – though if problems befell them from making their way through the pack in the final handicap race, could one of the other competitors swoop in to steal the prize?

By |September 2nd, 2018|Categories: News, 2018, 2018 Race Results & Reports|0 Comments
Read More

Shannons Nationals Invitational Round – Race 1

Race 1 of the 944 Challenge event at the Shannons Nationals was on Saturday afternoon and the only chance for the fastest runners to lead from the start, with Sundays races consisting of a reverse grid, and then a handicap race to round out the event.

Off the start it was Chris Lewis-Williams who led into Turn 1 after just edging Cameron Beller in the short drag racce off the start, with ROb Holding, Tony Westaway side by side behind them, with Mark Taubitz and Paul Crocitti side by side right behind them as they ran through turns 1 & 2. Michael Westaway was next edging ahead of Dick Howe, with Jim Mitchell in behind them, with Pedr James, Keith Marriner, Manny Mezzasalma and Peter Doherty rounding out the field.

Lewis-Williams and Beller had a small gap while Holding took the inside line to sweep into third position. Taubitz tried to follow him through into turn 4 but had the door firmly shut on him by Tony Westaway – leaving him vulnerable to Crocitti. H0we moved back ahead of Michael Westaway, and then passed Crocitti into turn 9 to take the sixth position.

As the field crossed the line to end lap 1, Beller pulled alongside Lewis-Williams and took the lead under brakes into turn 1, with Holding and Tony Westaway now right behind them. a small gap back to Taubitz, Howe, Crocitti, Michael Westaway, Mitchell, James, Marriner, Mezzasalma and Doherty.

The top three were nose to tail, with Tony Westaway and Taubitz just off the back of the lead trio. Howe and Crocitti continued to battle with Westaway tagging onto the back of the pair. Doherty meanwhile took Mezzasalma for twelfth position.

James was the next driver to make progress, as he moved ahead of Mitchell on lap 3 to take the ninth position.

Lewis-Williams returned serve on Beller at the beginning of lap 4 and took the lead under brakes for turn 1, with Holding continue to shadow the multi-time champions closely. Tony Westaway had a drama in turn 9 and spun the Westbon 944, dropping him all the way to then end of the pack. His spin delayed Taubitz who was right behind, which allowed Howe to spring a move to take fourth position from Taubitz on the run to turn 10.

Marriner was the next one to have issues as he dropped positions at the end of lap 5, allowing Doherty into the top ten, with Mazzasalma to eleventh and Westaway to twelfth as Marriner now re-joined at the back of the pack.

Beller took the lead again as the field commenced lap 6, and this time began to build a small gap to Lewis-Williams, setting the races fastest lap on lap 7 on the way. The battle for fourth position behind them was raging, with Howe defending from Taubitz who was also having to deal with Crocitti behind him, until Crocitti made his way past for fifth position on lap 7. Tony Westaway also moved up another position when he passed Mezzasalma on that lap.

Crocitti made a move on Howe into Penrite corner, and the pair battled fiercely for the next few corners, with Howe ultimately coming off second best when he slid wide as he pulled alongside Crocitti under braking on the outside for turn 10 later in the lap, sending him wide and dropping him back to seventh place behind the pursuing Taubitz and Michael Westaway.

Tony Westaway also made further progress, moving up to ninth passing both Doherty, and then Mitchell, while James had put the hammer down and was reeling off a string of quick times in the 37’s as he chased after the battle for fourth through to seventh position.

At the end it was Beller who won by 2.5 seconds from Lewis-Williams, with Holding an impressive third a further 2.5 seconds back. Fourth position went to Crocitti in an impressive performance with Taubitz right behind him, and Michael Westaway right on his tail, with Howe another second adrift from James, who closed to only a second off of Howe’s tail also.

On the last corner, and Tony Westaway spun, allowing Peter Doherty, who had just passed Mitchell earlier in the lap, through for ninth position, with Mitchell rounding out the top ten. Mezzasalma was eleventh just behind Mitchell in his debut race, with Marriner a few seconds behind. Crossing the line as the final finisher after recovering from his spin was Tony Westaway. With the next race a reverse grid race, questions were asked as to whether Tony was foxing in an attempt to gain the pole position for this race! Tony denied this sheepishly..

Would this starting position prove to work for Tony with Holding, Beller & Lewis-Williams starting off the back?

By |September 1st, 2018|Categories: News, 2018, 2018 Race Results & Reports|0 Comments
Read More

Shannons Nationals Invitational Round – Qualifying

The 944 challenge field rolled out for qualifying on Saturday morning for the Shannon’s Nationals round, and proving he hasn’t lost his speed despite not turning a wheel in the past ten months was Chris Lewis-Williams who set the fastest lap first up with a 1:36.2726. Mark Taubitz was second quickest with a 1:37.5693 on his first fast lap, ahead of Cameron Beller third with a 1:38.7129 in third, with Tony Westaway fourth with a 1:39.4822.

Dick Howe was fifth fastest with a 1:40.3904 from Paul Crocitti on a 1:41.5013, with Peter Doherty seventh fastest with a 1:42.6179 and Michael Westaway just behind with a 1:42.6892. Jim Mitchell was ninth with a first lap of 1:45.4529 from Manny Mezzasalma, tenth quickest with a 1:46.2730 with Pedr James, Keith Marriner and Rob Holding rounding out the runners with all three not running a representative time on their first laps.

Beller moved himself into second position on his next lap when he ran a 1:36..7372 on his next lap, while Tony Westaway improved his best time with a 1:39.0906. Howe improved in fifth with a 1:39.1899 , as did Crocitti behind him with a 1:39.5737. Doherty also improved with a 1:40.7660 lap to remain in seventh position. Mitchell also improved his time with a 1:43.6399 while James moved to tenth quickest with a 1:44.3737 and Holding up to eleventh with a 1:46.0733 moving Mazzasalma back to twelfth ahead of Marriner with a 1:48.6943.

Beller improved again next time around with a 1:36.1396, while Holding leapt up to fourth fastest with a 1:38.0625. Howe also improved with a 1:38.2680 in what would be his best time for the session though remained in fifth position. Crocitti remained sixth with a 1:38.8707, with Michael Westaway also displacing his brother with a 1:38.9504 to go to seventh, dropping Tony to eighth.

Mitchell was still tenth, now with a 1:41.8584 ahead of Marriner with a 1:42.1178, James on a 1:42.9105 and Mezzasalma in thirteenth.

Beller took the top spot on the next lap with a 1:35.4449, with Lewis-Williams also improving with a 1:36.0622 though slipped back to second fastest. Crocitti moved to third fastest with a 1:37.5224 pushing Taubitz, Holding and Howe back down the order, with Tony Westaway moving back ahead of Michael with a 1:38.2698, just behind Howe. James moved up to ninth with a 1:39.8623 ahead of Mitchell who again improved with a 1:40.2257, while Doherty again improved also, though slipped back to eleventh with a 1:40.5616. Marriner also improved slightly with a 1:41.8950 in twelfth position.

Beller continued his streak of improving his lap times, and his next 1:34.9431 put himself safely at the top, as Lewis-Williams improved again with a 1:35.8562 next time around. Tony Westaway leapt up the order with a 1:37.2345 to move up to third fastest, while Michael Westaway also went quicker with a 1:38.0569 which put him into seventh position ahead of Howe – a time he wouldn’t improve on. Mitchell also improved again, thought just slightly  with a 1:40.1124, while Mezzasalma improved his time with a 1:44.4233.

Beller ran one more lap, and went quicker again with a 1:34.7701 – and then parked it – confident that his one second advantage would secure the pole position for him. Holding improved his time with a 1:37.9509 to remain in sixth position, while James also went faster with a 1:39.0975 in ninth position, his fastest time for the session. Marriner moved up to eleventh with a 1:40.1328, while Doherty ran a 1:40.3861 though he slipped to twelfth position.

Rob Holding raised eyebrows as he ran a blistering 1:36.5544 to vault him into third position, while Tony Westaway moved to fourth as he ran a 1:36.8942. Taubitz put a lap together as he improved on his early time with a 1:37.0346 though was now fifth, Marriner dipped under the 1 minute 40s as he ran a 1:39.6276 in his fastest lap to move him into tenth position ahead of Mitchell and Doherty, while Mezzasalma also started to turn some quicker laps as he grew comfortable with the car, running a 1:42.1414.

Tony Westaway pulled out one last quick lap to displace Holding with a 1:36.4920 for third fastest, displacing Holding who went within half a tenth of a second of his best lap, but slipped to fourth. Taubitz ran his best lap on the last tour with a 1:36.9136 to stay fifth, ahead of Crocitti who also improved with a 1:37.3120 but remained in sixth.

Doherty pulled one out of the bag as he went over a second quicker to vault him up to ninth position with a 1:38.9869 on his final lap, pushing James back to tenth ahead of Marriner and Mitchell who also dipped under the 1:40’s on his last lap with a 1:39.8636. Mezzasalma also improved again on his last lap with a 1:41.8898 lap, a good effort in his first 944 challenge session.

The last lap was run by Lewis-Williams, who improved in a last ditch effort at pole, but a 1:35.3785 wasn’t able to do it, though cemented his spot on the front row of the grid alongside Beller for Race 1.

9 Laps would follow later in the day – who would take first blood for the weekend??

By |September 1st, 2018|Categories: News, 2018, 2018 Race Results & Reports|0 Comments
Read More