From Brisbane International Raceway
Brisbane, AU — (October 18, 2014) — Queensland champ Robbie Farr enjoyed a triumphant return to Ausdeck Patios Archerfield Speedway on Saturday night (October 18), racing to victory in round two of the Supercheap Auto Sprintcar Track Championship. Farr started his East Coast Pipeline/Hi-Tec Oils Maxim from position three but wasted no time in zooming to the front, powering into the lead on the opening lap and then leading every subsequent circulation in the 30-lap event.
Defending track champion Andrew Scheuerle continued his solid start to the season with a second-place finish, also making a move on the opening lap that saw him advance ahead of the front row starting pair of Luke Oldfield and Danny Reidy. Although unable to run down Farr, he is the only driver to feature on the podium at both rounds of competition contested thus far and therefore leads the championship.
After qualifying on pole position by virtue of his win in the Lucas Oils Dash, Oldfield raced solidly to secure a fine third-place finish ahead of Reidy, who started on the outside of the front row. Bryan Mann was fast once again in finishing fifth, with Kevin Titman, Brock Dean, Paul Rooks, Brent Kratzmann and Ben Hilder rounding out the top ten.
Rooks picked up the KRE Engines Quick Time Award with his 11.443 effort, edging out Farr (11.506), Australian champ Dave Murcott (11.526), Mann (11.779), Reidy (11.787), Scheuerle (11.901) and Oldfield (11.861).
On a superfast racetrack that saw just one of the six qualifying heats won from the front row, Scheuerle opened proceedings in downing Steven Rowell and Oldfield in the first heat.
Kratzmann triumphed in heat two over Reidy and Farr, with Titman outpacing Mann and Mark Pholi to win heat three.
Heat four saw West Australia’s Jason Pryde withstand Farr’s every effort to win, with Oldfield third.
Having failed to finish his opening heat after beginning the victim of somebody else’s mistake, Murcott bounced back to win heat five ahead of Mann and Leibke, while Dave Fanning ended his race unceremoniously when he rolled in turn one on the opening lap.
In the final heat, Scheuerle advanced from the fourth row of the grid to triumph over Steven Johnson and Mick Sauer.
The Lucas Oils Dash saw Oldfield gifted with pole position when top qualifier Scheuerle drew a six inversion and nominated Mann to share the back row for the 6-lap sprint. With Farr and Reidy allocated row two, it was Oldfield and Rooks who occupied the front row. Oldfield was untroubled throughout to finish almost two seconds clear of Reidy at the fall of the chequer. Farr, Mann, Scheurele were next best, with Rooks shuffled back to sixth.
The East Coast Logistics B Main produced a fantastic cushion-climbing, wall-nudging drive from Johnson in his surge to the front. Johnson finished ahead of Rowell and Pryde, with Leibke grabbing the final transfer position.
The Supercheap Auto feature race was pretty straightforward at the front of the field with Farr in command, although there was plenty of movement further back. Murcott had moved momentarily into third spot on lap 10 before he rode a wheel, slid to a halt in turn three and returned to the pits, while Kratzmann looked on track to repeat his top five result from the opening round before drifting back as the laps wound down.
In a race that saw 17 of the 18 starters still running at the finish, Andrew Leibke finished 11th overall, was the last car on the lead lap and picked up the Darra Mechanical Hard Charger Award for his efforts after starting on the back row of the grid. Pryde, Dan Murray, Sauer, Rowell, Johnson and Pholi completed the finishers.
In round two of the Polar Ice Midget Series, expat Kiwi Michael Kendall again proved too strong in the feature race, scoring his second win from as many starts for the Moree-based CJR Motorsport team. The defending series champion led every lap of the 20-lap feature event to defeat an impressive Michael Harders, who drove splendidly to fend off the advances of Australian champ Adam Clarke.
Scott Wilson finished fourth ahead of Troy Ware, who did a great job to salvage a top-five result after rolling in the final heat, his second such misadventure in as many shows. Ken Stanaway was next best in advance of Brock Dean and Brad Young, with Michael Wilson and Scott Doyle the only others to go the distance.
Heat winners were Kendall (2), Doyle and Clarke, who cut the quickest lap in time trials but then failed make to the grid for his opening heat.
Wingless Sprints presented with good numbers again and it was Mitchell Gowland who proved too strong in the feature, leading home Brant Chandler, Adam Wallis, Adam Butler and David Eggins.
Butler, Wallis and Queensland champ Scott Thomsen took out the heats.
Shane French won the Stock Car feature, Scott Taylor triumphed in the Open Sedans and David Tookey took out the Ford v Holden v Sigma feature.
Sprintcar Contingency Award winners:
KRE Engines Quick Time: Paul Rooks
Lucas Oils Dash Winner: Luke Oldfield
Darra Mechanical Hard Charger: Andrew Liebke
Next Saturday night (October 25) at Audeck Patios Archerfield Speedway features Dirt Modifieds, Formula 500’s, AMCA Nationals, Lightning Sprints, Compact Speedcars and Modlites.