By Daniel Powell
Although the weekend didn’t bring the most pleasing of results, Danny Reidy has moved up to 10th in the current World Series Sprintcar Championship point standings.
The switch from the Eagle back to the J&J chassis of car did result in some promising signs for Reidy. However, he still battled throughout the weekend at his home track Archerfield Speedway in Queensland for the ninth round of World Series, which doubled up as the $20,000 to win Australian Open.
In the lead up to the Australian Open, the NT # 5 Desert Palms Resort – Alice Springs supported J&J driver contested Wednesday night’s $10,000 to win Capalaba Cup at the Archerfield Speedway track, which was a non-World Series round, but he suffered a premature end to the night. Due to the rush in getting the J&J ready for the meeting, the car wasn’t completely comfortable for Reidy, and as a result opted to not contest the B-main. Earlier in the night, he had qualified 23rd in time trials and then went on to finish fourth and sixth in his heat races.
Reidy’s Australian Open campaign started off in the best possible fashion, after he qualified second in time trials on the Friday night. In all of his three heat races he struggled to move forward and finished towards the back of the field. The preliminary feature race saw Reidy start out of position nine, but he didn’t have much luck. While running inside the top 10, he crashed out, after he had spun and it saw his front end knocked out after he was collected by two competitor’s further back in the field.
On the second night of the Australian Open, Reidy finished 10th in his fourth and final heat race and that saw him fail to qualify directly into the feature race. In order to qualify he had to go through the B-main. After starting from position nine, he worked his way forward to snare the sixth and final transfer spot into the feature race. In the feature race, Reidy was running towards the back of the field for the majority of the 50-lap event, but due to the engine getting a bit too hot, he decided to take the option and retire after 33 laps.
Despite a tough weekend, Reidy is confident that his switch back to J&J is going to help him move closer to the pointy end of the field.
The Reidy Racing team this Saturday night (January 14) heads to Adelaide’s Speedway City in South Australia for the 10th round of the World Series Championship.
Reidy would like to thank, Desert Palms Resort – Alice Springs, Camden Neon Signs, P&M Motor Body Repairs, Gonzo’s Race Pipes and Inglis Race Engines, for all of their 2011/12 season support.
The official Danny Reidy website can be viewed at: www.dannyreidy.com