From WSS
Bunbury, AU — (February 11, 2012) — Ryan Farrell barrelled to an emphatic win in Round 14 of Hi-Tec Oils World Series Sprintcars at Coates Hire Bunbury Speedway tonight, steering the Halls Haulage / Bridgestone Tyre Centre #5 KPC to an all the way victory in the 30 lap A-Main.
“I hated this car for a while,” grinned the sweaty winner, “it felt like some nights it was trying to kill me. I’ve had a hard time getting my head around it for some time but we’ve persevered with it and tonight Keith (Giles) had it right on the money.”
Farrell sped across the line to win from Americans Shane Stewart and Jason Johnson with Robbie Farr fourth, Brooke Tatnell sixth, Kaley Gharst sixth, James McFadden seventh, Jason Kendrick eighth, Grant Anderson ninth, Cameron Gessner tenth, Tyler Walker eleventh and Carl Dowling twelfth.
Shane Stewart basically had to wrestle the #17 Monte Motorsport J&J when a strut broke and allowed the front wing to fold up slightly and get significant amounts of air under it at high speed.
“Man that car was a handful,” he admitted, “something simple like that strap broke on the wing and I had my hands full keeping the front end on the ground. I’m pleased to get a second place result for Luch Monte because he’s in hospital right now recovering from knee surgery.”
Jason Johnson’s third place on the back of his preliminary main event win last night keeps his dream alive, albeit slightly, of running down series leader James McFadden in the final round at the Perth Motorplex next weekend.
“I don’t think we can do it actually,” Johnson said, “James and his team have done a tremendous job this year and they deserve the series win. We’re not going to give up by any means but I would think it’s not really possible to run him down without him going on holiday before the final round. I know a nice girl who could take him away actually but I don’t think she’d do it and I don’t think he’d go.”
McFadden came from the seventh row of the grid to finish seventh in his old war paint (the white, yellow and black) and survive a real race of attrition to stay 384 points ahead of his pursuers.
“We’ve gone back to our old colours,” James explained, “since we had the chrome colour scheme we haven’t had a lot of luck so tonight we decided to go back to basics.”
DNF’s included David Murcott (who spun and backed the #83 into the wall in turn one) Steven Lines (who holed a radiator) David Priolo (who flipped heavily in turn one) Kerry Madsen (who tagged the wall and cut down his right rear tyre) Dylan Jenkin (who had a bleeder fall out and flatten his left rear tyre) Trevor Green grassed his hastily repaired Maxim after conceding it was just to “evil” to drive in its current condition, Ian Madsen broke something in the motor before they even completed a lap and Max Dumesny was controversially ejected from the event for a ‘professional foul’ when he rejoined the field after spinning and stalled the car on the track to bring a restart on the first lap.
Brooke Tatnell was lucky to even make the first lap when unbelievably the push car vaulted up over his right rear and jammed between the right rear tyre and the top wing when he was being pushed away to start the main event.
“It’s indicative of our season really,” grimaced team owner Shane Krikke, “if there’s a problem we’ll be involved in it. Hopefully Brooke can recover from this pedal us forward.”
Krikke Motorsport indeed changed the top wing and the tyre and Tatnell began the A-Main from his original sixth row start and powered forward to an eventual fifth.
Kerry Madsen changed a motor after his second heat race and missed the Top Eight Shootout in the process.
“We’re not worried about missing the Shootout because the worst we can start is on the second row,” said Geoff Kendrick at the time, and he was right.
Kerry moved the 92.9 KPC rapidly from fourth to second in the main event before he smacked the wall and cut down his tyre.
“It was my fault, what can I say,” Madsen conceded, “I screwed up.”
The battle for second place in the Championship still remains on in earnest with several drivers still in with a mathematical chance of claiming the $20,000 winner’s cheque that non-contracted driver James McFadden is not eligible for should he win the points count overall.