Mawson Doubles Up At Karting Nationals

AKA press release

Sydney teenager Joseph Mawson was the star of the show at the 2010 National Sprint Kart Championships held at the Hume International Raceway in Puckapunyal, Victoria today.

Mawson was victorious in both the Junior National Light and Junior Clubman ranks in today’s championship finals. As a result of his victories, the Hinchenbrook youngster became the first junior driver since Ashley Walsh in 2003 to take two titles at the same event.

Above: Joseph Mawson leads Simon Hodge in Junior Clubman
pic - photowagon.com.au

“It is an amazing feeling, I came here hoping to win one championship but to win two is just unreal,” said Mawson.

“I’ve been racing for about six years and it has been a great sport to be involved in, not just because I’ve been fortunate to win a lot either.

“Over the years I’ve got to meet a lot of people and make a lot of friends from all across Australia while learning not only how to race a go-kart but also many other lessons that will help me in the future.”

Mawson’s name will now sit alongside the likes of current Australian Formula Ford stars Chaz Mostert and Ben Jurczak on the winners list of Junior National Light. Some of the former winners in the Junior Clubman category include V8 Supercar drivers Shane Price and Taz Douglas.

Forbes karting veteran Shayne Piper outpaced his younger rivals on his way to victory in the hotly contested Clubman Heavy category. The 41 year-old was engaged in a titanic battle throughout the 16-lap championship final with youngster Zeke Edwards and V8 Supercar driver Shane Price.

After several changes in the front running throughout the journey it was Piper who prevailed to cross the line two-kart lengths clear of Edwards. Price finished 0.003 seconds behind Edwards in third place. Defending national champion Matthew Wall charged his way from 16th on the starting grid to be in fourth place at the finish.

Cousins James and David Sera and young local lad Jordan Ford put on a classic race in the final of Clubman Light, with James Sera, the elder statesman of the trio, taking the win by a slim margin in a three-way dogfight.

David Sera led the early stages and mid-race it looked as though Queenslander Chris Hays was a chance, catching the leading trio in his Vodafone-backed Tony Kart.

But after racing James Sera hard for several laps he dropped back, leaving the three Victorians to fight for the win.

The last lap was a cracker with all three drivers having a chance at victory. Both Ford and David Sera looking to go down both sides of the leader’s Azzurro kart through the final few corners, it was a gallant effort for James Sera to keep them at bay and claim another Clubman Light Australian title.

Above: James Sera took his Azzurro to 1st place in Clubman Light
pic - photowagon.com.au

David Sera’s hope of moving into second place overall on the all-time winners list of Australian karting at this weekend’s event also evaporated when an exhaust header cracked on the start line in Leopard Light.

The demise of Sera allowed Dean Foster and Adam Hughes to fight it out for the victory. After an intense 16 laps around the 1064-metre circuit a last lap pass by Foster in his Master Karting Kosmic kart proved to be the winning move.

“I had my first drive of a kart on Good Friday back in 1993 and there has been a lot of ups and downs throughout the years so to win a national championship is just amazing,” said Foster.

“After the final I was just lost for words, it is just an amazing feeling – I can’t believe it.”

Melbourne drivers Jordan Nicolaou and Lee Mitchener broke through for their maiden national championships in the Junior National Heavy and Leopard Heavy categories respectively.

Mitchener’s victory in Leopard Heavy came ahead of Toowomba’s Matt Greenbury, who was lucky to be alive, let alone racing at the Nationals this weekend, after being stung by a Irukandji Box Jellyfish last week.

Heywood’s Aaron Johnstone was victorious in the Senior National Heavy category. Ironically Johnstone’s first and only state championship also came at the Puckapunyal venue last May.

Also victorious in his home state was Ballarat driver Dale Beaton. After ten years of trying Beaton finally broke through for the win in Senior National Light to become the eighth driver of the weekend to claim the first national championship of their career.

CLASS BY CLASS RUNDOWN

Clubman Heavy

Shayne Piper has claimed his second national championship with victory over local lad Zeke Edwards who finished less than half a kart-length ahead of Shane Price in the final of Clubman Heavy at the 2010 Nationals.

After starting from the outside of the front row it was the 41 year-old Piper who got the jump at the start ahead of the Pro Karting-backed Edwards. Closely following the leading duo was Price, Jarrod Egan and Brendan Nelson.

Throughout the race Piper, Edwards and Price all led at various points but in the end it was Piper who proved superior to claim the win ahead of Edwards and Price. Defending Champion Matt Wall came from 16th on the grid to claim fourth spot.

Piper paid credit to his younger opposition on the podium.

Above: Shayne Piper shows the youngsters how it's done in Clubman Heavy
pic - photowagon.com.au

RESULTS: Top Five
1. Shayne Piper (NSW)
2. Zeke Edwards (VIC)
3. Shane Price (VIC)
4. Matthew Wall (VIC)
5. Jarrod Egan (VIC)

Junior National Heavy

J&A Tuning Arrow pilot Jordan Nicolaou has taken out his first national championship with victory in Junior National Heavy at Puckpapunyal today.

The Victorian was third entering the final lap of the 16-lap final but when the leading duo of Mason Thomas, who had come from 16th position on the grid, and Macualey Jones came diced for the lead it allowed Nicolau, who was the early pacesetter, to pounce and go on to claim the win. Thomas finished second while Jones claimed third place at Australia's biggest karting event for the second year in a row.

RESULTS: Top Five
1. Jordan Nicolaou (VIC)
2. Mason Thomas (VIC)
3. Macauley Jones (VIC)
4. Todd Hazelwood (SA)
5. Anton de Pasquale (VIC)

Above: The Junior National Heavy podium
pic - photowagon.com.au

Leopard Light

All eyes were on polesitter David Sera to see if ‘Deadly’ could get a win early on finals day to put him one ahead of Mark Winterbottom on the all-time Australian champions list.

But on the run to the first corner Sera appeared to break a header pipe and as the field descended on his stricken Arrow in the first two corners he was turned around and his race was done. He pulled into the pits to prepare for Clubman Light later in the day.

That left the likes of Adam Hughes and David’s cousin James Sera to fight it out for the lead, but an unlikely rival was underdog Dean Foster – a regular front-runner no doubt, but certainly not of the pedigree of Sera and Hughes.

Nonetheless it was Foster who proved fast as he pulled a gap on the field, while Sera dropped back into the mid-pack and Hughes fought with Tyler Greenbury and Adam Willison.

Hughes came on strong late in the race in his Kosmic and caught Foster with just a few laps remaining. At Turn 1 on the last lap Hughes slipped down the inside to take the lead, with Foster straight back down the inside at Turn 2 to re-take the lead.

As the pair went through the tight Turn 2 right-hander side-by-side Hughes ran wide, giving Foster an easy tour through the final few corners to take his first Australian title in spectacular fashion.

Above: "Fozzie, Fozzie, Fozzie, Oi! Oi! Oi!" the crowd chanted. A popular first national title for Dean Foster.
pic - photowagon.com.au

Adam Willison, who continues to improve rapidly aboard his Tony Kart, narrowly missed stealing second from Hughes, with defending champion Tyler Greenbury in fourth and a recovering James Sera in fifth place.

RESULTS: Top Five
1. Dean Foster (VIC)
2. Adam Hughes (VIC)
3. Adam Willison (VIC)
4. Tyler Greenbury (QLD)
5. James Sera (VIC)

Senior National Heavy

Usually Senior National class races are a slipstreaming session, especially around a fast, wide-open circuit like Hume International Karting Raceway at Puckapunyal.

But the Senior National Heavy final was anything but, with Corey Lean, Aaron Johnstone and Matthew Waters all racing line astern for the majority of the journey.

With all three noted Senior National front-runners, it was not a matter of ‘if’ a move would come, but when.

The precision driving disappeared on the last lap but Lean appeared to have them covered with some defensive driving. But at the last corner Johnstone was able to get down the inside of Lean in an outside-inside move through the double left-hander.

The win was his by just 0.033 seconds with Waters right behind in third. Further back, the trio of James May, Richard Muscat and Glenn Riddell fought out a similar three-way battle, with May and Muscat scoring the final two spots on the podium.

RESULTS: Top Five
1. Aaron Johnstone (VIC)
2. Corey Lean (NSW)
3. Matthew Waters (NSW)
4. James May (VIC)
5. Richard Muscat (VIC)

Clubman Light

A karting.net.au poll had Clubman Light as the fan favourite at this year’s Nationals and the pundits were on the money.

Cousins James and David Sera and young local lad Jordan Ford put on an absolute classic in Puckapunyal, with the elder statesman of the trio taking the win by a slim margin in a three-way dogfight.

David Sera led the early stages and mid-race it looked as though Queenslander Chris Hays was a chance, catching the leading trio in his Vodafone-backed Tony Kart.

But after racing James Sera hard for several laps he dropped back, leaving the three Victorians to fight for the win.

The last lap was a cracker with David Sera trying to pass James around the outside at the super-fast Turn 1 left hander. The move didn’t quite pay off by ‘Deadly’ dived down the inside at Turn 2 to take the lead.

James got it back at Pit Corner moments later and Ford followed and with both Ford and D.Sera looking to go down both sides of Sera’s Azzurro through the final few corners, it was a gallant effort for James Sera to keep them at bay and claim another Clubman Light Australian title.

RESULTS: Top Five
1. James Sera (VIC)
2. Jordan Ford (VIC)
3. David Sera (VIC)
4. Tyler Greenbury (QLD)
5. Chris Hays (QLD)

Junior Clubman

The Junior Clubman final was staged over two halves as a result of a red flag with seven laps remaining when local driver Brad Wearie rolled his kart. Fortunately Weaire was uninjured in the incident.

The leader when the red flag flew was Joseph Mawson, and when the field was restarted in single file he held the ascendancy.

Various challenges came from behind as Mawson squeezed every ounce of pace out of his Arrow. First came Anton de Pasquale, who had been the main rival to Mawson’s lead before the red flag.

After the red flag is seemed as though Jesse Elliott would be the thorn Mawson’s side, but then South Australian Simon Hodge came to the fore and chased down Mawson.

One more lap may have given Hodge more of a chance but as it was the New South Welshman was too good and he took the win by leading almost every single lap of the event – rare for the ultra-competitive Junior Clubman class.

RESULTS: Junior Clubman
1. Joseph Mawson (NSW)
2. Simon Hodge (SA)
3. Jesse Elliott (WA)
4. Anton de Pasquale (VIC)
5. Aidan Wright (QLD)

Clubman Super Heavy

The heavyweights did battle in Puckapunyal and in a grueling race of attrition, favourites Scott Simpson and Ryan Fulcher both hit the canvas.

As the duo battled it out in front, local Josh Brooker and Ben McKinlay lay waiting just behind. As Fulcher made an attempt at the lead in the closing stages of the race he and Simpson made contact at Turn 2.

The result was Fulcher spinning out of the race and Simpson carrying Fulcher’s nose cone for the remainder of the journey, the white plastic lodged between Simpson’s exhaust pipe and rear crash bar.

The skirmish gave Brooker a solid opportunity to pounce on Simpson’s lead and he got the lead in the closing stages, only for Simpson to retake P1 at Turn 1 on the final lap.

Brooker made a move down the inside at the final corner, the fast double left-hander, with the pair making contact and Simpson spinning out of the race and allowing Brooker to take the chequered flag ahead of McKinlay and former Australian champ Jason Stania.

Post-race officials disqualified Brooker for his part in the final corner altercation, with McKinlay handed the Australian title.

RESULTS: Clubman Super Heavy
1. Ben McKinlay (QLD)
2. Jason Stania (VIC)
3. Lachlan Frampton (VIC)
4. Nathan Van Hulst (VIC)
5. Nigel Stones (NSW)

Leopard Heavy

For season after season last decade, Lee Mitchener was one of the men to beat in the ultra-competitive Clubman Heavy division.

But racing the likes of Troy Hunt, Jason Hryniuk and Matthew Wall for victory, despite some success at state championships he could never quite crack it for a green plate, despite coming close in Adelaide in 2006 and leading laps in the final at Eastern Creek in 2007.

A move to Leopard Heavy last season and switch to Tony Kart chassis did not bring immediate results for Mitchener, but over the course of 2009 he gained pace.

A switch to a new Tony Kart chassis has given Mitchener an extra ounce of pace and at Puckapunyal in the final he was unstoppable.

While Matt Greenbury drove his heart out and got close to Mitchener, but wasn’t quite close enough to challenge. It was a sterling effort for Greenbury who just a week ago was in intensive care after being stung by an Irukandji Box Jellyfish.

Multiple national champions Matthew Wall and Kel Treseder were moving forward mid-race but both failed to make a challenge on the leading duo, with Wall failing to finish due to a broken exhaust flex just as he looked to be moving forward.

Above: Lee Mitchener takes the Leopard Heavy title
pic - photowagon.com.au

Young Toowoomba flyer Brendon Nelson managed to win out in a late race battle with Treseder for third while Daniel Stein came home in fifth place.

RESULTS: Leopard Heavy
1. Lee Mitchener (VIC)
2. Matt Greenbury (QLD)
3. Brendan Nelson (QLD)
4. Kel Treseder (QLD)
5. Daniel Stein (NSW)

Senior National Light

The final race of the day started with a frantic opening lap that saw karts and dust flying everywhere.

Out in front Matthew Waters took the lead early and as a pack of challengers formed behind him, he seemed to be a big chance of repeating his win in this class from 2008.

But when Waters pulled off-track with a mechanical problem with seven laps to go the race swung wide open.

Dale Beaton has slowly but surely been moving forward through the pack and once he got his chance to lead, he made sure he stayed there as karts continued to swap position corner after corner.

He narrowly beat Aaron Johnstone and Ryan Reynolds to the line in a close finish, with James May leading home a train of karts in fouth place, with Shannon Holley in fifth.

RESULTS: Senior National Light
1. Dale Beaton (VIC)
2. Aaron Johnstone (VIC)
3. Ryan Reynolds (NSW)
4. James May (VIC)
5. Shannon Holley (NSW)

The full results from the 2010 National Sprint Kart Championships can be found by CLICKING HERE

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