Champions Crowned At Tasmanian Statewide Series Final
Tweetfrom Johnathan Males
Tasmania’s number one karting venue, Archerville Kartway, saw in excess of 130 competitors vying for a good result and a strong finish at the fourth and final round of the 2012 Tasmanian Statewide Series held on March 24th and 25th.
Sunny skies, action packed racing and the excellent facilities on and off the track resulted in a race meeting to remember. Karting Tasmania went all out with the trophies this year and twelve lucky winners took home some very impressive mementos for a job well done - plus, of course, the highly prized red plate.
Above: Jamie Bricknell (56) decided to swap his Sprintcar for a kart for the weekend. Here he runs second to Mitchell Evans (66), the 2011 winner of Clubman Heavy.
pic - Callum Mitchell
Troy Stone had been running at the front of Clubman Heavy for quite a while now but a major win had so far eluded him. That was until now with Stone winning the 2012 Tasmanian Statewide Series title in a dominant performance. Winning two of the rounds and always being at the front ensured no one else got close. Steven Wrigley had a good series finishing second and Stone’s Tazzie Karts and Parts/CRG teammate Jack Pickett came in third. Racing on the day was won by Trent Palmer, second was Zane Wyatt and third was Wrigley. An interesting addition in the Clubman Heavy class at this meeting was the Bruv GP Kart. Designed, built and raced by Aiden Shelton. This chassis features some very different and innovative ideas and proved to be quite fast.
Above: 2012 Tasmanian Statewide Series Champion Troy Stone (15).
pic - Callum Mitchell
Brodie Evans turned up at Launceston to do the business in Junior National Light and his ninety five point haul meant he shot to the lead of the series and took the title in his 3D Kartsport Omega. The form guide went right out the window for the series as Bodie Reading had a comfortable lead going into the final round and looked like keeping the red plate he won last year. Unfortunately he was only able to score twenty three out of a possible one hundred points at Launceston and this saw him slip to third place in the series just one point behind Gemma Wyllie who grabbed second. Despite missing the first round Nicky Richards still managed to snare fourth in the series ahead of Jacob Morris in fifth. On the day the results for Junior National Light were Brodie Evans followed by Wade McLean and Gemma Wyllie.
Junior National Heavy was a competitive class at all four rounds but one name always appeared high in the points. Keenan Slater took his first title in fine style twenty seven points clear of Daniel Newman in second. Young Thomas Clark really improved his driving this year and this resulted in a third place finish. Only ten points separated Clark, Morgan Jakobovski and Jairus Holmes in the battle for third. Jakobovski took the win on the day followed by Slater and Newman.
Above: Keenan Slater (68) broke through for his first red plate at Launceston.
pic - Callum Mitchell
Mitchell Kerrison, Lachlan Dalton and Brock Lamont have been the dominant drivers in the Cadets class this year and this is how they finished at the end of the series. The racing between these three has been outstanding and I’m sure we’ll see big things from these young men in the years to come. On the day it was Kerrison who took the win from Lamont and Dalton came in third.
Kelsey Sapwell finished off the series as she started with another strong performance taking the win on the day in Senior National Light. She has really stepped up her driving after initially struggling with the move to seniors last year. Always at the front she scored heavily at every round and showed everyone else how it’s done running out eighty two points in front of second place. Naomi Wrigley got the better of the duel for second place in the series ahead of Toby Archer after only two points separated them going into the final round. Stuart Wells had a good return to racing at Launceston taking it right up to Kelsey on the day, in the end he had to settle for second ahead of Naomi Wrigley in third.
Johnathan Males made it state title number six after running at the front for the whole series in Senior National Heavy aboard his Forty Seven Tuning/C J Marine & Karts backed Arrow. Danton Evans’ strong performances early in the series ensured he finished up second in the series after missing the final round. After a very strong showing Murray “Doodle” Dadson fell just shy of Evans to take third. On the day however, the three at the front were Males, Dadson and Michael Vaughan, all swapping similar lap times and running at the front with the Light competitors. In the final Vaughan made a pass with two laps to go and held on for the win ahead of Males and Dadson.
Nineteen drivers over the course of the series battled it out for the title in TAG Light. In the end it came down to a youth versus experience battle. In youth’s corner were Jake Rice and Jade Waddington against Dion “The Veteran” Wyllie representing experience. Only one point separated Wyllie and Waddington going into the final round so it was going to be close. All three suffered from dramas at one stage or another over the weekend with Wyllie recovering the best to take the title. Waddington just got home for second place after a DNF in the final. Unstoppable on the day and no doubt rueing missing the first round was Matthew Distill. He ended up third in the series only thirty six points behind the winner. Finishing order on the day was Distill followed by Wyllie and Rice recovered for third.
Above: Jason Close (19) lifts a wheel in TAG 125 Light.
pic - Callum Mitchell
Tayla Heath and her father Paul were all smiles after taking out the title in the Rookies class. Heath only had a twelve point lead going into the final round but made sure the trophy was hers by winning every race at Launceston. Zevie Eisentraut and Brock Evans took it right up to Heath throughout the series and were rewarded with second and third place respectively. Behind Heath on the day it was Eisentraut followed by Samuel Gala.
In this series of TAG Restricted Heavy was all about Michael Warren. Up until the wet meeting at Burnie he hadn’t lost a race and he ended up winning comfortably ahead of Matthew Clark. Andrew Walter returning from a lengthy stint on the sidelines really drove well in this class and thoroughly deserved his third place in the series. Fittingly, the series placings were also the finishing order on the day.
Michael Vaughan returned to the series for only his second round in Senior National Over 40’s Pro and once again took a clean sweep. Even after missing two rounds he still finished fourth only twelve points off third. Third in the series went to Michael Jack who was the big improver this year and always ran at the front of the pack. Peter Rogers had another good series and was runner up to Steve Crocker who added another title to his already impressive collection. On the day it was Michael Vaughan from Steve Crocker and Fred Cocca came third.
Very rarely did you not see twenty five points next to Scott Wrigley’s name in the points tally. He was unstoppable at all four rounds in the Senior National Over 40’s Super Heavy class. In the end he took the title by thirty four points from Greg Wood who served it right up to Wrigley throughout the series but had to settle for second. John Lee snuck into third place for the series finishing an agonising one point in front of Darren Williams. On the day it was Wrigley followed by Wood and Williams in third.
Nathan Zuj has been the pacesetter in Clubman Light in Tasmania for the last few years and despite being pushed harder this series than he’s used to he still came out on top. All Zuj had to do was finish at Launceston but this ended up proving easier said than done. All looked to be going well in the first heat but then his best engine suffered a rather fatal piston failure. Couple this with a heat two DNF and Brody Appleby found himself in the box seat. Unfortunately for Appleby he too was struck down by mechanical failure in the final and this allowed a relieved Zuj to score just enough points to take the title ahead of Appleby and young Alastair Lee having a terrific series in third. On the day though the spoils went to Evan Livingston who took the win ahead of Dillon Van Galen and Alastair Lee came in third.
Above: Dillon Van Galen (98) ran at the front all weekend and finished second in the final.
pic - Callum Mitchell
Unfortunately TAG Restricted Light didn’t get enough numbers to constitute a class towards the series but David Sherriff was always at the front and quite often outperformed those in the Clubman Light class. He also took the win on the day from his cousin Andrew Sherriff and Craig Phillips in third. It was good to see Phillips and Andrew Sherriff back behind the wheel after a few months off.
Clubman Super Heavy also suffered a lack of numbers across the series with only five competitors over the four rounds. Joshua Muskett and Matthew Rowbottom battled it out on the day with Muskett winning out over Rowbottom.
At the end of the day’s racing the annual McDonalds Young Guns race was held with twenty eight drivers taking to the track for the twenty lap random draw race. Over the years this race has been won by some of Tasmania’s best young drivers and is a highly sort after trophy amongst the junior ranks. History repeated itself from last year with a Tony Kart driven piloted by a quick lady taking the win. Only this time it was Gemma Wyllie who came from near the rear of grid to take the race win. She narrowly held off the fast finishing Brodie Evans who passed Nicky Richards with one lap to go. Both Wyllie and Evans later divulged that they had bet their respective families that they would finish on the podium. Evans should have held out for more money as he only got $20 compared to Wyllie who secured $150 from her father and grandfather!
Above: Gemma Wyllie (34) on her way to winning the 2012 McDonalds Young Guns race. She also finished second in the series.
pic - Callum Mitchell
Finally thankyou to all the 477 drivers who competed in the series, all their pit crew, the stewards and all the volunteers who made this series one of the best for many years. Special thanks also to all four Tasmanian clubs and their many helpers for hosting terrific meetings. Thanks to Jade Stone for helping with the series points, Mark Sergeant for his efforts as Clerk Of Course at all four events and Steph Peters and Janine Evers for all their hard work behind the scenes. 2012 has been a great year so far and there’s much more to come.
Round 4 Results: (scroll down for series results)
Cadets
1st Mitchell Kerrison
2nd Brock Lamont
3rd Lachlan Dalton
Rookies
1st Tayla Heath
2nd Zevie Eisentraut
3rd Samuel Gala
Junior National Light
1st Brodie Evans
2nd Wade McLean
3rd Gemma Wyllie
Junior National Heavy
1st Morgan Jakobovski
2nd Keenan Slater
3rd Daniel Newman
Senior National Light
1st Kelsey Sapwell
2nd Stuart Wells
3rd Naomi Wrigley
Senior National Heavy
1st Michael Vaughan
2nd Johnathan Males
3rd Murray Dadson
Senior National Over 40’s Pro
1st Michael Vaughan
2nd Steve Crocker
3rd Fred Cocca
Senior National Over 40’s Super Heavy
1st Scott Wrigley
2nd Greg Wood
3rd Darren Williams
Clubman Light
1st Evan Livingston
2nd Dillon Van Galen
3rd Alastair Lee
Clubman Heavy
1st Trent Palmer
2nd Zane Wyatt
3rd Steven Wrigley
TAG Restricted Heavy
1st Michael Warren
2nd Matthew Clark
3rd Andrew Walter
TAG Light
1st Matthew Distill
2nd Dion Wyllie
3rd Jake Rice
Clubman Super Heavy
1st Josh Muskett
2nd Matthew Rowbottom
TAG Restricted Light
1st David Sherriff
2nd Andrew Sherriff
3rd Craig Phillips
McDonalds Young Guns
1st Gemma Wyllie
2nd Brodie Evans
3rd Nicky Richards
- Overall Series Placing below. Full series points HERE (Excel format)
| Cadets | ||||
| 1 | Mitchell | Kerrison | 333 | Arrow |
| 2 | Lachlan | Dalton | 290 | Arrow |
| 3 | Brock | Lamont | 271 | Corsa Diablo |
| 4 | Declan | Sherburd | 205 | Arrow |
| 5 | Justin | Murphy | 180 | Arrow |
| 6 | Ethan | Wyllie | 179 | Tony Kart |
| 7 | Callum | Bishop | 154 | CRG/Arrow |
| 8 | Jackson | Callow | 113 | Tony Kart |
| 9 | William | Reeve | 32 | Arrow |
| 10 | Chad | Wyllie | 28 | Tony Kart |
| 11 | Mitchell | West | 24 | |
| Rookies | ||||
| 1 | Tayla | Heath | 330 | Tony Kart |
| 2 | Zevie | Eisentraut | 296 | Arrow |
| 3 | Brock | Evans | 272 | Omega |
| 4 | Samuel | Gala | 220 | Arrow |
| 5 | Andrew | Lee | 208 | CRG |
| 6 | Caitlin | Fitch | 164 | CRG |
| 7 | Kaytlyn | Holden | 101 | CRG |
| 8 | Jason | Colgan | 54 | |
| 9 | Ryan | Smith | 44 | |
| 10 | Tate | Frost | 42 | CRG |
| 11 | Ryan | Maher | 28 | CRG |
| Junior National Light | ||||
| 1 | Brodie | Evans | 265 | Omega |
| 2 | Gemma | Wyllie | 236 | Tony Kart |
| 3 | Bodie | Reading | 235 | Gillard/Arrow |
| 4 | Nicky | Richards | 227 | Arrow |
| 5 | Jacob | Morris | 206 | Kosmic |
| 6 | Wade | McLean | 188 | Tony Kart |
| 7 | Cameron | Kuc | 156 | Arrow |
| 8 | Lachlan | Newman | 138 | Arrow |
| 9 | Xavier | Todman | 137 | Kosmic |
| 10 | Johnah | Slater | 117 | Tony Kart |
| 11 | Brodie | Sward | 106 | CRG |
| 12 | Liam | O'Connor | 95 | Monaco |
| 13 | Mitchell | Gordon | 82 | Arrow |
| 14 | Bradley | Hobden | 79 | Swiss Hutless |
| 15 | Morgan | Jakobovski | 62 | FA |
| 16 | Ashden | Fairley | 49 | Arrow |
| 17 | Samuel | Jackson | 33 | Gillard |
| 18 | Brianna | Hobden | 29 | Arrow |
| Junior National Heavy | ||||
| 1 | Keenan | Slater | 297 | Tony Kart |
| 2 | Daniel | Newman | 270 | Arrow |
| 3 | Thomas | Clark | 236 | Arrow |
| 4 | Morgan | Jakobovski | 230 | FA |
| 5 | Jairus | Holmes | 226 | Top Kart |
| 6 | Brodey | Lovett | 202 | Monaco |
| 7 | James | Fitch | 142 | BRM |
| 8 | Emilee | Lindgren | 141 | Tony Kart |
| 9 | James | Pinfold | 128 | Arrow |
| 10 | Thomas | Pyke | 76 | Arrow |
| 11 | Zhane | Ripper | 66 | Arrow |
| 12 | Joseph | Armstrong | 24 | Arrow |
| Senior National Light | ||||
| 1 | Kelsey | Sapwell | 330 | Tony Kart |
| 2 | Naomi | Wrigley | 248 | Arrow |
| 3 | Toby | Archer | 240 | Arrow |
| 4 | Jackson | Evans | 198 | Swiss Hutless |
| 5 | Howard | Crispin | 139 | Monza |
| 6 | Mitchell | Lovell | 110 | Arrow |
| 7 | Jacob | Lanham | 104 | Arrow |
| 8 | Stuart | Wells | 94 | Arrow |
| 9 | Gus | Robbins | 68 | Arrow |
| 10 | Joshua | Hardy | 38 | Pheonix |
| 11 | Leroy | Wilton | 35 | Monaco |
| 12 | Grant | McGlasson | 35 | Omega |
| 13 | Ben | Marley | 32 | Top Kart |
| 14 | Alfredo | Cocca | 16 | Monaco |
| 15 | Luke | Wilton | 12 | Gillard |
| 16 | Neville | Young | 0 | CRG |
| Senior National Heavy | ||||
| 1 | Johnathan | Males | 308 | Arrow |
| 2 | Danton | Evans | 260 | Monaco |
| 3 | Murray | Dadson | 246 | Arrow |
| 4 | Mark | Crocker | 173 | Arrow |
| 5 | Michael | Vaughan | 155 | Monaco |
| 6 | Mark | Fernandes | 78 | Arrow |
| 7 | Kyle | Young | 64 | CRG |
| 8 | Allan | Sheehan | 52 | CRG |
| 9 | Troy | Sheehan | 40 | CRG |
| National Over 40 Pro | ||||
| 1 | Steve | Crocker | 310 | Arrow |
| 2 | Peter | Rogers | 266 | Arrow |
| 3 | Michael | Jack | 212 | Arrow |
| 4 | Michael | Vaughan | 200 | Monaco |
| 5 | Stephen | Johnstone | 162 | Omega |
| 6 | Andrew | Kuc | 155 | Arrow |
| 7 | Anthony | Butler | 151 | Arrow |
| 8 | Stephen | Sapwell | 106 | Tony Kart |
| 9 | Tim | Hinds | 101 | Monaco |
| 10 | Peter | Jessup | 99 | Omega |
| 11 | Neville | Young | 99 | CRG |
| 12 | Brendon | Reading | 95 | Gillard |
| 13 | Shane | Burdon | 64 | Sprinter |
| 14 | Anthony | Reilley | 63 | Swiss Hutless |
| 15 | David | Jackson | 60 | CRG |
| 16 | Alfredo | Cocca | 58 | Monaco |
| 17 | David | Saltmarsh | 57 | Arrow |
| 18 | Leigh | Sheehan | 38 | CRG |
| 19 | John | Fernandes | 20 | Monaco |
| 20 | David | Gordon | 18 | Arrow |
| 21 | Andrew | Prins | 9 | CRG |
| National Over 40 Super Heavy | ||||
| 1 | Scott | Wrigley | 318 | Storm/Intrepid |
| 2 | Gregory | Wood | 284 | Arrow |
| 3 | John | Lee | 239 | CRG |
| 4 | Darren | Williams | 238 | Monaco |
| 5 | Gary | Lee | 227 | Intrepid |
| 6 | Alastair | Fairley | 200 | Arrow |
| 7 | Scott | Searson | 38 | Arrow |
| 8 | Stuart | Lee | 36 | Arrow |
| 9 | Eammon | O'Connor | 32 | Arrow |
| Clubman Light | ||||
| 1 | Nathan | Zuj | 307 | BRM |
| 2 | Brody | Appleby | 296 | Tony Kart |
| 3 | Alastair | Lee | 250 | Arrow |
| 4 | Evan | Livingston | 239 | CRG |
| 5 | Dillon | Van Galen | 226 | Tony Kart |
| 6 | Aaron | Duffey | 132 | Arrow |
| 7 | Shane | Bray | 121 | Arrow |
| 8 | Jobe | Sims | 48 | Exprit |
| 9 | Keelan | Devlin | 38 | Kosmic |
| 10 | Luke | Sapwell | 36 | Tony Kart |
| Clubman Heavy | ||||
| 1 | Troy | Stone | 294 | CRG |
| 2 | Steven | Wrigley | 256 | FA |
| 3 | Jack | Pickett | 228 | CRG |
| 4 | Trent | Palmer | 204 | Monaco |
| 5 | Alan | Fitzpatrick | 193 | Arrow |
| 6 | Mitchel | Evans | 132 | Arrow |
| 7 | Zane | Wyatt | 108 | Monaco |
| 8 | Jonathan | McDonald | 107 | Monaco |
| 9 | Jeffrey | Dickson | 90 | Arrow |
| 10 | Jacob | Goodluck | 83 | Arrow |
| 11 | Jamie | Bricknell | 75 | CRG |
| 12 | Kristopher | Hen | 46 | Arrow |
| 13 | Matthew | Coates | 42 | Arrow |
| 14 | Matthias | Schrepfer | 37 | Arrow |
| 15 | Matthew | Freeman | 29 | Tony Kart |
| 16 | Brodie | Maher | 20 | Kosmic |
| 17 | Michael | Jones | 19 | CRG |
| 18 | Aiden | Shelton | 17 | Bruv GP Kart |
| Clubman Super Heavy | ||||
| 1 | Joshua | Muskett | 208 | Arrow |
| 2 | Peter | Kemp | 83 | Arrow |
| 3 | Matthew | Rowbottom | 83 | Arrow |
| 4 | Simon | England | 75 | Monaco |
| 5 | Allan | Sheehan | 20 | CRG |
| TAG 125 Restricted Light | ||||
| 1 | David | Sherriff | 295 | Kosmic |
| 2 | Adrian | Mitchell | 158 | CRG |
| 3 | Graham | Hoar | 100 | Tony Kart |
| 4 | Andrew | Sherriff | 85 | Monaco |
| 5 | Jamie | Mitchell | 84 | Arrow |
| 6 | Craig | Phillips | 70 | Intrepid |
| 7 | Geoff | Scaife | 54 | Arrow |
| 8 | Luke | Wilton | 20 | Intrepid |
| TAG 125 Restricted Heavy | ||||
| 1 | Michael | Warren | 331 | Kosmic |
| 2 | Matthew | Clark | 285 | Intrepid |
| 3 | Andrew | Walter | 241 | Monaco |
| 4 | Thomas | Walter | 214 | Arrow |
| 5 | Renee | Chettle | 176 | CRG |
| 6 | Graham | Hoar | 81 | Tony Kart |
| 7 | Andrew | Chick | 68 | Gillard |
| 8 | Darren | Williams | 30 | Monaco |
| 9 | Paul | Colgan | 12 | |
| 10 | Samuel | Muskett | 38 | Arrow |
| TAG 125 Light | ||||
| 1 | Dion | Wyllie | 268 | Tony Kart |
| 2 | Jade | Waddington | 245 | Azzurro |
| 3 | Matthew | Distill | 232 | Omega |
| 4 | Jake | Rice | 214 | Intrepid |
| 5 | Jackson | Evans | 170 | Swiss Hutless |
| 6 | Jorden | Distill | 166 | Omega |
| 7 | Jack | Dimsey | 163 | Gillard |
| 8 | Stephen | Swain | 116 | CRG/Intrepid |
| 9 | Jason | Close | 108 | Monaco |
| 10 | Steven | Wrigley | 97 | Tony Kart |
| 11 | Scott | Hildyard | 94 | Corsa Diablo |
| 12 | Simon | Sherriff | 84 | Monaco |
| 13 | Bradley | Chick | 78 | Gillard |
| 14 | Sam | Chettle | 67 | Arrow/Tony Kart |
| 15 | Ryan | Somerville | 54 | Arrow |
| 16 | Trent | Palmer | 50 | Swiss Hutless |
| 17 | Ben | Walter | 40 | Kosmic |
| 18 | Chris | Walpole | 35 | Kosmic |
| 19 | Leroy | Wilton | 4 | Intrepid |
