CRG Australia Team Report from Pro Tour
| press release | 23 July 2016 |
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Mixed weekend of racing for CRG Team at Rotax Pro Tour in South Australia 15-17 July
Despite CRG drivers securing four podiums it was a bittersweet weekend of racing for the CRG Team at the 5th round in the Rotax Pro Tour series held at the Bolivar Raceway in South Australia.
The CRG team put on a good show with seven drivers all pumped to give it their best but destiny had other plans.
In the qualifying round Pierce Lehane had a mechanical failure which saw him qualify 19th which was second last. Thomas Macdonald was 8th fastest by the smallest of margins and if he was only half a tenth faster he would have been placing out of three.
Above: Pierce Lehane leads Thomas McDonald
pic - Coopers Photography
Pre finals saw Lehane put in great speed to finish 3rd whilst for Thomas it ended with a DNF.
Despite contact in the first turn of the finals, which put him to the rear of the field and a long way back, Pierce Lehane was undeterred and drove as hard as he could to make up the placings, finishing in 8th position. Thomas too, kept up a fierce pace to finish 7th. The irony was that both drivers delivered race times as good as the leaders and would have been solid contenders to take the win if they had the chance to race up front.
In the Mini Max class, CRG drivers James Wharton, Kai Allen and Angus Giffin (Shamick Racing) had a competitive edge.
Spectators were treated to a thrilling and satisfying display of racing at its best as the team mates challenged each other lap after lap for the final which ended with the three taking the top steps on the podium. For newcomers James Piszcyk and Joel Johnson, driving in this series was highly inspiring and instructive. The locals got a lot out of the race meet and are looking forward to putting it to good use at the next race weekend.
Above: James Wharton ahead of Kai Allen and Nagus Griffin (47)
pic - Glenn Davidson
Rotax Heavy champ Lane Moore put on a showcase performance. Qualifying in second and staying at the front in the heats and pre final he easily claimed a heat win in the first round. In the finals, he started out of second and held his place with gutsy determination to bring home a strong second and a well-earned result.
Team CRG driver Rick Pringle made a return to the series after missing the last three rounds and had good pace through all the heats and was looking strong to finish, but contact in the final put an end to this.
Above: Lane Moore, on the podium in Rotax Heavy
pic - Glenn Davidson
DD2 Master Mark Flood (McLaine Motorsport) had a mixed weekend with good pace from the opening practice session. He continued this determined streak to finish 5th on the podium, an odds-defying and excellent result after a crash in the pre-final placed him to the back of the field for the start of the final.
DD2 Jason Pringle had a tough weekend and could only manage a 6th place in the final. In sport as in life it’s not what you do when it’s easy, it’s how you handle things when it’s tough and Jason took the weekend in his stride, being more pumped than ever for the next race meet.
Above: Mark Flood
pic - Glenn Davidson
Rotax Pro Tour Series Points
Mini Max
1st James Wharton
2nd Kai Allen
5th Angus Giffin
Rotax Heavy
2nd Lane Moore
DD2
4th Jason Pringle
DD2 Masters
3rd Mark Flood
Round six of the Rotax Pro Tour series will be held on 26-28 August at Puckapunyal in Victoria.
Above: Rick Pringle made a return to Pro Tour but had contact in the final
pic - Glenn Davidson
