Grant Splashes To Another Pro Kart Series Win
| press release | 24 April 2013 |
| Tweet | |
Rain or shine it doesn't seem to matter to New Zealand KZ2 class 'King,' Ryan Grant.
Aucklander Grant, 29, who has been the dominant force in the 6-speed-gearbox/125cc KZ2 class since the ProKart series started in 2009, was again the pace-setter at the third round of the 2013 series at Te Puke over the weekend, making light of the torrential rain on Saturday and drying but still treacherous track conditions on Sunday.
Above: KZ2 winner Ryan Grant
pic -
Fast Company/Greg Henderson
Christchurch-based V8 SuperTourer driver Richard Moore proved best of the restin teh changeable conditions, joining Grant on the front row of the grid for the first (and as it turned out only) heat race of the weekend on Saturday, beating Grant to the finish line in the Pre-Final then finishing second - to Grant - in the Final.
At earlier - drier - rounds of this year's ProKart series, multi-time New Zealand sprint class champion Matthew Hamilton from Christchurch has been edging closer to Grant but he and fellow Mainlanders Chris Cox and young gun Scott Manson struggled to find a set-up to suit their tyres in the streaming wet conditions on Saturday.
Once the worst of the showers passed, they regained some of the ground, however Hamilton's Final was cut short when a manifold rubber broke after just two laps leaving Manson the best of the southerners in third place with Cox fourth.
There were new faces, meanwhile, on the podium in both the KZ2 Masters and KF3 Junior support categories.
Aucklander Brett Hollander turned out to be the rain-master in the Masters class, pipping Formula S club president Steve Brown in qualifying then - after being beaten to the finish line by Brown in the heat race - storming back to win both the Pre-Final and Final and with it his debut round victory in the series from fellow Aucklanders Mark Wheeler and Leo Bult.
And what happened to Brown?
He had the pace, but stripped a sprocket in the Pre-Final and gambled on running slicks - rather than the wet tyres Hollander and the majority of the other drivers were using - in the Final.
Above: Brett Hollander won KZ2 Masters
pic -
Fast Company/Greg Henderson
With parts of the track almost dry he wasn't too far off the pace of the front-runners on their wets but before he had a chance to stage an upset the bolt holding his kart's steering wheel on broke and he was forced out after only 10 of the race's 20 laps.
Tyre choice also helped decide the result in the KF3 class with Mitchell Sanders winning the heat race and the Pre-Final but slumping to sixth in the Final after deciding - like Brown - to take the risk and start it on slicks, victory in the Final (and round) going to Arran Crighton from Mitchell Turner.
The Te Puke round was the third of six with subsequent ones set to be held at Tokoroa, Hastings and Auckland.
Above: Arran Crighton grabbed victory in Junior KF3
pic -
Fast Company/Greg Henderson
2013 Formula S KartSport ProKart Series
KZ2
Round
1. Ryan Grant 4 points; 2. Richard Moore 5; 3. Graeme Smyth 11; 4. Chris Cox 12; 5. Mitch Brown 19; 6. Matthew Hamilton 22
Points after Rnd 3 of 6
1. Ryan Grant 336 points; 2. Matthew Hamilton 311; 3. Chris Cox 311; 4. Jordan Morris 301; 5. Shaun Grocock 300; 6. Mitch Brown 299
KZ2 Masters
Round
1. Brett Hollander 4 points; 2. Mark Wheeler 7; 3. Leo Bult 12; 4. Snow Mooney 15; 5. Todd Wheeler 17; 6. Garry Claxton 25
Points after Rnd 3 of 6
1. Snow Mooney 323; 2. Mark Wheeler 317; 3. Brett Hollander 316; 4. Todd Wheeler 311; 5. Leo Bult 307; 6. Garry Claxton 306
KF3
Round
1. Arran Crighton 6 points; 2. Mitchell Turner 7; 3. Mitchel Sanders 8; 4. Thomas Batt 13; 5. Oscar Drummond 14; 6. Logan Brown 15
Points after Rnd 3 of 6
1. Arran Crighton 328; 2. Mitchell Turner 327; 3. Mitchel Sanders 314; 4. Thomas Batt 309; 5. Logan Brown 307; 6. Oscar Drummond 305
