NSW Yamaha Junior Clubman Series, Round 2
| from Dennis Sandrone | 25 April 2013 |
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“Why go slower when you can go faster”
Wollongong Kart Racing Club kindly hosted Round 2 of the 2013 NSW Yamaha Junior Pro Clubman Series on the 21st April at the new race venue, Picton Raceway.
The heavy rain experienced on the Saturday cleared to once again present the Junior Pro Clubman crew with a fabulous Autumn day. Round 2 attracted ten keen competitors with another 4 new Junior Clubman Series starters in Harry Hayek, John Iafolla, Hudson Heath and Tyra Maranik, all trying their luck for the first time at the venue.
Returning from round one were Christopher Sandrone, Damon Schofield (round 1 winner), Nick Becker, Glen Ormerod, Christian Bakilja and fast improving Thomas McDonnell. The round one young ladies Charlotte Poynting and Shae Becker were both missing from this round, however young Tyra Maranik filled the gap with lots of smiles.
Above: Hudson Heath made his debut in the Junior Clubman series at Picton
pic - quickpixels.com.au
Qualifying. Once again a valuable 5 bonus points towards for series was up for grabs for pole position. The honour this time went to Galston Auto Centre Driver Nick Becker, followed by Chris Sandrone, Harry Hayek, Thomas McDonnell and John Lafolla rounding out the top five with less then15/100 second separating the five.
Heat 1. Nick Becker showed a clean set of heals of the start with Sandrone falling back to 3rd behind Hayek. Sandrone regained second position on lap 2 then gained the lead over Becker on lap 4. Becker gave chase to Sandrone however at the same time was under threat from Hayek who claimed 2nd on lap 8 allowing Sandrone some breathing space for the final 2 laps. McDonnell managed a solid 4th with young PCR driver John Lafolla rounding of the top 5.
1st Chris Sandrone
2nd Harry Hayek
3rd Nick Becker
4th Thomas McDonnell
5th John Lafolla
Heat 2. Nick Becker again showed a clean set of heals however this time Sandrone held second and took advantage of a good tow up the hill to gain 1st place, this time it was McDonnell turn to shadow Becker seizing 2nd place on the final corner. Hayek came home 4th with a improving Glen Ormerod completing the 5.
1st Chris Sandrone
2nd Thomas McDonnell
3rd Nick Becker
4th Harry Hayek
5th Glen Ormerod
Above: It was a successful meeting for Exprit driver Chris Sandrone
pic - quickpixels.com.au
Pre-Final. The Pre final is one of the critical races for the series considering series points are awarded for both the pre final and final equally. Becker again snatched the lead however like in heat 2 Sandrone took the lead at the top of the hill. Round 1 winner Damon Schofield continued to have a frustrating day with a DNF at turn 2. Meanwhile McDonnell, Ormerod and Hayek all held position throughout the race to finish 3rd, 4th & 5th respectively. Lafolla recovered from a poor start to claim 6th followed home by Heath, Tyra Maranik and Bakija all improving significantly during the day which was a exception effort considering like Schofield hadn't seen the circuit prior to the start of the day.
1st Chris Sandrone
2nd Nick Becker
3rd Thomas McDonnell
4th Glen Ormerod
5th Harry Hayek
Above: Roll-up lap for the pre-final, Chris Sandrone (76) on pole alongside Nicholas Becker (22)
pic - quickpixels.com.au
Final: Even though Becker started of position 2, he kept his starting record for the day intact winning the start into turn 1 however Sandrone quickly responding with a inside move into turn 2. Sandrone then opened a slender lead while McDonnell showed some brilliant pace chasing down Becker only to have his race cut short with a broken header pipe. This left Sandrone and Becker comfortably in 1st and 2nd whilst Ormerod drove from 6th to claim 3rd followed by Iafolla, Hayek, Schofield and Heath.
Unfortunately Tyra Maranik DNF's and Christian Bakija DNS which didn't allow them to demonstrate the improvements from learning the track and set up during the days racing. All the drivers should be commended on the clean driving and sportsmanship shown throughout the day Over $800 in prizes was distributed amongst the all competitors thanks to our special series sponsors plus Wollongong kart racing club for donating a free entry.
1st Chris Sandrone
2nd Nick Becker
3rd Glen Ormerod
4th John Iafolla
5th Harry Hayek
Above: L-R, Harry Hayek, Nick Becker, Chris Sandrone, Glen Ormerod and John Iafolla
pic - quickpixels.com.au
Next Round.
The 3rd round will be hosted by Newcastle Kart Racing Club at Mount Sugerloaf Raceway on the 3rd & 4th August which doubles as the Newcastle City Cup.
Special thanks to Series Sponsors:
- Gold: Yamaha, Remo Racing, Scuderia PCR Australia
- Silver: LAING + SIMMONS POTTS POINT + PYRMONT
- Bronze: Stones Kartsport, Karting World, Kart 1 Superstore
Anyone interested in joining the series please contact Dennis Sandrone email sandrone@bigpond.com. or mobile 0409330025.
