by Ayrton Creagh
After an incredible 2024 Golden Power Series campaign that saw competitors travel every corner of Victoria, the sixth and final championship-deciding round took place in the Goldfields region of Bendigo. There was no better theatre to host the grand final weekend of the series as drivers and teams duelled it out for the final time hoping to scribe their name on the championships list.
- full results on speedhive HERE
- photos by Steve Dansie – Saturday HERE, pits HERE, Sunday HERE, podiums HERE
- photos by Tim Francis – Saturday HERE, Sunday HERE
- photos by Bens Gallery – Saturday HERE, Sunday HERE
It was going to take a herculean effort to stop young Cadet 9 superstar, Jarvis Hindle, from winning the championship after his dominant showing during the last round. Hindle went into the final round with a 1200-point margin over his nearest (competing) rival, Beau Chambers, who was in 3rd (Lex Kelly was 2nd, but recently moved to Cadet 12). It was a tall order for young Chambers, who put his best foot forward by putting the #95 machine on pole position over Hindle by 0.022s! Ryder Xiong, Zac Ismaili and Jack Morrell completed the fast five.
The heats commenced and it was Ismaili who struck first, taking the opening heat over both Chambers and Hindle behind, before Hindle turned it up a notch and took the two remaining heats ahead of Chambers – both Ismaili and Xiong claiming a share of the podium.
Hindle had all but secured the championship after effectively the first heat, going into the final with a clear head focused on trying to collect another round win, whilst Chambers, Xiong and Ismaili all fancied themselves for a shot at taking out the round. The flag dropped and we were underway, disaster on the first lap as Chambers was out only a handful of corners in! After all the congestion, Hindle had been handed a massive lead of over 1s by the end of lap one, with Ismaili and Xiong just behind. There were plenty of squabbles throughout the field, the top three head and shoulders above the rest as they continued to pull away from the ensuing pack. Hindle had checked out, amassing a 4s+ lead by Lap 10, Ismaili and Xiong taking their battle to the line. Last lap, Ismaili holding 2nd all race before Xiong found an opportunity to dive down the inside, snatching P2 at the very end! Hindle crossed the line a comfortable winner, almost 6s clear of Xiong in 2nd with Ismaili, Cooper Djemil and Jack Morrell completing the podium!
Another class that was set to see a close championship battle, Cadet 12 saw Luca Portaro trailblaze his way to pole position over Jensen Damaschino in P2: Mason Martin, Austin McPherson and Emmanuel Mistriotis completing the top five! It was the perfect start to the weekend for Portaro, who went into the final round some 600-points adrift from championship leader, Austin McPherson. Despite Portaro’s blistering speed in qualifying, the KartClass driver couldn’t catch a break in the heats, taking a DNF in his opening race that saw McPherson take victory. Meanwhile, Damaschino was on a warpath, rampaging his way through the races with two wins and a podium. Alana Gurney, Emmanuel Mistriotis and Mason Martin all went on to claim a win each to boot.
We were set for a tantalising final, several heat winners, numerous drivers all within the same tenth of a second to contest for the crown – who would end up on top? Damaschino got a lightning-fast start as the lights went out, taking the holeshot into turn one and building almost a 0.5s lead over Gurney in 2nd, McPherson just behind. It was fierce racing from the get-go, McPherson dropping to 5th on lap 2 as Samuel Jansen van Vuuren (JVV) found his way from 5th to 3rd, also passing Emmanuel Mistriotis! Damaschino turned on the afterburners, Gurney trying to remain in touch but unable to replicate the #32’s speed. The race just began to settle down, the calm before the storm as both Gurney and JVV were working away at maintaining their podium placings. 3-laps to go, JVV had cut down the deficit between himself and Gurney to less than a nosecone, before making the pass for P2! Gurney threw everything she had at him, but it proved to not be enough. Damaschino crossed the line 2.6s clear, seemingly in cruise control as Jansen van Vuuren followed behind, Gurney glued to his bumper. McPherson went on to cross the line in 4th and wrap up the championship, with Michael Mistriotis pipping his brother narrowly to round out the top five!
KA3 Junior Light was arguably one of the closest championships coming into the final round. It was all on the line, emerging sensation Christian Sasso with a thin 300 odd point margin over fierce rivals Jai George and Jack Jenkins prior to the final weekend. Sasso executed the start of the weekend, to perfection, blazing his way to pole position by a massive 0.208s over Jenkins in 2nd, Mangano only another 0.023s further back! Aaron Bottomley and Tyler McLeod completed the fastest five, whilst championship contender Jai George found himself down in 6th!
It was all to play for in the heats, Sasso continuing his dominant streak with a string of victories all exceeding 2s+, whilst Jenkins claimed consecutive P2’s – both Bottomley and Mangano getting opportunities to enjoy the podium.
Sasso had placed himself in the prime position come the final, an Act of God basically the only thing that could stand between himself and the championship crown, however, it would go down to the wire between Jenkins and George. Could anyone slow down Sasso? The lights went out and we’re off, another electric start from Sasso saw him build a 1s lead at the end of the opening lap whilst it was all happening behind, Jenkins in P2 with Bottomley in 3rd. Bottomley wasn’t keen on hanging around, making a move on Jenkins a handful of laps later to promote himself to 2nd, before George also joined the party and found himself in 3rd a lap later – Jenkins now 4th. The trio continued to squabble for placing, Jenkins fighting back to 2nd the very next lap! Whilst all this was happening, Sasso had the throttle pinned, building a margin of 3.5s to the next kart by the halfway mark of the race. It was getting fiery between Bottomley, Jenkins and George; Harry McInerney now closing in and wanting a slice of the podium. Handful of laps to go, George back into 2nd with Jenkins, Bottomley and McInerney just behind, Jenkins and George dicing. A bit of biff and barge saw the group separated, Jenkins shuffled back to 5th, whilst out in front the soon-to-be crowned champion, Christian Sasso, cruised to the chequered flag in style, winning by his largest gap of the weekend standing at 5s over George, Bottomley a whisker further back with McInerney and Jenkins completing the podium!
After a scary incident on Sunday morning in the heats, we hope Cohen is on the mend and look forward to seeing him back out on track soon.
Despite jumping from the Kart Republic to the EKS kart, KA3 Junior Heavy’s Rya Roberts remained the driver to beat heading into the weekend. With a massive 837-point advantage over Chelsea Humphrey, it was a tall order to beat the #51. Roberts continued his hot run of form from recent, snatching pole position by 0.006s over Ryan Wyhoon; Oliver Von Tunk, Aydan Warren and Jayden Gauci completing the fast five! Following an incident in qualifying, we hope both drivers involved in the incident are on the mend.
Roberts ramped up the pressure in the heats, securing the championship on the Saturday afternoon as he ran away to three heat wins over Aydan Warren, who also collected a string of P2’s – Wyhoon, Von Tunk and Mia Mifsud all featuring on the podium.
It felt like Groundhog Day, yet another event where we were questioning whether anyone had the speed to keep up with Rya, Warren appearing to be the closest challenger but had traffic to deal with in the earlier races. Was there a potential upset on the cards? The two stormed into turn one from the front row, Roberts aggressively forcing his way into the lead, Warren losing a position around the awkward turn one, Von Tunk slipping into 2nd. It was building into a race of graceful chess, Von Tunk certainly finding a turn of speed that saw Roberts struggle to shake him off his tail. It became a game of who would blink first, and in the end, it was neither, no change for positions despite Roberts winning by a mere 0.7s over Von Tunk and achieving championship glory, Warren crossed the line 3rd with the fastest lap as Wyhoon and Gauci completed the top five!
In 2023 we saw one of the best title deciders for a category, TAG 125 Restricted Light going down to the wire where Ethan Warren narrowly beat Ryan Dealy in the very last race of the season. It was fair to say that the spectators were ecstatic to find that it looked to play similarly in 2024, Dealy with a slender points advantage over Warren coming into the final round. Off the back of a major swing in points recently, Warren continued his warpath by strutting to pole position by 0.127s over Jarrod Bottomley in 2nd; Ben Bloomfield, Mackenzie Rowley and Ryan Dealy completing the fast five!
The heats were chaotic, mayhem everywhere you looked that saw the midfield collapse on itself several times. No matter how many karts went off, the #57 couldn’t be derailed, Warren storming his way to three heat wins in a row whilst Bloomfield notched three podiums, Bottomley a couple of P2’s and Jack Gatt finding himself a 3rd place finish as well.
Warren went into the final race having almost secured the crown for the second year running, Dealy dealt a hefty blow to his title hopes as he was caught in the mess through the heats. We rolled into the final, Warren starting out of pole alongside Bloomfield in P2, Bottomley and Dealy just behind. Lights out and we’re off, a terrific start sees Warren maintain the lead at the end of lap one, Bottomley just behind with Bloomfield hot on his heels. The incident-filled heats were certainly no precursor to the final, the sole DNF coming 5 laps in whilst it was single file for the rest of the top five from the get-go – Warren wrapping up the series and claiming a massive victory by 2.5s over Bottomley, with Bloomfield completing the top three!
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TAG 125 Restricted Medium had Trent Meadows coming into the final round as the driver to beat, 301 points ahead of Jesse Watkins in 2nd place. Meadows’ confidence in his kart was clear for all to see on Saturday morning, notching the fastest time in qualifying by 0.041s over local, Michael Flynn with Josh Godfrey, Jackson Hodgetts and Jesse Watkins tailing. Maintaining the trend of clean sweep victories throughout the weekend, Meadows also had the opportunity to bathe in glory, going three from three ahead of Flynn – Godfrey and Hodgetts getting to land on the podium.
Meadows was the undeniable favourite heading into the final, Flynn with similar speed but unable to pry open an opportunity during the heats. Were we set for one last twist in the tale? The flag dropped and we were racing, the perfect start for Meadows, lunging into the first corner and retaining 1st from Flynn in 2nd. The crowd peered over the fence to glimpse the action where they could, Flynn working away at the wheel to try give Meadows the hurry up but unable to close in. 5-laps in and Flynn now visibly beginning to brake too deep into corners, a suspected rogue brake system playing its part in the pivotal race of the weekend. All of a sudden Godfrey and Flynn are battling, they go through the last corner and Flynn goes straight on again, running through the dirt on the exit and dropping down to 7th. The local favourite was all but out for the count in terms of a home podium, the squabble cracking the race wide as Godfrey was given a bit more breathing room to Nathan Gagliardone in 3rd. Whilst Godfrey didn’t have as much pressure on him, there was little he could do to catch up to Meadows in front, who went on to cross the line 1.8s ahead of Godfrey and take out the championship, Gagliardone completing the podium!
The championship fight had been cracked wide open heading into the final round for TAG 125 Restricted Heavy four drivers in contention for the title with Brett Jenkins narrowly ahead of Blair Van Ree in 2nd, Mason Baldi in 3rd and Shannon Hogg in 4th. Baldi leaned into the weekend putting his best foot forward, claiming a sensational pole over fellow Top Kart driver, Trent Meadows, in P2 – Brett Jenkin, Logan Burton and Brent Opie completing the top five. Shannon Hogg and Blair Van Ree both went spinning out of qualifying, registering laps but significantly down the order. Baldi was on a warpath as he worked on zeroing in on Jenkin’s lead, three heat wins from Meadows in 2nd whilst Jenkin limited the damage with two 3rds’, Hogg also taking a podium.
Final race of the championship season, Baldi still in contention but practically needing Jenkin to not finish to claim victory, Jenkin just needing to bring home a healthy amount of points. Baldi and Meadows lining up off the front row with Jenkin behind… and we’re off, a wonderful start for Baldi, Jenkin and Hogg as they occupy the podium places, Meadows relegated to 4th! Meadows wasn’t keen on rolling over that easily though, fighting his way back into 3rd before setting pursuit of Jenkin ahead. Half race distance, Meadows now right on the tail of Jenkin, Baldi still about 0.7s down the road. Meadows looming as the dangerman with speed to burn, gliding past Jenkin a couple of corners later with six laps remaining. All the momentum was on Meadows’ side of proceedings, hunting down Baldi who was beginning to occasionally glance behind – something he hadn’t needed to do all weekend! One to go, the leading two single file but Meadows unable to find a way through, Baldi holding on to take a sensational victory by no more than 0.2s! Jenkin crosses the line 3rd, wrapping up the 2024 Golden Power Series!
TAG 125 Restricted Masters had the largest number of competitors in contention for the series, five drivers separated by 800 points going into the final round. Leigh Holmes stood atop of the ranking coming into Bendigo, just 30 points separating him from Victorian State Champion, Ian Branson, with the two set to lock horns as they joust for glory. It would be ProKarting’s Mark Seddon that would take pole position by 0.05s over Herman Van Ree in 2nd; Branson, Holmes and Chris Brooks completing the fastest five. The incidents weren’t without drama, incidents throughout the field with penalties applied in the heats. Seddon claimed two victories with Holmes claiming another – Van Ree, Brooks and Branson all having their moments on the podium.
It was neck and neck between Branson and Holmes heading into the final race, it would almost come down to finishing positions as to who would end up taking the title. With Seddon set to start out of P1 alongside Brooks, we were underway! A terrific start saw Seddon cruise into P1 with Holmes following closely behind, Van Ree into 2nd. The field began to disperse quite quickly as Seddon pulled the pin on the speed grenade that was the #10, building a 2s margin by half race distance. In the end, Seddon was untouchable, claiming a glorious 4.3s victory over Holmes in 2nd who would take out the championship, Van Ree completing the podium!
Amos Orr was brimming with confidence heading into the weekend, Australia’s KA3 Senior Light #3 had the opportunity to double up championships as he led both KA3 and TAG 125 Light by a sizeable margin. Whilst unlikely, ProKarting’s Hugo Garraway and JND Racing’s Will Thompson still stood a mathematical chance to take the championship out from under Orr, approximately 800 points adrift. Having annihilated the opposition in Albury aboard his FA kart, Thompson proved it didn’t matter what type or colour kart you put him in, he is bound to excel, storming to another scintillating pole position aboard his Birel Kart by 0.008s ahead of Sam March in 2nd; Imran Aly, Amos Orr and Hugo Garraway completing the top five. The second of over-subscribed categories throughout the weekend, KA3 put on the pyrotechnics with several jaw-dropping races. Orr displayed the mettle of a champion, fighting back in Heat 1 to reign supreme over Thompson who followed closely behind, whilst March, Garraway, Aly and Darsyn Harris all netted victories next to their name.
The top 10 of KA3 Senior Light proved to be virtually inseparable, upcoming drivers from the junior ranks such as Cooper Frith and Zach Turner battling for podiums, throw James Snaith in the mix and we had an almighty gaggle of karters vying for victory. March’s consistency and dual heat wins would see him off pole alongside Garraway, who would end up on top? The flag dropped and we’re racing, March maintaining the lead whilst Thompson was making moves behind to jump into P2, Garraway relegated to 3rd. The laps wound down and the scrapping continued, this time Thompson catching March unaware to take the lead whilst Orr found his way past Garraway; the two continuing to throw heavy blows before calamity… Garraway and Orr come together! Orr maintained 3rd but lost a chunk of time, Garraway sliding all the way down to 21st having taken a detour into the gravel. It was a two-kart race out in front, March turned on the afterburners to try reel in Thompson, but it wouldn’t be enough, the category’s #2 in the country taking two round wins on the trot from March, Orr another 7s adrift, but securing the championship!
The only championship to be concluded prior to the final round, KA3 Senior Medium had all been wrapped up after Zach Findlay’s incredible 2024 season. Arguably one of the most inform drivers in the paddock at the moment, Findlay was unable to back up his qualifying brilliance from the last round, as Tom Hughes returned to pole position by 0.018s over Taine Venables in 2nd, Ethan Briggs a further 0.043s back in 3rd with Findlay and Jarrod Bottomley the top five. The heats were anyone’s for the taking; Hughes, Findlay and Venables all getting a share of victory lane whilst Bottomley and Grace Riddell found opportunities to net podiums.
Three different winners in three different heats, the 15-lap final set to feel like a marathon for both drivers and avid fans for what was going to be one of the races of the weekend – Venables off pole alongside Findlay, Bottomley starting out of P3. Lights out and we’re off, a terrific launch from Venables see him maintain the lead whilst Findlay held position around the outside of turn one, Hughes up to 3rd. In all the congestion of the opening lap, Venables had already amassed a 1.4s lead by the end of lap two, Findlay turning on the afterburners as he chased down the Victorian State Cup champion. Five laps down, Findlay eviscerating the margin that Venables had built with only a 0.2s buffer being that gap, Findlay looking to pry open an opportunity where possible. It wouldn’t take him long, cruising by Venables some two laps later to take the lead! It was Venables’ opportunity now to return serve, the #43 dancing around the rear bumper of Findlay desperate to retake the lead, but it wasn’t to be, Findlay going back-to-back-to-back claiming his third round win in a row, the gap a mere 0.3s over Venables with Hughes just behind – 0.7s covering the top three! Incredible.
It would take divine intervention to stop the man of the moment, Amos Orr, from winning the TAG 125 Light championship, the young Melbournian boasting an 1109-point deficit to Max Marriner in P2. So, it came as no surprise when Orr put together a championship-worthy qualifying session, blazing to the top of the charts as he beat A1 Engines’ Joshua D’Ambrosio by 0.008s! Further back, Jasper Frith, Jack Steere and Hugo Garraway completed the fastest five. Orr looked dominant in the heats, wrapping up the championship by Saturday afternoon and taking two heat victories ahead of Garraway in 2nd, before disaster in Heat 3 – Orr suffering at the hands of a water-cooling malfunction as the radiator hose began to leak, Garraway inheriting the lead and narrowly pipping Sam March for victory whilst both Frith and Jamie Rowe had opportunities to land on the podium.
The stage was set for a clash of the titans, Orr with the speed to win but starting out of 3rd, Garraway taking pole as a result of his cunning race craft and deadly precision, Sam March the jam in the sandwich. The flag dropped and we were off, Hurricane Hugo getting the perfect launch as he stormed into the lead, Orr immediately slotting into 2nd, Zach Findlay close behind in 3rd. The two class supremos got to work; the field unable to replicate their presto-like tempo whilst the rest of the field squabbled for places. The laps wound down, Orr virtually attached to the back of the #63 who corner-by-corner would revise his race line, trying to dissuade Orr from making a lunge. A handful of laps remaining, nothing separating the two, Orr lumping on the pressure but Garraway seemingly having an answer to everything as he desperately held on to what he hoped would be his maiden win in the category. Final lap, the two still inseparable; charging through the final corner in a drag race to the finish… Garraway by a kart length! ProKarting’s Hugo Garraway went on to claim victory by a slender 0.107s over Amos Orr, Josh D’Ambrosio putting together a thrilling drive to charge from 9th to 3rd with the fastest lap – and breathe!
2023 TAG 125 Heavy Golden Power Series champion, Troy Alger, didn’t need a lot to go right to maintain the series title in 2024, boasting a 1450-point advantage over Liam Ford in P2 heading into the final round. Despite being the favourite heading into the weekend, it would be the #94 of Tom Hughes that would seal pole position ahead of Alger, 0.046s the margin between the two frontrunners with Tom McCulloch, Max Lumsden and Liam Ford just behind. As the weather began to heat up the racing followed suite, Hughes getting two heats wins with a slight hiccup in Heat 2 that saw McCulloch victorious – Lumsden, Alger, Ford and Nik Schmidt all battling for top five placings.
Hughes and McCulloch both had a tangible edge over their competition as they went into the final, ProKarting’s McCulloch looking at securing his maiden 2024 Golden Power Series round win whilst Hughes was looking at adding yet another trophy to the collection. The eerie silence swept across the paddock as the crowd wait for the fiery start. The flag dropped and we’re off, a mega start for Hughes who maintained the lead through turn one, McCulloch slotting into 2nd a mere nosecone behind with Lumsden in 3rd. It was once again another stand-off, the entire top three waiting to see who would blink first as Hughes built a 0.7s margin before McCulloch reeled it in. However, you couldn’t help but feel we had been robbed of a grandstand finish – no change in the standings from there, Hughes crossing the line the victor by a mere 0.4s over McCulloch in 2nd, Lumsden claiming the final podium placing with Alger taking out yet another series title!
Commentator’s Driver of the Round (honourable mention):
The Golden Power Series produced yet another incredible round and championship of motor racing, drawing attention and crowds to witness the unbelievable drama that comes as part of karting. Round 6 brought a close to the championship, but also highlighted all that we have to look forward to ahead of 2025. Upcoming talents rising from Cadet 9 to Cadet 12s, Juniors making the leap into Seniors and competitors as a whole continuing to embark on the journey of continual improvement in a sport that pushes both teams and drivers to the limit. There were some mighty performances throughout the weekend: Tom Hughes’ double pole position, Trent Meadows’ and Mason Baldi’s clean sweeps as well as Christian Sasso’s crushing speed throughout the heats, but there was one driver who particularly stood out.
Coming into the weekend, Hugo Garraway exuded an air of confidence I haven’t seen the young Mildura racer display before. Notching two top five qualifying positions in two separate classes, Garraway got to work early in the weekend, claiming heat wins in both KA3 Senior Light and TAG 125 Light to set himself up for two front row starts in the final, before sensationally claiming the win in a TAG Light thriller. Hugo’s speed has been threatening for a massive result all year, and myself as well as the rest of the field wouldn’t be surprised if this were to be the opening of the flood gates for the #63 and team in their pursuit for wins and glory.
I look forward to seeing what Hugo has to offer for the remainder of this season and heading into 2025, where he will certainly loom as a threat for whatever championship he is competing in.
Congratulations Hugo Garraway, you are the commentator’s driver of the weekend!
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Great articles mate, we appreciate the time you spent writing these updates after each meet.