KartSportNews - karting news and features | go kart racing results, news, photos, tech and more...

Doug Liddle & Rod Gardner Memorials

Are you wondering why this event gained coverage on KartSportNews, but the race meeting you attended did not? Simple Answer; we received a report, results and some photos from a valued contributor soon after the meeting. We want to publish more race reports in 2012, but that can only happen if we find more contributors. If you want your race meets published on KartSportNews, get your club's Publicity Officer to contact us. Information about how to contribute to KartSportNews is HERE.

by Steve Blee

The memorial race meeting recognizing the life and contribution of Doug Liddle and Rod Gardner opened the Barossa Go Kart Club’s 2012 season.

The Doug Liddle Memorial is for senior drivers and run as Clubman at 150kg.

As the first heat unfolded the ones to watch were Alex Baker, Jesse Batson, Daniel Wallis and Sparky Marquis. Baker cleared out from pole and was never headed but Batson proved to be the mover, taking second from Wallis on the last lap with Marquis in the leading group in fourth.

barossa kart racing
Above: Jesse Batson leads Daniel Wallis and Sparky Marquis in the Doug Liddle Memorial
pic - Steve Blee

In heat two Batson won off pole leaving Marquis and Wallis to provide the entertainment swapping positions with Wallis finishing ahead of Marquis and Baker.

Baker snatched an early lead in heat three but it was all over for Baker on lap 4 to give Batson another win with Marquis taking second from Wallis and Russel Provan.

In the final heat Batson jumped to a comfortable lead with Marquis and Wallis circulating on their own as Alex Baker continued his bad run pulling out on lap two. Both Marquis and Wallis had their heads down and by lap 11 Marquis had caught Batson and was looking for a way past. But it was Wallis who was circulating fastest catching the pair and on the last lap shot up the inside on the notorious middle corner to take second from Marquis.

When the points were tallied it was Batson taking home the perpetual trophy and the set of tyres from Wallis and Marquis in third. Heather Richardson, club life member and daughter of the great Doug Liddle, presented the trophies.

Above: Doug Liddle Memorial podium
pic - Terri Whibley

The Rod Gardner Trophy (Junior National) opened with Tyler Morrison winning the first heat with a string of consistent fast laps. Scott Matheson was just ahead of a late charging Jordan Murphy.

Daimon Goode and Scott Matheson got a great start in heat two but Morrison took both of them to grab the lead by lap two. The slow starting Murphy caught the leader as his kart came on and passed Morrison with a lap to go but Morrison took it back to win by the narrowest of margins.

Above: Scott Matheson leads juniors
pic - Steve Blee

Heat three continued the tussle between Morrison and Murphy with Matheson sitting in third hoping to benefit, should the dueling pair in front of him clash. Murphy crossed the line first setting up a thriller for the final race.

Murphy’s slow starts dogged him again in the final 15 lapper, dropping to fourth off the start behind Morrison, Matheson and Goode. It wasn’t until third race distance that he cleared Goode and Matheson and found Morrison had over a second lead. Murphy put in a series of blinders to grab the lead with four laps to go and continued the pace to lead by over a second by race end.

As all points counted, Murphy paid the price of his slow start in heat one giving the perpetual trophy to Morrison, with Murphy second and Daimon Goode third.

Above: Rod Gardney Trophy podium
pic - Terri Whibley