2012 City of Adelaide Titles
Tweetby Danny Somerville (full results on AKA CM:s HERE)
What a weekend it was at the Southern Go kart Club for the running of the Kennards Hire 2012 City of Adelaide Titles last week that saw some of the closest and most exciting racing in years in South Australia.
The event was graced by some of the best drivers in South Australia and interstate, all competing for the number one prize and honor to say they are COA champion for 2012.
With an entry list of over 150, the event was always going to be tough and hard fought with the racing wheel to wheel all weekend, even in the support classes.
The COA Title is one of the most prestigious events on the South Australian race calendar with all racers wanting this trophy in their trophy cabinet.
This year’s featured classes were the Clubman Over 40’s Challenge, Junior National Pro and Senior Clubman Pro. With 11 other support classes, the impressive size crowd was kept well entertained for the weekend.
The weekend started off with rainy overcast skies for the carby and qualifying session. This threw up some surprises with some of the favorites for the weekend struggling and some of the midfield runners excelling and starting near the pointy end of the grid for race 1.
By the time race 1 of the weekend came, in typical Adelaide style, the weather cleared and sunny skies prevailed for all the drivers to go to a dry setup and the track was blessed by no more rain for the rest of the weekend.
Clubman Super Heavy Sponsored by: Snake Away Services
With a field of eight for the weekend there was some very fierce racing between these gentlemen of the sport who showed size is no barrier to race hard.
The number 9 of John Dankowski and the 90 of Nick Scudds went for it all weekend splitting the heat races, but when it came to the long haul of the pre final and the15 lap final the smoothness of Dankowski prevailed with an impressive win from Scudds who fought worn tyres in the final to finish a few kart lengths behind at the chequered flag.
Simon Enright, who seemed to be fastest on the single lap all weekend, finished a great 3rd after a dirty weekend in the heat races. John Ellis drove well for the weekend but just didn’t have the speed to keep with the front 3 runners and ended up 4th overall.
These fellas really put on a show for the crowd and showed what a great class this has become.
Fastest Qualifyer – Nick Scudds – 0:50.669
Top Three – John Dankowski, Nick Scudds, Simon Enright
Cadets Sponsored by: Omega Racing Karts Australia
The little guys of motorsport came out to play as a support class for the weekend and with 16 in the field, the racing was intense all weekend.
Kustom Karts driver Jackson Rees drove a flawless weekend in the number 11 kart and stood tall under pressure during the 15-lap final to take the win. Rees diced with young gun Cooper Hay for the entire 15 laps of the final with the lead changing no less than a dozen times with Hay taking a much deserved 2nd place for the weekend.
Making up the podium was Jason Bowyer in the Omega kart whom was strong all weekend and looked like he might have a chance for the win after the 1st heat but unfortunately he couldn’t keep the pace for the final. Fourth position was secured by an impressive drive by Declan Morrison who drove out of his skin all weekend to put a smile on this old mans face after a lot of hard work all weekend.
Great drives by Conner Gowling 5th and Michael Jones 6th were not far off the front-runners all weekend.
The Cadets showed karting in S.A. is growing again and the future looks great for karting in the next few years.
Fastest Qualifyer – Jackson Rees – 0:51.777
Top Three – Jackson Rees, Cooper Hay, Jason Bowyer
Above: Jackson Rees keeps an eye on Cooper Hay in Cadets
pic - Tony Martini
Sportsman 125 Light Sponsored by: TD Racing
This class was well supported again with 16 in the field and we all knew it would be party time into turn 1 in all the races.
Luke Bergens whacked his kart on pole but had his back to the wall for the heats and the final as the track got quicker over the weekend. Victorian driver Corey McCullagh dominated the meeting with a straight sets victory.
McCullagh drove flawlessly and held off the massive pressure put on him by local boy Johnothan Mangos who was the surprise of the field and was setting fastest lap after fastest lap in the final to just fall short of victory in the final but showed he is one to look out for in the upcoming races of 2012.
The 19 of George Gutierrez came in a strong 3rd in the Omega Kart and looked like he might challenge all weekend but got caught in traffic, which cost him some time in the final. Gutierrez in clean air was blindingly fast but just could not get enough of it all weekend. Scott Kissock and Luke Bergens made up the top 5 and were both unlucky all weekend with the rapidly changing track making setup very tricky.
Fastest Qualifyer – Luke Bergens - .0:47.443
Top Three – Corery McCullagh, Jonathon Mangos, George Gutierrez
Above: Corey McCullagh leads Jonathon Mangos, Scott Kissock and George Gutierrez, Sportsman 125 Light
pic - Tony Martini
Junior National Light Sponsored by: King’s Baptist Grammar School
This race was a build up for most of the drivers for the featured pro race later in the program. A new rivalry was about to begin for the weekend between S.A. young gun Tyler Morrison and N.T. State champion Bryce Fulwood.
These two drivers raced wheel to wheel all weekend in 2 different classes. Morrison and Fullwood were never more than a kart length from each other in every race and it came down to the wire in the final. Fullwood was leading for the entire 15 laps until the last corner when Morrison made a mighty move up the inside to snatch the victory by half a kart length. The driving these two showed all weekend was a real credit to the maturity of these young racers.
The number 19 kart of Josh Denton had a dirty day in the heats with a DNF in both heats. Denton showed his class in the pre final and final to make his way to a podium finish but didn’t have the pace to catch the front two. N.T. driver Thomas Maxwell adapted to the unfamiliar track to finish a strong fourth for the weekend.
Fastest Qualifyer – Tyler Morrison – 0:49.171
Top Three – Tyler Morrison, Bryce Fullwood, Joshua Denton
Above: Tyler Morrison (12) and Bryce Fullwood (16) engaged in some great battles across the weekend
pic - Tony Martini
Clubman Heavy/ Sportsman S.A. Sponsored by: Snake Away Services
Race 5 was two races in one with the track being graced by the Clubman Heavy and Sportsman S.A. drivers.
Clubman Heavy was a scene of a totally dominant performance by 2010 Closed State Champion Daniel Wallis. Wallis showed the field a clean pair of heals and beat the field by almost a straight in the heats and pre final. To add insult to injury the rest of the field in the final had a DNF so Wallis did a test session for the 15 laps to roll over the line and take the cake.
Sportsman S.A. was a very similar result to Clubman Heavy with only 2 drivers being classified in the results at the end with two DNFs and 3 DSQs. The winner was Matthew Zubrinich and Colin Gray finishing second.
Heat racing was good all weekend but the final was a little bit of a let down with only a few karts left on track at the drop of the checkered.
Clubman Heavy - Fastest Qualifyer – Daniel Wallis 0:50.649
Top Three – Daniel Wallis, Mark Dickson, Micah Montgomery
Sportsman SA – Fastest Qualifyer – Christopher Provan 0:50.676
Top Three – Matthew Zubrinich, Colin Gray, Christopher Provan
Sportsman 125 Heavy Sponsored by: Adrenalin Karts Pooraka
This class was the show down for a couple of brilliant kart drivers in the form of Paul Pittam and Scott Taylor, with the Omega X30 of Pittam and the DR Rotax of Taylor going for broke.
Pittam conserved his tyres during the heat races driving very smooth and then opened up in the final to take the win from Taylor by about 4 kart lengths. The Old Chestnut, Simon Layne, showed the young fellas how it’s done by driving the 79 Arrow to a strong 3rd position and was the best of the rest for the weekend. Wiseman drove an excellent weekend to bring his kart home in fourth spot followed by Scott Bobstchinski in fifth.
Above: Paul Pittam (13) and Scott Taylor (59) lead the 125 Heavy field
pic - Tony Martini
The Pre final was marred by a nasty incident where Nathan Burgess went kart-wheeling through the air (see separate article for full photo sequence) and unfortunately sustained some bad arm injuries but he still made it to presentations for a quiet drink.
Fastest Qualifyer – Paul Pittam 0:47.655
Top Three – Paul Pittam, Scott Taylor, Simon Layne
Above: Nathan Burgess mid-way through his spectacular flip. See the full sequence HERE
pic - Tony Martini
Rookies Sponsored by: Adelaide Kart Supplies
The Rookies put on one cracking show all weekend with a dominant display by little champion Josh Montague in the final. Qualifying didn’t go to plan for little Josh, only posting 5th fastest, but as the weekend went on and the track improved, so did Josh. Setting fastest lap after fastest lap, Josh showed his brilliance in this class.
Chasing hard behind Josh to finish second for the weekend was Shane Moreland. Moreland, who drove an outstanding weekend, was battling hard with Kirby Hillyer for the second position and had the pace in the final to prevail in the end. Strong drives by Tyson Harvey in the 25 and Jacob Dowson in the 18 saw them finish 4th and 5th respectively.
Fastest Qualifyer – Benjamen Delaney
Top Three – Josh Montagu, Shane Moreland, Kirby Hillyer
Above: Fastest qualifier Ben Delaney leads Shane Moreland in Rookies
pic - madcap dezines
Clubman Light and Restricted 125 Light Sponsored by: PRC Earthworks Pty Ltd
Another one of the combined classes on track for the weekend, the Clubman Lights led the Restricted boys out on track.
The Clubman Light race was another great performance by up and coming star Daimon Goode. Daimon had it all his own way for the weekend with current State Champion Rocco Ventra unable to race the event and Daimon showing he had the measure of the current field. Daimon won both the pre final and final to take the top step of the podium over young Victorian Luke Bergens. Bergens, who raced 3 classes for the weekend, was strong all weekend winning heat 2 and also claimed the trophy for the fastest qualifying time. Making up the podium was the eccentric Matt Mahar with a good drive to third.
Restricted 125 Light was the Daniel Boorman show in the DBG Fireball entry. Boorman blitzed the field in all the heats and won by almost a straight in the final and looked as if the kart was on rails for the entire weekend. Coming home second after a brilliant performance was Victorian Damien Robertson who showed consistency was the key to the weekend and stayed smooth and out of trouble to take the well earned second step on the podium.
Clubman Light – Fastest Qualifyer – Luke Bergens 0:48.031
Top Three – Daimon Goode, Luke Bergens, Matt Mahar
Restricted 125 Light – Fastest Qualifyer – Brayden Dichiera 0.48.198
Top Three – Daniel Boorman, Damien Robertson, Frankie Maiolo
Above: Clubman Light winner Daimon Goode
pic - Tony Martini
Above: Restricted 125 Light winner Daniel Boorman
pic - Tony Martini
Junior Sportsman (J-max & Clubman) Sponsored by: Prince Alfred College
Jordan Murphy, the current NT State Champion, showed why he is that with a straight sets victory for the weekend. The blue plate number 51 of Murphy showed a clean set of heals to the rest of the field and drove one of the best drives you will see in this class during the final. Murphy set the fastest lap of the day during the later stages of the final and had the race under control from the start. Keep your eye on Murphy for the up coming State Titles this year where he looks good to add another blue plate to his resume.
Running behind Murphy for the weekend was Jayden Sharrad in the 18 kart. Sharrad was all consistency for the races finishing second in all of them and looking like he might be a threat for a state title later on in the year. Making up the podium was the queen of the Molly Dooker camp, Holy Marquis. Marquis kept the boys honest all weekend and showed she has some serious pace and one to watch over the next few meetings.
The Junior Sportsman Clubman was really a non-event in the final with Dylan Hannam having technical problems and Rylie Buik crossing the line 1st.
Junior Clubman – Fastest Qualifyer – Dylan Hannam
Top Two – Rylie Buik, Dylan Hannam
J-Max – Fastest Qualifyer – Blaine Grills 0:47.431
Top Three – Jordan Murphy, Jayden Sharrad, Holly Marquis
Above: Jayden Sharrad leads eventual J-MAX winner Jordan Murphy
pic - Tony Martini
Restricted 125 Heavy Sponsored by: Best Point Hard Flooring
This race was the battle between 4 drivers for the number 1 position all weekend. With different drivers shining in different races, it would be who could hold their cool for the 15-lap final.
David Rinaldi stormed home in both the prefinal and final to take a great victory under pressure from Dale Compton. Rinaldi drove great races and had the measure of the rest of the field during the long runs and seemed to pace his tyres well to be consistent all weekend. Compton drove hard to second position and did well holding off an impressive Paul Crouch from Victoria in the Tony kart who finished third in the final. Both Andrew Jerhico and Carl Dunkin who claimed fourth and fifth had good drives.
Fastest Qualifyer – Alex Caminiti – 0:49.801
Top Three – David Rinaldi, Dale Compton, Paul Crouch
Above: David Rinaldi (26) takes the Restricted 125 Heavy win on the last corner from Dale Compton
pic - Tony Martini
Clubman Over 40 Challenge Sponsored by: Tolmer Earthmoving and SGKC
Time had come for the first of the feature races for the weekend with the old chestnuts of our sport coming out to dance. The field was full of ex state champions and highly decorated drivers who have showed over the years their skill in different classes of kart racing.
Qualifying started with a blinding lap by Glen Henley who banged his kart unexpectedly on pole for the first race of the day. Starting behind Henley would be Simon Layne followed by Steven Blee.
The heat races were a battle between Marquis, Blee, Layne and Brewer Snr to see who would start the best in the prefinal. The prefinal was a pure dominant performance by Molly Dooker Racing stalwart Sparky Marquis. Marquis drove out of his skin to work his way through the field and hold off Mark Dickson for the win with BGKC president Steven Blee coming in a strong third.
The final was the story of Sparky Marquis, who drove 10/10ths every lap getting faster and faster, and as the laps wound down he would take the honors to be crowned the title of 2012 Kennards City of Adelaide Over 40s champion. An emphatic Sparky said he was over the moon and cannot wait to go again next year.
Finishing in second spot in the final was current Closed State Champion Steven Blee who drove a brilliant weekend and said without a couple of engine issues over the weekend believes he could have pushed Sparky for the win. Steve mentioned this was one of the best events he has raced in! Third place went to Glen Henley who drove a brilliant weekend.
Overall this featured class showed you're never too old to go and race head to head and there was a lot of comeback talk amongst retired drivers for next year's race to make a return.
Fastest Qualifyer – Glenn Henley
Top Five – Sparky Marquis, Steve Blee, Mark Dickson, Simon Layne, Keith Bartlett
Above: Over 40s winner, Sparky Marquis
pic - Tony Martini
Senior Clubman Pro Sponsored by: Kennards Hire and SGKC
This class was always going to be one of the hottest fought fights of the year. Drivers from both Clubman Light and Heavy adjusted to the 155KG weight to go head to head with each other - and I tell you what, they didn’t disappoint!
Qualifying was as hard fought as the racing with gun Paul Pittam taking the front row for race 1 with Andrew Cash and Daniel Price hot on his heels. Heat one was taken by Andrew Cash with a strong performance and held off a hard charging Matthew Panella in the 11 kart. Heat 2 was the other way around with Panella winning the race and setting up a massive prefinal with the other drivers.
The prefinal was one from the top draw with the battle for 1st place between 4 drivers. It all came to a head with 1 lap to go with Panella leading into the right hander before the sweeper, fourth place Andrew Cash made a lunge and managed to move into second position which then let Goode in to third. Paul Pittam took advantage and moved from second to first, Panella was then dropped back to fourth. This is way the prefinal ended with Pittam in the Omega to start out of 1 in the final.
The Final was led all the way by Paul Pittam in the Omega and he looked to have it in the bag until 2 laps to go. Cash, who was running second, made the move and took the number one position in front of fast charging Daimon Goode with Pittam being dropped back to third. Cash held on to take the cheque and win the Pro Clubman Class for 2012. Cash drove an aggressive style all weekend and was over the moon with his win.
Daimon Goode was beaming finishing second and could not hold his excitement in and said it was one of the best races he had driven. Pittam ended a great weekend with third place, fastest qualifying trophy and a win in the Sportsman 125 Heavy race.
Fastest Qualifyer – Paul Pittam
Top Five – Andrew Cash, Daimon Goode, Paul Pittam, Leigh Cocker, Daniel Wallis
Above: Paul Pittam (13), Andrew Cash (38) and Matthew Panella (11) go three-wide at the start of the final
pic - Tony Martini
Junior National Pro Sponsored by: Kennards Hire and SGKC
The final featured class for the weekend was the Junior National Pro. This was the resumption of the battle from the Junior National Light race between Tyler Morrison and the N.T. star Bryce Fullwood.
Fullwood snared the pole position from local boy Josh Denton in second with Tyler Morrison coming home third for race 1. The story of this class was the battle of Fullwood and Morrison who were no more than a kart length from each other all day. Morrison made the move 3 times to take the win on the last lap in the 2 heat races and the prefinal to start out of first for the final.
The final came and it looked like it was going to be the same but this time Fullwood held his cool and Morrison just couldn’t hold Fullwood who took the win in the final by four one hundredths of a second. This was one of the closest finishes seen and Fullwood was ecstatic with the result. Morrison was gracious in defeat and said it was brilliant racing all weekend.
Another N.T boy, Thomas Maxwell, drove well all day and took third place. Maxwell was very happy with the result and thanked the Molly Dooker team for the use of the kart and setup. With the title now going up north, Morrison said he would return the trophy to S.A next year and win the title back in 2013.
Fastest Qualifyer – Bryce Fullwood – 0:48.367
Top Five – Bryce Fullwood, Tyler Morrison, Thomas Maxwell, Joshua Denton, Jordan Murphy
Above: Bryce Fullwood (16) and Tyler Morrison (12)
pic - Tony Martini
The 2012 Kennards Hire City of Adelaide Titles was a huge success with some enthralling racing - the weekend continues to be the premier event on the South Australian calendar.
The Southern Go Kart Club would like to thank Kennards Hire for their sponsorship of the event and look forward to their future involvement with the club. The club would also like to thank all of the class sponsors for their support. The committee, officials, race entrants and volunteers for all their help leading up to and during the event.
We look forward to seeing everyone next year for the 2013 City of Adelaide Titles.
Above: Chequered flag falls on another successful City of Adelaide Titles
pic - Tony Martini
Above: J-MAX, Benjamin Redjepi (17) and Holly Marquis (30)
pic - Tony Martini
Above: Joshua Rust, Clubman Light
pic - Tony Martini
Above: Jonathon Mangos, 2nd in Sportsman 125 Light
pic - Tony Martini
Above: Stephen Blee recovered from a heat DNF to be runner-up in Clubman Over 40s
pic - Tony Martini
Above: Cadet racer Michael Jones
pic - Tony Martini
Above: Clubman Pro, Leigh Cocker ahead of Daniel Price and Daniel Wallis
pic - Tony Martini
Above: Dylan Hannam leads Rylie Buik in Junior Clubman
pic - Tony Martini
Above: Simon Layne (79) and Sparky Marquis, Clubman Over 40s
pic - Tony Martini
Above: Joshua Denton was 3rd in JNL and 4th in the JN pro feature
pic - Tony Martini
Above: Cashy took the cash, here leading Daimon Goode and Paul Pittam, Clubman Pro
pic - Tony Martini
Above: Thomas Maxwell grabbed the final podium position in the Junior National feature
pic - Tony Martini