The Harbour City Nationals delivered an action packed day and night of racing at Benaraby Dragway for the NDRC’s Aeroflow National Sportsman racers at the weekend.
The popular regional Queensland track hosted two days of action across 1-2 November, with Saturday’s full day of qualifying and racing for coveted 2024/2025 Aeroflow National Sportsman Championship points and NDRC Christmas Trees preceded by a Test and Tune on Friday evening.
When all was said and done, it was Brett Kelly (Super Street), Matt Walker (Modified Bike), Shane Stefaniuk (Super Sedan), Ken Collin (Performance Bike), Jaidyn Schofield (Junior Drag Bike), and Karl Schulz (Junior Dragster) who claimed the Aeroflow National Sportsman Championship event wins.
The runners-up honours in these brackets went to Brad Smith (Super Street), Wayne Murkins (Modified Bike), Rudi Whyatt (Super Sedan), Blair Pennington (Performance Bike), Jetayah Visser (Junior Drag Bike) and Naveah McDougall (Junior Dragster).
In Super Sedan, Shane Stefaniuk took the win over runner-up Rudi Whyatt. To get to the final, Stefaniuk got the best of Top Qualifier Ryan Skopp in round one, before a bye in round two and another win over Matthew Barron in round three. Meanwhile, Whyatt took wins over Carl Dickson and Chris Lewis in rounds one and two respectively, before benefitting from a bye in round three.
This weekend’s victory was Stefaniuk’s first NDRC win, making it all the more special.
“It was awesome to get the win, just great – and a long time coming, this is my first NDRC win,” Stefaniuk grinned.
“It was a really smooth event for us – I did have an issue with a battery but a mate leant me one and that came through well. The track was brilliant and it was good, hard racing.
“Thank you to my missus Chrstine, my brother Scott, my mate Rob Forte, and also Ray from Straightline Performance, I Visualise It, and The Campaign Company for their support.”
In Junior Drag Bike, Top Qualifier Jaidyn Schofield went all the way to claim the event win over runner-up Jetayah Visser across four rounds of Chicago Shootout-style racing. Schofield enjoyed a bye in round one thanks to having earlier claimed the NDRC Top Qualifier Medallion for the bracket, before getting the best of Blake Hagan in round two and Maddison Schofield in round three. Meanwhile, Visser took wins over Blake Hagan and Marcus MacDonald in rounds one and two before a bye in round three.
At first, Schofield didn’t realise he had won and was overjoyed once the results were relayed to him.
“At first we didn’t really know who had won (as there are no win lights in the deep end), but then the old boy came down and told us and I didn’t know what to think. It was mind-blowing actually,” Schofield said.
“It definitely felt good, and I can’t wait to give it another go in the next round!
“It was an amazing event, I had really good fun and some really good races with my fellow competitors; overall it was just a really good time.
“I want to say a massive thank you to my dad Antony for always taking me to these kinds of events, and also my sponsors: Brett and Mandy Collins, Wild Street Taste, JR Industries, the Keogh family, Petersen Painting, and Gladstone Mufflers.”
In Super Street, winner Brett Kelly dispatched runner-up Brad Smith in the fourth and final elimination run. To get to the final, Kelly took wins over Maree Olive in round one and Jarrod Smith in round two before enjoying a bye in round three. Smith, meanwhile, got the better of NDRC Top Qualifier Medallion getter Peter Benson in round one, before enjoying a bye in round two, and a win over Troy Hutton in round three.
In Performance Bike, Ken Collin converted the Top Qualifier honours into a win over runner-up Blair Pennington. Collin got the better of Reegan Ward in round one, and Pennington likewise took a win over Sam Fry in round one to duke it out in the final with Collin.
In Junior Dragster, Karl Schulz and runner-up Naveah McDougall went head-to-head in the final Chicago Shootout round. Schulz dispatched Ashleigh Pinkstone (round one), Ryder Goodman (round two) and Charlotte Liefting (round three) to get to the final matchup against McDougall. Likewise, McDougall enjoyed wins in rounds one, two and three over Nash Peirano, Top Qualifier Jacob Schulz, and Jett Peirano, respectively.
In Modified Bike, Matt Walker got the best of runner-up Wayne Murkins after enjoying wins over Charlie Houston in round one, Kirsten Oliver in round two, and Dale Marshall in round three. Meanwhile, Murkins got to the final thanks to wins over Bodie Rabnott in round one, Phil White in round two, and Top Qualifier Dave Oliver in round three.
Real Street was also on track over the weekend, with Brad Price claiming the Top Qualifier honours as well as the event win over runner-up Dale Samuelsen.
The next opportunity to earn valuable NDRC Aeroflow Sportsman Championship points will come at the Perth Motorplex’s 50th Annual Goldenstates (November 22-23), where the sportsman racers will compete alongside Group 1 categories Top Doorslammer and Top Fuel Motorcycle, with NDRC points also up for grabs in these brackets. For more information on the Goldenstates, please visit https://nationaldragracing.com.au/event/goldenstates/
To learn more about the Aeroflow National Sportsman Championship and the NDRC, visit www.ndrc.tv
