Australia’s newest Top Fuel Harley motorcycle sensation Adam Layton is looking to go one step further at this weekends Santo’s Summer Thunder championship drag racing event at Sydney Dragway.
Last time out, Layton went through to the Top Bike final at the AC Delco East Coast Thunder event in November. The nitro rookie faced off against fellow Harley-Davidson racer Chris Porter and gave the drag racing fans a race they wouldn’t forget in a while.
In what was his first ever Top Bike final, Layton and Porter both had a wild ride after leaving the line. Looking at the video replay it looked like they nearly touched each other in the middle of the track.
“I was pretty excited to be racing in my first Top Bike final and let me tell you the nerves were running wild,” said Layton.
Earlier Porter defeated the Nitro Voodoo bike of Chris Matheson in the first round while Layton had a solo run when Neville Smith couldn’t get to the startline.
– Thanks to our partners for helping bring you this content, article continues below-
Layton continued, “I went into the final confident the bike could produce a good 6.60 pass. But I hurt my hand back in the pits which took away some of my focus on being my first final up against a former Australian Top Bike champ.
“I was considering shutting down but when I went into the staging lights I went for it. The bike left hard and before I knew it I was moving to the middle of the track. My reaction to straighten it up should have been quicker.
“Chris was ahead of me when I moved over the centerline and I hit the timing blocks. This was an automatic disqualification and handed Porter the win.
“Congrats to Chris and his team on the win. It was an ugly run for me but when I came back up the return road I was shocked with the reaction I got from the fans. And then I did an interview on the startline and got to see the run for the first time and thought wow that was cool.”
The Santo’s Summer Thunder race features Rd 3 of the 2017/18 Top Bike 400 Thunder Championship. Layton picked up 87 points for his finish in Sydney and currently sits in fourth position.
“If all goes well this weekend I hope to improve on my points standings,” said Layton. “I’d like nothing more to bring home a win for my sponsors and team. It’s going to be a race not to miss with heavy hitters Matheson and Mark Drew also potential winners.
“I’ve got a fantastic crew and we are looking forward to putting a great show for my sponsors and fans.
“Make sure you stop by in our pits as we have grouped together alongside Porter and Drew and it will bring tears to your eyes when we fire up the bikes on nitro prior to going out onto the track. We are positioned near the Gulf Western Oils pit area featuring Team Bray.”
