The sportsman action alongside the Top Fuel championship round at Perth Motorplex was just as intense, with the fifth event of the nine-round track championship series seeing a few brackets becoming clearly defined as others developed into tight contests.
The conditions tested everybody but the efforts from all racers to move the program ahead were well appreciated by everyone. Modified Bike was even into the semi finals before the 6pm break.
So without further ado…
Top Comp
Wayne Keys sported some 200mph tape on the bonnet after throwing a belt during qualifying. It made little difference to his performances as he hit a 6.18 in AA/AP, finishing as the winner of the B Final.
Marty Dack had the firies on attention during qualifying but the car did not go up in any particularly big flames. Here he is on an improved later 6.50:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlxsNuZuOQ4
Robin Judd was running in Aeroflow colours for the first time at Perth Motorplex. A 6.06 was the best he mustered in the hot and humid conditions.
John McSweeney is driving this AA/FC for Jeffrey Clarke. He improved to a 6.29 by the end of the weekend, describing the drive as rather easy compared to his former championship winning Ford Falcon.
Adam Marchant is really getting on top of the family’s dragster with a 5.58 pass in TA/D trim.
Daniel Gregorini didn’t let 3000 feet of air stop him from a dominating performance in his AA/AP Camaro. He carded a 6.09 in the final to defeat Rob Pilkington.
Debbie O’Rourke ran a personal best 5.86 in qualifying but went down to Pilkington in eliminations.
Pilkington marched back into the points lead with Jeffrey Clarke and Shane Weston not making it to the finals.
So do you want to see what the final looked like? From inside both cars? Oh, well here you go…that’s what a few thousandths of a second looks like!
Super Comp
Errol Quartermaine dumped a fair bit of fuel out of the pipes as he stalled off the line on this pass, cooking up a decent heatwave of his own.
Colin Mortimore made it to the second round of eliminations but a red light would end his shot at the event.
Rick Johns pulled off a massive upset in round one by defeating top qualifier Mick Frossos in round one when it looked like Frossos shut down a bit too early. He would fall to the rejuvenated Terry Stacy in round two however.
Terry Stacy has plenty of horsepower on board but getting it to the track in his RX7 has proved to be the trick. He carried some good pace through eliminations but in the final aborted his pass early. Here he is going 8.40 in qualifying:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ub7be7NMi4
Allen Puglia had his Ford Probe back after sending it east for racing, only to have the Queensland floods interrupt his plans. Puglia qualified third but went through for the win. He dedicated it afterwards to the flood victims, putting things into perspective. He continues to lead the points.
Competition Bike
Brett Ghedina’s wild turbocharged Honda is making some massive steps in DD/CBI. He went under the national record for the first time at this event with a -.52 8.37 in eliminations, bearing in mind the bike runs without wheelie bars! The 169mph top speed is also impressive.
Mick Sargent is chasing down a gremlin in his Kawasaki ZX12 which has seen him trying everything including changing the fuel tank to try and sort it out.
Ross Smith went to a runner up spot on his Suzuki Hayabusa, which didn’t seem to mind the thick air on an 8.89 pass.
But it was Neil Anderson restoring his reputation as the top of the category with a 9.08 in the final on his B/SB to reassert himself ahead of the Westernationals.
Supercharged Outlaws
Gary Busch was running his last event before the Jason’s Pallets team ship back east. It was worth it with a runner up position.
Darren Strong looked like he had an engine let go early, but amazingly there was no oil evident on the track as just a smoke show.
Dean Bell improved into the seven second zone with his t-bucket Altered.
Bronte Henning came all the way from the Northern Territory to play at the Motorplex in his new look Corvette. Here’s the view from inside his car:
Ian Foster burns out under a spectacular WA sunset.
Kelvin Lyle scored a win in his 37 Chev Funny Car, running a new personal best of 6.66 along the way.
Modified
Chrystal Duffy could only throw her hands up in the air after father Jim’s dragster stalled in the burnout.
Kyle Putland picks up the front wheels in his tough Altered. This car is up for sale as he looks to upgrade to Group Two.
Nitro Vinyl again enjoyed the full attention of all photographers.
Shawn Graham put together some good packages with his altered and was happy to take home a runner up.
But it was all about Laurence Adamos as he took home his second win out of three events. A .052 reaction and 7.90 on a 7.87 took a close win over a .104 reaction and 9.86 on a 9.85 from Graham. Championship wise the top four all went out in round one!
Super Sedan
Johnathon White’s Bug is a great addition to the Super Sedan field, running some mid 10 second times.
Christine May got the front wheels way up there in qualifying.
Beau Junior’s 200B picks up the front wheels in qualifying.
Sam Gullotto made it to the final in the family Camira, but even a .016 reaction and 8.16 on an 8.12 wasn’t enough to defeat an…
…8.610 on an 8.61 dial in with a .047 reaction from Mike Craig. Top racing!
Modified Bike
Matt Haunold’s new turbo Hayabusa was on track for the first time and he made it through to the third round along with running a 9.42 personal best.
Tom Gartrell broke out in the semi finals with a 9.79 on a 9.90 pass.
Paul McNamara strengthened his championship case with a runner up, his bike now on lend after selling it to a mate!
For the second event in a row though Todd Patterson took the win. Despite missing an event he is making a charge up the championship ladder, a few more good events could see him right up there!
Super Street
Lisa Mahnkoph took some time from work up north to bring her blown six cylinder Holden ute out for a blast in Super Street, running a best of 11.11 in qualifying.
Keeping up the blue Holden ute theme, Jonathon Hutchinson smokes things up in qualifying.
Brad Davey advanced to the finals but a comatose .383 reaction time saw him bundled out.
It was the evergreen Darren Bakranich taking victory again, a rolling off 11.83 on an 11.71 in the final doing the job and lifting him further in the points.
Junior Dragster
Nicholas Puglia couldn’t quite emulate his dad’s success in the final of Junior Dragster, settling for a runner up spot.
Matthew Matulovich ran an 8.030 on an 8.03 that scored him a victory.
In the Junior Dragster Rookie division, it was Kane Higgins taking advantage when Tyler Gavin red lit.
Top Bike Exhibition
Chris Matheson was over to get some laps in ahead of the Westernationals. His mount had issues dropping cylinders throughout Friday night.
Mark Drew goes into tyre shake early here, an issue he is facing with more power aboard.
Mark Ashelford was out of racing early after backfiring the Harley near the start line.
And because you’ve made it this far, here’s some more super slow motion for you!
Please click next below to see the full photo gallery!
