No fewer than 140 ANDRA Regional Sportsman Championship racers took to the track at Dragway At The Bend (Sunday, 9 February) for a full day of racing to conclude round five of the 2024/2025 series. Competitors got straight to work setting down racing runs from the moment they hit the track, delivering no end of sportsman championship action across the day to see who would take home the coveted ANDRA Christmas Tree trophies.
After a full day and night of qualifying first for round five of the ANDRA Regional Sportsman Championship at Dragway At The Bend the following racers took home the Top Qualifier Medallions, presented by New Gen Business Park, for their respective brackets ahead of racing for coveted ANDRA Christmas Tree trophies:
Edge Mallis (Lectron Australia Competition Bike), Madalen Datson (Langtree’s Machinery Services Junior Dragster), Dean Jamieson (Ballistic Performance Parts Modified Bike), Daniel ‘Batdan’ Carranza (Gallagher Modified Eliminator), Tony Romeo (The South Australian Drag Racers Association Super Gas), Adam Ince (Super Sedan Competitors Super Sedan), Allan Brooks (Goodyear Racing Super Street), Doina Day (Huntsman Racing Supercharged Outlaws), and Daniel Jones (Top Sportsman Competitors Top Sportsman), Craig Geddes (Jackie Watt Consultancy & Fardella Racing SuperComp)..
In the non-championship Langtree’s Machinery Services Junior Drag Bike sportsman bracket also on track this weekend, Lucas Bergamin took home the Top Qualifier win.
At the conclusion of racing on Sunday afternoon there were plenty of celebrations to be had for the winners in their respective brackets: Edge Mallis (Lectron Australia Competition Bike), Charli Nurzenski (Langtree’s Machinery Services Junior Dragster), Peter Bartlett (Ballistic Performance Parts Modified Bike), Cory Dyson (Gallagher Modified Eliminator), Adrian McGrotty (The South Australian Drag Racers Association Super Gas), Chris Lioulios (Super Sedan Competitors Super Sedan), Michael Jennings (Goodyear Racing Super Street), Shane Kramer (Huntsman Racing Supercharged Outlaws), Sam Cardinale (Top Sportsman Competitors Top Sportsman), and Craig Geddes (Jackie Watt Consultancy & Fardella Racing SuperComp).
Runners-up in each bracket were also pleased with the day’s efforts, with the following racers each enjoying their results: Rob Cassar (Lectron Australia Competition Bike), Taylor Horton (Langtree’s Machinery Services Junior Dragster), Dean Jamieson (Ballistic Performance Parts Modified Bike), Derek Wills (Gallagher Modified Eliminator), Darryl Stephen (The South Australian Drag Racers Association Super Gas), Robert Kardum (Super Sedan Competitors Super Sedan), Victor Romeo (Goodyear Racing Super Street), Bob Sherry (Huntsman Racing Supercharged Outlaws), Glenn Henley (Top Sportsman Competitors Top Sportsman), and Steve Norman (Jackie Watt Consultancy & Fardella Racing SuperComp).
Celebrations were also had in the non-championship Langtree’s Machinery Services Junior Drag Bike sportsman bracket with Lawrence Raschella taking the win over runner-up Lucas Bergamin.
In The South Australian Drag Racers Association Super Gas winner Adrian McGrotty lined up against runner-up Darryl Stephen in the final elimination round today. McGrotty successfully navigated three rounds of racing to get to the final, taking wins over Joe Carbone (round one), Anton Krajina (round two), and Graeme Spencer (round three). Stephen, meanwhile, got the better of New Gen Business Park Top Qualifier Tony Romeo in round one and then Rob Bergamin in round two before a bye in round three.
The win this weekend marks the second win in a row for the Super Gas competitor, after also lifting the ANDRA Christmas Tree at the South Coast Nationals last December. McGrotty celebrated a standout performance at The Bend, securing the Super Gas victory in what was his first race weekend at the track.
“We arrived on Friday for our first meeting at The Bend. We had no data for the track so we used some old data from Sydney and made some adjustments and ended up qualifying sixth,” McGrotty shared.
“In the eliminations, we got on to the numbers we needed to get on to, cut some good lights and the rest is history.
“It’s [The Bend] is a nice facility. The racing surface is great, so for our first time here, we were pretty happy with the result. We’ve had a couple of seasons of engine trouble, but it looks like we might have gotten on top of that now, so we’re just trying to find some consistency. Consistency is what it’s all about in Super Gas,” he said.
McGrotty will aim for a hat trick during round six of the 2024/2025 ANDRA Regional Sportsman Championship next weekend (14-15 February) at Mildura’s Atlantic Oils Sunset Strip for the Twilight Nationals.
“We’d really like to continue the momentum. Hopefully, we can cut some good lights again, we’ve raced at Midlura a few times, so we know what it’s about up there. We’ve got a good field next week, so we’ll have to be on our A-game.
“Drag racing is a team sport, and without the crew, I couldn’t do it. I’d also like to thank The Logo Lady at Wallan for all of our uniforms and Paul Turner Horsepower for helping us with our engine. With Paul’s help we’ve been able to get some consistency in the engine that we hope we can keep going.”
In Ballistic Performance Parts Modified Bike Peter Bartlett took the win over New Gen Business Park Top Qualifier Dean Jamieson. Bartlett lifted the ANDRA Christmas Tree after the finals by first taking wins over Bryan Finn (round one), Shaun White (round two), and Tyson Bird-Balek (round three). Runner-up Jamieson meanwhile found his way to the final with wins in rounds one and two over Micheal Cristoforo and Luis Izatt, respectively before lining up in the final.
Joined by lots of family at the track, Bartlett delighted in a flawless weekend on the bike in what was his first trip to the South Australian venue.
“The weekend was flawless bike-wise, absolutely flawless. We tested Friday for the three passes, qualified for three passes on Saturday and did all our rounds today, and the bike was flawless. It was brilliant,” Bartlett explained.
“The bike (a Suzuki Hayabusa) was very consistent all weekend. With maybe the 10 rounds we rode for the weekend, the spread between the best and worst passes was .08s.
“This weekend is the first time we’ve ever set foot here. I’ve never had the opportunity to get here work-wise, so we made it happen. It’s a fantastic facility, and the staff and volunteers have been brilliant all weekend. It’s just been really good.
“What made the weekend was having family and friends here, and we just had lots of laughs and lots of fun and only got serious when we had to. I’ve never done a pass down a track without my wife Helen beside me after 18 years.
“I’d like to give a shout-out to my best mate’s son, Austin, who celebrated his 15th birthday at the track this weekend. I’d also like to thank Nick and Alison from my major sponsor, Heavy Duty Magazine, for their support.”
In Jackie Watt Consultancy & Fardella Racing SuperComp Craig Geddes converted his New Gen Business Park Top Qualifier honours into the win over runner-up Steve Norman after four rounds of all-run racing. Geddes and Norman first faced each other in round one where Norman took the win. In round two, Geddes got the better of Mitchell Oxley, while Norman enjoyed a bye. Round four saw Norman lose to Oxley, where Geddes had a bye.
This weekend was Craig Geddes’ first ANDRA Regional Sportsman Championship round of the season, which got off to a flying start with a win on Sunday afternoon.
“We had some problems with the gearbox with missed shifts during qualifying, and we had to work quite hard to get the gearbox sorted out. We rebuilt the gearbox yesterday, and today, we just got progressively faster and faster during each round,” Geddes said.
“We ran on the all-run format and we had a really good go with four rounds of racing, which is great. Having the extra runs gave us the opportunity to test and chase down any issues to rectify those. So, next time we should be much better off for it.
“The Bend is our good luck track, we’ve had plenty of great runs here. We love coming here, and we’ll be back at The Bend for the ANDRA season finals in April.
“Thank you to Summit Racing Racing Equipment for their support of not only my car but The Bend as well and to all of my sponsors and crew for their support.”
In Lectron Australia Competition Bike Edge Mallis and Rob Cassar again found themselves going head-to-head in the final round after the pair last battled it out in the final run during The South Coast Nationals last December. This time, however, Mallis would prove victorious over Cassar, with the former clean-sweeping the weekend, with wins over Rob Church (round one), Cheryl Beddoes (round two), and Jake Hamilton-Moderate (round three), including taking out the New Gen Business Park Top Qualifier honours on Saturday before lining up against Cassar in the final on Sunday. Cassar, meanwhile, also enjoyed three undefeated passes against Cheryl Beddoes (round one), Jake Hamilton-Moderate (round two), and Nathan Stone (round three).
During Sunday’s racing, winner Mallis reset two competition bike DD/CB records from ET 7.793secs to ET 7.627secs and TS 178.52mph to TS 178.64mph.
In Langtree’s Machinery Services Junior Dragster Charli Nurzenski made it through five rounds of racing to the win over Taylor Horton. Nurzenski First faced off against Deklan McGregor in round one, before successfully dispatching Paige Harvey in round two and Todd Wagner in round three before a bye in the semi-final. Horton also sent three competitors packing to get through to the final run with wins over Angelina Kondilis and James Barlow in rounds one and two respectively before a bye in round three and another win over South Coast Nationals winner Bailey Hawke in round four. Top Qualifier Madalen Datson had a bye in round one before being knocked out in round two by Cooper Vickery.
In Gallagher Modified Eliminator Cory Dyson took it to the end of three rounds of elimination racing, securing the win over runner-up Derek Wills. Dyson started the day with a win over Ashley Johnson in round one before getting the better of New Gen Business Park Top Qualifier Daniel ‘Batdan’ Carranza in round two. Dyson then lined up against Wills in the final pairing, with Wills previously taking wins over Dan Bader and Peter Cook in rounds one and two, respectively.
In Super Sedan Competitors Super Sedan four rounds of elimination racing saw Chris Lioulios lift the ANDRA Christmas tree after defeating runner-up Robert Kardum in the final run. Lioulios found success at the end of the day’s racing by first taking the win over Joe Martino in round one, before two more winning passes against Tony Miskelly and Brian Keane in rounds two and three, respectively. Runner-up Kardum meanwhile began the day with a win over Ned Karanovic before sending New Gen Business Park Top Qualifier Adam Ince packing in round two, as well as Deb O’Connell in round three.
In Goodyear Racing Super Street after five rounds of racing, Michael Jennings took the win over runner-up Victor Romeo. Jennings raced through to the final through all five rounds, taking wins over Andrew Francis (round one), Tony Antonino (round two), Mark Jachmann (round three), and Katrina Read (round four) before the final win. Romeo, likewise, took wins over Andrea Stefanopoulos (round one), Stefan Lainas (round two), and Michael Bridges (round three) before a bye in round four. New Gen Business Park Top Qualifier Allan Brooks meanwhile made it through the first round of racing with a win over Rick Pfitzner before being knocked out by Read in round two.
In Huntsman Racing Supercharged Outlaws Shane Kramer prevailed over runner-up Bob Sherry to lift the ANDRA Christmas Tree after the final run. To get to the final, Kramer raced through three rounds of eliminations, dispatching Drago Nikodijevic, Paul Stephen, and Kane Finn in rounds one, two and three in the process. Sherry, meanwhile, took wins over Jason Keily in round one and New Gen Business Park Top Qualifier Doina Day in round two, before a bye in round three.
In Top Sportsman Competitors Top Sportsman Sam Cardinale triumphed over runner-up Glenn Henley to lift the ANDRA Christmas Tree after the final round. To get there, Cardinale first took the win over Jason Young in round one and New Gen Business Park Top Qualifier Daniel Jones in the second round before two more wins over Graham Hargrave and Andrew Halstead in rounds three and four, respectively. Henley, meanwhile, found success in rounds one, two and three over Dean Tassone, Stuart McBain, and Leon Davies before a bye in round four ahead of the final.
For the full race results from day two of round five of the ANDRA Regional Sportsman Championship, please visit http://www.andra.com.au/series/results
Today’s sportsman racing also doubled as a Summit Racing Equipment Track Championship round and took to the track alongside round two of the Pro Drag Racing Championship.
The ANDRA Regional Sportsman Championship continues with round six of the 2024/2025 series and the second of the doubleheader weekends at Mildura’s Atlantic Oils Sunset Strip Twilight Nationals across February 14-15. For event information, visit https://www.sunsetstrip.org.au/
