Zappia Racing attended the Sydney Dragway for Australia Day celebrations on the 26th and 27th January. The first day of the event unfolded as a great show, featuring a myriad of exciting drag racing classes.
All these racers were scheduled to showcase two rounds of championship races over the weekend, however, day two of the event was cancelled due to poor weather.
“We knew early in the morning leaving our hotel room to head to Sydney Dragway that the weather was a concern and may stay drizzling the rest of the day,” said Zappia.
The initial round of qualifying faced a setback with a serious incident involving Matt Abel from the Northern Territory. The Zappia Racing Team was happy that he was able to exit the race vehicle safely after smart thinking from Matt’s son Aidan.
“He set off the in-car fire extinguisher, a racing first line of fire defence, which ultimately prevented a worsening situation,” said Zappia.
During the fourth pass of the session, Abel’s race car abruptly turned to the left, with the car crossing the centre line behind Daniel Gregorini before colliding heavily with the left-hand track wall, after the rear wheel detached from the vehicle.
Fortunately, Matt was able to exit the car unassisted, then aided by Taylor’s wife to the ground away from the burning car. Matt then subsequently received immediate attention from track first responders before undergoing precautionary emergency department assessments.
Then came a Q1 between Taylor and Zappia, both delivering the first five-second Doorslammer passes of the day. Taylor red lit with a time of 5.805 seconds at 406.17 kph, compared to Zappia’s 5.82 seconds at 398.85 kph in very hot weather conditions.
At the close of Q1, Taylor led the standings followed by Zappia, Daniel Gregorini, Lisa Gregorini, and Lovering, with Cannuli, Palumbo, Danaher, and Spinozzi rounding out the list.
In Q2 later in the evening, Taylor and Zappia once again faced off, both improving their times while maintaining their positions on the qualifying sheets.
Taylor secured the top spot with a time of 5.714 seconds at 254.76 mph, while Zappia clocked 5.814 seconds at 242.28 mph, with Zappia slowing down with a melted piston in his B-engine.
“We had to leave the quicker A-engine back in Perth because it stripped a head stud right before leaving for Adelaide. We were running our B-engine in Adelaide as well,” said Zappia.
“Both Brodie and I will be racing at The MacTrack 53rd Annual Westernationals”. This event is set to make its mark as another exciting event in the 2023/24 season, bringing the thunder of 10,000hp Top Fuel back to Perth.
“We eagerly anticipate Brodie’s progression in Supercharged Outlaws. The Zappia family legacy is deeply intertwined with Top Doorslammer, and it’s no secret that Brodie will eventually join me in a dual Doorslammer team. With this, the Zappia name will endure in this category for decades to come,” said John Zappia.
Taking place over two electrifying nights on Saturday and Sunday during the March WA Labour Day long weekend, the Westernationals is gearing up to be an unmissable event!
