It was a red-letter evening of racing at Slideways Go Karting World Pimpama, with the very first night racing event contested for Sprints and Ladies, with action taking place via the normal direction of travel.
The recently installed lighting system transformed the venue, with the night events set to become a major focus of the Slideways racing program moving forwards.
Coming up, the Slideways Sprint Series and Ladies Sprint Cup continue on Wednesday April 18, with other future events including this Sunday’s re-run of the opening round of the Slideways Junior Racing Series, which was postponed after rain soaked the initial attempt at running last Sunday, and next Wednesday’s first Slideways Enduro Series event for the season.
The Enduro will run on the reverse track direction, with a new 75-minute-long race format for teams of three drivers.
Senior Sprint Cup
John Mostyn proved to be the class of the Senior Sprint Cup field, running away with the feature race victory.
Second place in the final went to Michael Seeto, who was 1.178sec behind at the chequered flag, but did manage to claim the fastest lap of the race with a 39.961sec, the only driver in the event to break the 40sec barrier.
Jackson Faulkner continued his strong early season form with third place in the final, while fourth place earned Jayme Hemi the Best and Fairest award for the evening.
Dean Ferguson was in the thick of the battle and finished fifth from Christian Bishop, Liam Hydes (who picked up the Encouragement Award for the round), Phil Edwards, Alex Heaton, Chris Herringe, Keenan Faulkner, Matt Wedzicha, James Shields, Kyle Ashcroft and Richard Trevillien.
Regular Enduro racer Jake Albertson claimed victory in the Group B final from Gavin Faulkner by 3.58sec, although Faulkner registered the fastest race lap with a 40.416sec.
Third place went to Robert Fernandez, then Clayton Hydes, David Reiser, Chris Telep, Mark D’Arcy, Euan Shields, Nathan Deighton, Jesus Nunez, Martin Kidd and Russell Chatfield.
To qualify for the final, four heat races were contested earlier in the evening, with random draw grids which were inverted for the second shootout within each group.
In the opening race, Ashcroft just held on to the win in a classic, with a 0.162sec margin over Bishop, who was the fastest on track with a 40.419sec lap time.
Trevillien met the chequered flag in third, from Liam Hydes, Kidd, Clayton Hydes, Jackson Faulkner, Edwards, Gavin Faulkner, Albertson, Euan Shields, Wedzicha and Deighton.
With the starting order reversed for the second race, Wedzicha claimed the win over Jackson Faulkner, with a margin of 0.279sec.
Bishop was third across the line and within a second of the winner, along the way setting a best lap time of 40.026sec.
Fourth went to Albertson, then Edwards, Gavin Faulkner, Liam Hydes beating his father Clayton Hydes, ahead of Euan Shields, Trevillien, Kidd, Ashcroft and Deighton.
In the second group, Seeto had a clear win in the opening race with a margin of 2.054sec after 12 laps over Herringe, with Mostyn third (fastest race lap – 40.628sec).
Hemi led a train across the line in fourth, from Chatfield, Reiser, Fernandez, Keenan Faulkner, Telep, Heaton, James Shields, Ferguson, D’Arcy and Nunez.
Ferguson turned the tables in the second race, with a runaway 6.446sec win over James Shields and Heaton.
Mostyn was the fastest on track with a 40.319sec lap in fourth, then Keenan Faulkner, Nunez, Hemi, Fernandez, Seeto, Herringe, Telep, D’Arcy, Reiser and Chatfield.
Photos
PHOTOS! Slideways Sprint Series Round 2 >> https://t.co/sJdQMdRk4L #Slideways #GoKartig #GoldCoast #Brisbane pic.twitter.com/8DxP7avc6f
— Go Karting World (@SlidewaysWorld) March 14, 2018
Videos
We’re racing! #slideways #gokarting #goldcoast #brisbane https://t.co/UIqnRofpBy pic.twitter.com/lTcbp1zM1c
— Go Karting World (@SlidewaysWorld) March 14, 2018
It’s race night! #slideways #gokarting #goldcoast #brisbane https://t.co/UIqnRofpBy pic.twitter.com/qM1v340sZE
— Go Karting World (@SlidewaysWorld) March 14, 2018
Ladies Sprint Cup
Although the second round of the Slideways Ladies Sprint Cup only attracted five competitors, all five were genuine contenders and spent time at the front of the field in the three races.
In the opening race, Chloe Buck broke through for her first race win, with victory by 1.168sec over Amanda Rohde and Melissa Thompson.
Fourth place went to Tracey Overell, while Olivia Herbison finished fifth, but picked up the fastest lap of the race with a 41.243sec.
Rohde meanwhile claimed her first race win in the second race, finishing ahead of Herbison (fastest lap – 40.905sec), then Overell, Thompson and Buck.
For the finale, barely a tenth of a second covered the best lap times of the podium finishers.
Rohde continued her ride to the top, claiming the top spot ahead of Herbison (who won the Best and Fairest award), with Thompson third from Buck (Encouragement Award) and Overell.
Photos
PHOTOS! Ladies Sprint Cup Round 2 >> https://t.co/9TpYbJUxZQ #slideways #gokarting #goldcoast #brisbane pic.twitter.com/9EgUwOXkhv
— Go Karting World (@SlidewaysWorld) March 14, 2018
Videos
Ladies Sprint Cup now Racing! #slideways #gokarting #goldcoast #brisbane https://t.co/UIqnRofpBy pic.twitter.com/94iSVYDTOH
— Go Karting World (@SlidewaysWorld) March 14, 2018
Ladies Sprint Cup action! #slideways #gokarting #goldcoast #brisbane https://t.co/VWdEJ4cCyS pic.twitter.com/dhvtq9wrxP
— Go Karting World (@SlidewaysWorld) March 14, 2018
