Tom Alexander of Auckland took out the opening race of the final round of the Nexen Tyre NZ Mazda Racing Series North Island Championship at Hampton Downs International Motorsport Park in North Waikato today.
Alexander, vastly experienced in a wide variety of motor racing classes on both sides of the Tasman and a former Toyota 86 Champion in New Zealand and Super Utes Champion in Australia, was making a one-off appearance in the Mazda RX8 of series regular Sam Dashfield.
Alexander was second initially in the race after championship leader Rex Edwards of Tauranga made a great start but once in front pulled a gap to take a win on debut in the category.
Edwards had earlier set the fastest time in qualifying, a blistering 1 minute 13.955 second lap, gaining yet another Premier Insulation $500 Pole Award, his third in a row. Alexander set the second fastest time with Aucklanders Flynn Mullany and Warren Crowther next best followed by Masterton driver Matt Horne. Meanwhile, the recently crowned National Champion, Simon Baker of Wellington, struck trouble in the short 15-minute session and was left languishing down the grid in fifteenth place.
In the race once Alexander made the lead, he steadily increased the margin and crossed the line 5.973 seconds clear of Edwards for whom second place edged him closer still to the North Island Championship title.
Warren Crowther continued his great recent form to cross the line third ahead of Baker who staged a sensational recovery drive from down the grid to come home in fourth position.
Mullany and Horne completed the top six followed by Karl Gaines, Nigel Edger, Brad Lathrope and Steve Brown.
Sunday, on the final day of the season the North Island Championship competitors will face a reverse top ten grid race over 10 laps at 11.30am, followed by the final race of the championship over 8 laps at 2.35pm tomorrow afternoon. Edwards and Baker will fight it out for the title while Horne, Mullany, Crowther and Gaines are in a tight battle to overhaul Leo Bult for third in the championship in Bult’s absence this weekend.
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