Is there a chance you could login? with your Bejo email address Manfeild Circuit Chris Amon in Feilding hosted round two of the Formula Open New Zealand (FONZ) Championship. Tom Alexander headed the field after a perfect round one result, but it didn’t go as smoothly this time round.
Qualifying early Friday afternoon saw Alexander (FT-50) top the timesheets with James Watson (Swift DB4) a close second and Josh Donohue (FT-50) third. Fergus Crabb (FT-50) and Leo Francis (FT-40) rounded out the top five whilst Gary Rush (Swift DB4) (main photo) was absent from qualifying having only turned up at the circuit a few minutes earlier after a couple of late nights doing a full engine change after finding issues at the end of round one.
Alexander led the field out late on Friday afternoon for race one and as he grided up for the rolling start Watson off grid two noticed the front wing on Alexanders FT-50 had worked lose. Some frantic hand signals from Watson went unnoticed and the field came round to face the start. Alexander dropped into the race lead with Watson, Donohue and Crabb in behind. Rush, having started from the back rocketed into fifth. By lap two the front three had a small gap and Watson was pressuring Alexander for the lead.
Then on lap three heading out of the last turn onto the main straight the front wing of Alexander finally let go. Luckily it exited via the front left wheel, missed the following cars and ended clear of the circuit. Watson and Donohue pounced, although Alexander didn’t make it easy. His top speed had improved with less drag on the car, so he held off the charging two for another lap. Eventually both getting by.
The second half of the race saw Donohue chase down Watson to have a last lap chance at gaining the lead, Watson holding on however. Alexander held off a charging Rush to still grab third. Leo Francis grabbed an excellent fifth after both Crabb and Geoff Harriman (FT-50) spun at different corners and were unable to finish.
Saturday late morning saw the start of race two in dry conditions. Alexander once again led the field around turn one although he had the black and yellow Swift of Watson looming around the outside.
The two would battle all the way to the chequered flag. Watson never quite getting to the front but trying on every corner to get by delighting the crowd with some close racing. The remainder of the field slotted into their positions with Donohue ahead of Rush and Crabb.
A late spin by Francis bought out the safety car and it looked like a one lap dash might have been on the cards. But it wasn’t to be. The race finished under yellow flags and Watson was left wondering what might’ve been. He did record the fastest lap of the race which meant a P1 start for race three.
Race three and the Alexander/Watson duel was on again. The pair getting away from Donohue, Rush and Crabb. An epic battle ensued once again delighting the spectators. Alexander held the lead with Watson having a look on every corner. Donohue pulled a small gap on Rush only to receive a black flag for exceeding track limits. The rather harsh penalty of a pitlane drive through ruining his race.
Meanwhile Watson and Alexander were giving each other a cars width of room on every corner until out of the infield hairpin their wheels rubbed, locking the pair together. Watson ended up off the circuit as they struggled to unlock their cars. Amazingly they came free with Alexander away first while Watson re-joined the track. Neither losing a place. The final results seeing Alexander win from Watson, Rush and Crabb whilst Donohue drove back through the field for fifth.
The drivers now have a few weekends off before the FONZ series heads to Taupo for round three over Anzac weekend (April 22, 23). Come on down and enjoy some top-class wings and slicks action.
Overall Points after 2/4 rounds
| Competitor | Position | Points | Car | Car # | Class |
| Tom Alexander | 1 | 158 | Tatuus FT50 | 22 | Class 1 |
| James Watson | 2 | 124 | Swift DB4 | 31 | Class 1 |
| Josh Donohue | 3 | 87 | Tatuus FT50 | 49 | Class 1 |
| Gary Rush | 4 | 82 | Swift DB4 | 27 | Class 1 |
| Fergus Crabb | 5 | 65 | Tatuus FT50 | 99 | Class 1 |
| Leo Francis | 6 | 55 | Tatuus FT40 | 33 | Class 1 |
| Grant Rivers | 7 | 46 | Swift DB4 | 94 | Class 1 |
| Geoff Harriman | 8 | 31 | Tatuus FT50 | 3 | Class 1 |
| Paul Couper | 9 | 30 | Tatuus FT40 | 47 | Class 1 |
| Ethan Sillay | 10 | 22 | Swift SE3 | 5 | Class 2 |
| David Mitchell | 11 | 3 | Mygale M12-SJ | 9 | Class 2 |
| Bailey Cruse | 12 | 1 | Tatuus FT50 | 88 | Class 1 |
FONZ Calendar
Round 1 – Legends of Speed, Hampton Downs, March 26th & 27th, 2022
Round 2 – Manfeild Circuit, April 1st & 2nd, 2022,
Round 3 – Great Lake Meeting, Taupo BMMP, April 23rd, 2022
Round 4 – Season Finale, Hampton Downs, May 28th, 2022
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