Everything at Australian Racing Products Redline Raceway was going along brilliantly, the Street Stocks had the local drivers in charge, the Juniors were racing at a rapid speed, the Sprintcars were flying with Brett Clarke unfortunately going for a rollover, and the Sprintcar final was on track when the rain came and that was the end of that.
In four heat races across ten laps for the Kings Marine Scrap Metal Sprintcar Stampede, Matthew Symons, Koby Noonan, Shaun Lyness, and Delacombe man Sam Wren all were winners from front row starting positions before the thirty lap final starting positions were determined. Ben Poliansky coming to a stop and the onset of rain then put the rest of the race meeting in doubt just after the Junior Sedan finals had been completed.
As it turned out, the rain did ease up, and the track crew got busy trying to bring the track to life to get the Sprintcars on track to conclude the Sprintcar Stampede feature event. Sprintcars were brought back out onto the track, however, push vehicles were struggling to find grip in some areas of the track and with a over a million dollars in race cars on track the decision was called by Sprintcar officials to conclude their racing with rookie driver Rusty Ponting at the head of the field at the stoppage. No official results were able to be awarded as less than fifty percent of race distance had been completed.
Street Stocks also held four heat races prior to the rain out and wins were split by four greater Ballarat drivers with Shaun Henry, Mick Clark, Josh Davey, and Jayden Blomeley taking wins along the way. Clark and Blomeley shared equal qualifying points at the conclusion of the heats and would have started the final from the front row. With a faster lap speed during the nights qualifying, Clark was awarded the win on points from Blomeley, Henry was third, Josh Davey, with Jamie Crutchley rounding out the top five.
In Total Tools Ballarat Piston Cup action with support from Kincrome for the New Star Junior Sedans, Oscar Conder from greater Ballarat won both the heat races leading into a twelve-lap final. In the feature event though Chase Davey charged to the race lead from the very first lap of the race with Conder behind until lap five when he was passed for the second position by Jai Hallett. On the very last lap of the race Conder made a move to retake second only to have the race Stewards see an infringement and drop Conder back two places post-race. Davey another Ballarat racer claiming the Piston Cup win for the New Star Junior Sedans, with Hallett, Zade Tuitaalili, Conder and Billy Basten rounding out the top five.
In the more experienced Top Star Junior Sedans category also competing for their own Piston Cup, heat racing was very competitive in each of four races. Jake Bradley winning the first heat race by less than a second. Then James Peacock winning the next in front of Brad Marshall with Bradley winning the third heat race by just 0.024 ahead of Blake Beach. Bradley defeating Beach both times in his heats. The final qualifying heat race was then won by Peacock ahead of Marshall catching him at the finish line from behind by a margin of 0.011.
Bradley and Peacock both from the Avalon club based at Lara then started the twenty-lap final from the front row with Peacock snaring the lead at the bottom end of the track in turns one and two with Marshall quick to move from fourth to second on the same lap. Bradley moved back to second in front of Marshall on lap ten before Blake Beach in fourth was the first of the front runners to drop out of the race with car trouble. On lap eighteen Bradley sustained a flat front right hand side tyre which curtailed his race leaving Peacock who was way out in front of the field to win by more than seven seconds on his way to setting a new track twenty lap race time record for Junior Sedans of 5:46.543
Peacock finished ahead of Marshall, Maddy Beach, Steane Cosson, and Max Leerson to win the Piston Cup race.
Racing returns to Redline Raceway on December 13th with the King of the Mount Street Stock feature paying big money, a Sports Sedan feature, and the visiting Australian Motor Contest Association Nationals division.
Belmont Speedway Drivers Club would like to thank the following season supporters.
Power FM
Australian Racing Products
Wren Diesel – Truck & Trailer Specialists
Kings Marine Scrap Metal Deale
Ballarat Skip Bins
Ballarat Concrete Recyclers
B.A.C Civil Agricultural Earthworks
True Blue Floors
United Forklift & Access Solutions
IPTA Fibreglass
Shillito Electrical
Norman St Automotive
Total Tools Ballarat
G.T Earthmovers
Grist Earthworks
DMT Sports Media
Lucas Conder Automotive
Aussie Soils
AGF Seeds
Brian Patterson Painting
Fueled Ticketing, Distinct ITC Australia
Walsh Ballarat Quarries
Stewarts Bakery
Dean Miller Photography
Written by
Dean Thompson
Dean Thompson Speedway Media
For Belmont Speedway Drivers Club
