By Dean Thompson
NYORA Raceway’s latest race meeting was an all-night open wheel spectacular with the Compact Speedcars competing for their state championship whilst Formula 500 drivers competed in the Golden Jacket Showdown.
Aston Rodriguez from Kyabram would achieve the state title milestone beating Australian champion Mitch Whiting in the run to the finish whilst Chad Bell scored a big win in the showdown.
Also on the night, Nyora’s very own Ebony Hobson would win the latest Eastern Series Wingless Sprints round of racing, Cody Malley won the Junior Formula 500s, Chris Nankiville won the Open Outlaw Karts and Kade Foster was victorious in the Outlaw Box Stocks.
Rodriguez won the first of six qualifying races to put himself as close to the front as possible for the state title for Compact Speedcars whilst the wins were shared from there by Caleb Mills, Joe Lostitch, Mitch Whiting, Bree Simpson and Whiting a second time. A twenty-five-lap title decider had its thrills and spills, the biggest being Byron Smith from New South Wales coming undone. Rodriguez would cross the finish line over a second in front of Whiting, Trevor Perry, Mills and Ash Booker.
Rowdy Andreatta who began racing as a Nyora Junior Sedan competitor jumped into senior Formula 500 racing for the first time having spent a couple of seasons as a Junior 500 racer and started with a bang by winning the first of four qualifiers. Tyler Maggs, Mat Turner and Jackson McLean shared the rest of the victories in the Golden Jacket Showdown for the Formula 500s. However come feature time it would be Chad Bell storming to victory lane in front of McLean, Turner, Bailey Stephens and Maggs.
Last start Nyora Raceway Junior Formula 500 winner Hugo Chivell started his night of racing with a first up heat win before Cody Malley, Rusty Ponting and Cruz Farrell from Pakenham Upper rounded out the winners in qualifying. Malley then continued his run of strong results in recent weeks by securing the feature race victory ahead of Ponting, Chivell, Cruz Farrell and Zac Stevens.
National Sprintcar racer Todd Moule started a rare weekend in Wingless Sprint competition by winning the first of six heat races in the latest Eastern Wingless Sprint Series. He was the first of six different winners with Tyler O’Leary, Clyde woman Ebony Hobson, Peter Logue, Thomas McDonald and Aron Lawrence being those that earnt themselves victories.
Hobson who learnt who race craft watching her father Lloyd at Nyora compete in Dirt Modifieds before the family invested in some Speedway Karts for herself and her brother to go racing, would win the feature event by less than half a second, just ahead of Ricky McCubbin, Logue, Kim Gosling and Ricky Mills.
The Outlaw Karts returned with the drivers keen to try out the three hundred metre infield track as opposed to the one hundred meeting infield circuit. It was a last-minute request and despite best efforts of the host club, things didn’t go as planned. The Outlaws and Nyora have some plans for the three hundred metre circuit that should bring it up to scratch for the future. Chris Nankiville who won a final at Nyora already this year, once again claimed a victory when he beat Ryan Murcott, Ethan Bastian, Luke Hickson and Harry McCormack in the final.
In Outlaw Junior Box Stocks Kade Foster clean swept the nights racing winning both heats and then the final. Finishing second in the final was Aston Tuckett with Bohdi Doig and Freddie Carrigy closing out the finishers.