Hamilton ITM 400

What a weekend! I was looking forward to racing at Hamilton in the Trans Tasman V8 Ute Challenge since the final round of the NZ Championship at Timaru.

It was an event I wanted to do well at as much as I had wanted to win the NZ V8 Ute Series. A number of Aussie drivers came across the ditch for the weekend to challenge the Kiwis. It was the first time for me to race around the streets of Hamilton which I was excited about and it is always good to race at big events supporting the V8 Supercars.

After a successful test day at Hampton Downs on Wednesday we cruised down to Hamilton to set up our pit area for the weekend and prep the ENZED Ute for Fridays test and qualifying sessions. Friday ran smoothly topping the time sheets in testing and qualifying. I was confident for the first race on Saturday. Kim Jane got the better of the starts in his Holden and I slotted into second for the first two laps before charging down the inside into turn 7. I held him out until the final lap where I couldn’t get second gear on the down change into turn one due to the clutch fluid boiling and holding air. I was devastated as Kim drove around the outside as I was trying to get a gear, any gear! I maintained position and finished race one second.

Aussies 1 - Kiwis 0

I had to win race two to level the score and give my ‘bros’ a chance at the title. I started off P2 and followed Kim as I did in race one. I worked out where I had an advantage. I got a great run through the chicane and fired it down the inside into the next turn. It was a bit wild! I slid out of the corner with a bit of opposite lock but had the inside line into the next corner where I took the lead and ran with it for the win.

Kiwis 1 - Aussies 1

It came down to the third and final race. As the race was going to be longer I made a couple of changes to the set up. I knew that the tyres and brakes would be deteriorating by around lap 10 so had the mindset to conserve where possible. I launched off the line well and had the lead out of turn one. I was under a lot of pressure on the first few laps but began to pull a gap and decided to gain a buffer so I could back off as the tyres and brakes went off. The Ute was very consistent and we continued to stretch the lead out to 7 seconds. My win - along with the strong positions of the other Kiwis sealed the Trans Tasman Ute Challenge victory!

Kiwis 2 - Aussies 1

It was an awesome way to end the season. I am now looking forward to what the future will bring and opportunities for next season as I work towards my aim of getting back into the main V8 Supercar Series.