Words: Daryl Shuttleworth (1 Daryl)
Production Saloons have one of the more fascinating stories in New Zealand speedway. They began as a fully recognised National Championship class but have since evolved into a place where friends gather on a Saturday night for close, competitive racing.
The grade has definitely produced its share of big moments, including the two New Zealand title events I had the chance to commentate on, both of which drew packed fields and plenty of action.
Production Saloon drivers in the lower South Island have certainly tried to keep the grade in the spotlight by running an unofficial New Zealand Championship, which was held in Cromwell the last two years, and also the Production Saloon Teams Trophy, sponsored by Shuttleworth Motorsport Media, the latter bringing some of the best Production Saloon racing you will see.
Years ago, it was just Beachlands from Dunedin and Riverside from Invercargill that competed in this event.
Once Central Motor Speedway started up again, it was simply a matter of time before a team from Central Otago would join the teams deal. The rest, as they say, is history.
Roll forward to modern times and we have names for these teams now. The Riverside Rats, Central Otago Chargers and Beachlands Young Guns, who are the two-time defending champions.
The series is simple but fast-paced. Each club hosts an event, and every team fields six drivers. Across three twelve-lap races per round, drivers accumulate points, which are then tallied to determine the overall winner after round three.
Last year, the Joker card was introduced, where the driver from each team who drew the Joker scored double points for that meeting, adding a little spice to the points system.
Aotea Electric Riverside Speedway hosted the opening round, and the Riverside Rats entered with a clear mission. In previous seasons, they had consistently finished at the bottom of the leaderboard, holding third place each year. Racing at home, backed by a passionate group of drivers, the team arrived determined to turn their fortunes around.
Aaron Reed of the Rats drew the Joker, along with Liam Ballantyne for the Chargers and Ricki Pilley for the Young Guns.
This didn’t bode well for the Chargers or Rats, as Pilley is the current unofficial New Zealand Production Saloon Champion, and with the teams having decided on grid draws prior to the Joker being drawn, he was off the front all day, while Ballantyne and Reed were buried well back in the pack. The Young Guns could take advantage of this should Pilley’s day go as planned.
The three-minute bell was called for two of the Young Guns cars ahead of Heat 1 for Tyler Kelk and Noah Kitto. They both took their places on the grid, but Kitto was ordered to the infield for going over time and disqualified from this race.
This put the Young Guns on the back foot early, but Kitto soon had company with the Chargers’ Laura Heads also retiring early.
There were great battles from the front of the pack right through the field in an exhilarating race that saw plenty of wheel-to-wheel scraps, and the Riverside crowd had plenty to cheer about as Blake Hamilton bolted away to win the race by over six seconds.
Second place went the way of Aven Erskine for the Chargers and Cam Bower of the Young Guns was third. However, with Pilley finishing fourth, the double points for the Joker saw The Young Guns score 74 points from the race, ten clear of The Rats on 64 and Chargers on 57.
Hamilton looked like a fish out of water come Heat 2, a big win in Heat 1 contrasted by a couple of spins his next outing.
Pilley took full advantage of having clear air and drove away with teammate Bower to secure a one-two finish for the Young Guns. Kelk finishing fourth saw the team really cash in.
The Rats had Brad Fitzgerald place third in this race, but the local team suffered from not having enough drivers finish in the top end of the table.
The dominant outing saw the Young Guns grow their points haul to 163, a lead of 37 over The Rats, who were on 126, and The Chargers, 109.
The final heat took a dramatic turn when one of the Chargers’ key points scorers was spun on the back straight early, with Gavin Hurring sliding backwards nearly as quickly as some of the back markers were moving forward. The incident occurred on lap two, yet officials opted for a full restart, a decision that returned several drivers to their original grid positions despite their early gains.
Hamilton, of the Rats, looked fast again in this outing. Erskine slipped away early, but Hamilton gathered him on Lap 7 and drove away to secure his second win of the event and ensure a good haul of points for The Rats.
Behind them, Hurring and Erskine engaged in an intense battle, perhaps a little too intense for two drivers on the same team. Their close-quarters racing came with risks, but they kept it together, with Hurring securing second place and Erskine taking third, delivering a strong result for the Chargers.
It was a less fruitful race for leaders The Young Guns, with Bower home fourth and Pilley, the Joker, fifth.
The Beachlands Young Guns saw their lead trimmed to 47, finishing the event on 236 points. The Rats, proudly off the bottom of the table for the first time in years, climbed to 189 points, 21 ahead of the Central Chargers, who ended the round on 168.
The Shuttleworth Motorsport Media Production Teams Trophy round two will take place at Powderworx Central Motor Speedway January 24.