The racing weekend that was - Wk 6

In endurance racing, the 12 Hour of Bathurst:
Needless to say, the track at Mount Panorama with its elevation changes and jaw dropping curves usually ensures for a nail biting finish. One would think that after a 12 hour long race this would not be the case. And this person would be so very wrong for a very late safety car bunched up traffic, instantly transforming a lengthy endurance race into a four minute sprint!

Bell leading Vanthoor up the mountain

Matt Bell driving a Bentley Continental GT3 was the race leader when the 20th caution flag waved. However, a quick thinking Ausie safety crew saved the race and allowed for some time for the top four to battle it out, Laurens Vanthoor in the Audi R8, Stefan Mucke in an Aston Martin and Katsumasa Chiyo in the GT-R.

Click here to watch a short video of the race's finish which included some of the best racing of the year, including arguably a candidate for Pass of the Year (Chiyo, GT-R).

2015 Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour top 5 results:
1. F. Strauss/ K. Chiyo/ W. Reip, Nissan GT-R Nismo GT, no. 35,
2. M. Mapelli/ L. Vanthoor/ M. Winkelhock, Audi R8-LMS Ultra 20, no. 15,
3. D. O'Young/ A. MacDowall/ S. Mucke, Aston Martin Vantage, no. 97,
4. G. Smith/ S. Kane/ M. Bell, Bentley Continental, no. 10,
5. J. LeBrocq/ R. Muscat/ D. Canto, Mercedes SLS AMG GT3, no. 36.


NHRA at Auto Club Raceway:
The 2015 NHRA racing series started out with a big bang in Pomona, California. Always a crowd pleaser, the track is adjacent to the Wally Parks NHRA Museum, which is a must see for drag race fans.

In Top Fuel, 2013 champion Shawn Langdon (pictured on the right) entered the season without a full-time sponsor. Luckily he got support from the Food Network star Guy Fieri and ran the Knuckle Sandwich decals on the AJPE dragster.
Always a good sign, he qualified in the top spot and carried this performance throughout eliminations. Finals he outran Antron Brown with a 3.799 et at 309.91 mph.

In Funny Car, reigning world champion Matt Hagan experienced a spectacular engine explosion during qualifying on Friday but bounced back to qualify in 12th spot on Saturday. On race Sunday, Hagan steered his car to four round-wins, the last one against his team mate Ron Capps.

"You try to put it out of your mind and not think about it," Hagan said when asked about his engine explosion. "These [race cars] are animals out there, and you never know what you are going to get when you crawl in there to drive one. It's always an experience. You have to respect it, but you can't fear it."

Line's Chevy being pulled to the start

In Pro Stock it seemed that a rookie might take the win light on Sunday. However, Drew Skillman's Cinderella story was side-wiped when he met Jason Line in the finals, who claimed his fourth Winternationals Pro Stock Wally. Line outran Joey Grose, Shane Gray, and Rodger Brogdon to advance to the final and meet longtime NHRA Sportsman racing standout Skillman, who had advanced to his first final in his first Pro start. Just amazing day for the Skillman crew. Keep it up!

The next up is the CARQUEST Auto parts NHRA Nationals at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park, near Phoenix on Feb 20-22.


IHRA Nitro Jam at Tucson:

Pro Stock winner Cary Goforth 

Fans at the Southwestern Int'' Raceway in Tucson, Arizona, saw some exciting side-by-side racing, as did the fortunate ones to follow the live feed via the internet, even though it was a tad slow... I must say that I saw some of my friends [ read: Jeff Dobbins] way too pale. Gonna send them all suggestions to come and visit us in the Caribbean so they can properly relax during the off season.

- AMSOIL Nitro Funny Cars: Mike McIntire, Camaro, defeated Jason Rupert, Camaro, by running a 13.555 at 62.89 mph

- Nitro Harley-Davidson: Jay Turner outran Randal Andras with a 6.383 et at 221 mph

- US Bounty Hunter Pro Stock: Cary Goforth beat John Deflorian Jr. with a 6.348 et 219.72 mph.

- Jet Dragster: Elaine Larsen defeated Katarina Moller with a 5.73 et at 281.77 mph pass.

- Top Sportsman: Marlon Goates, 1997 Cutlass won with a 7.468 over Marty Blair 1996 Corvette running a 7.818.

For more race results, click here.


Source: Jalopnik, IHRA, NHRA,
Photo credit: Jalopnik. IHRA, NHRA