RallySport Magazine September 2016

COROMANDEL RALLY - NZRC 5
Queenslander Bruce
Fullerton contested the
event in a Mitsubishi Starion.
which took him past Inkster to fifth.
Turner and Blackberry were equal
fourth fastest, leaving Turner with
the same 7.1 second margin over
Blackberry in the fight for the final
podium spot.
As one shower passed, another
threatened while teams returned to
the service park before repeating
the previous two stages. Once again
Reeves headed home Inkster through
Tapu Coroglen, this time just over
eight seconds separating the pair,
while Graham Featherstone finally
was able to show the speed that had
him as a favourite for second in the
championship prior to the round, with
the third fastest time. He edged out
Turner and Cox, who had made major
tyre changes in an effort to rekindle his
fight for the championship runner-up
spot.
Once again the big loser on the
stage was Hawkeswood, who again
missed out on picking the right tyres
in the service park and slipped back to
seventh, behind Holder.
The third and final run through the
309 road stage was another Reeves
benefit, putting the victory well beyond
doubt with a margin of 47.6 seconds
with only three stages remaining, two
of which were a short tarmac publicity
stage.
Featherstone once again showed
what might have been with a time only
0.4 of a second off the Australian’s
pace. Summerfield’s third fastest time
made his second place look increasingly
comfortable, while Turner held third,
just over 10 seconds ahead of Inkster,
who was now under no pressure from
behind after Blackberry spun and found
himself stuck in a ditch. Although he did
no damage, he was unable to regain
the road.
Hawkeswood moved back into fifth
after a spin from Holder, who now had
Featherstone only 2.4 seconds off his
28 | RALLYSPORT MAGAZINE - SEPTEMBER 2016
tail, and Kingsley Jones moved into
the Gull Rally Challenge lead following
Blackberry’s demise and an oil leak
for Robson, that meant he was now
keeping an eye on third placed Jono
Walker, who was having his best run of
the season.
Gosling continued to dominate the
Historics and would continue on to
take a well-deserved victory, as well as
claiming top two-wheel drive overall
for the event, and the power stage for
extra bragging rights
and bonus points.
Graham
Featherstone.
Second place for
Silcock secured
him second in the
championship
behind van Klink,
who retired from
Coromandel with an
alternator failure,
while Judd’s third
place meant he took
third for the year.
Anthony Jones
took his third round
win of the year in his
Escort, but second place was enough
for Dave Strong to take the Open twowheel
drive championship for the year
in his Honda Civic.
Third in the class, and a stage win,
was enough for Dylan Thomson to be
awarded the Dunlop Drive of the Rally
and the free set of Dunlops that go with
it, while Jack Williamson rounded out a
tough season with a solid fourth place.
The Gull Rally Challenge on the day
and for the year would go the way of
Kingsley Jones, ahead of Lee Robson,
while Jono Walker’s third place on the
day won him the Gull Rally Scholarship
prize of a drum of Gull Force Pro E85
liquid horsepower, but it wasn’t enough
to stop Warwick Redfern taking third for
the series.
Jeff Torkington took the round win for
two-wheel drive and with it, victory for
the year over an absent Greg Murphy.
Other championship classes saw
Max Bayley take out FIA two-wheel
drive (without contesting the finale),
Carl Davies come home for the Rookie
title and Sloan Cox become Junior
Champion for the second time.
With only one gravel stage remaining,
the major placings and the minor
money were fairly sorted, but with
a tight battle for the championship
runner-up spot behind Holder, the
power stage and the bonus points
would wind up crucial.
Hawkeswood blasted through the
stage to claim the stage win and the
big haul of points, but it was a second
fastest time for Sloan Cox that sealed
him second in the championship, only
one point ahead of Hawkeswood.
Turner set the third fastest time
and that meant he would take fifth
in the championship, just behind
Featherstone.
Inkster complimented his fourth
overall with fourth in power stage to
claim two bonus points. But a single
bonus point for fifth fastest would
hardly have mattered to Reeves, who
claimed a magnificent victory, the first
for Mazda in the NZRC in 23 years and
by a margin of 23.6 seconds.
Summerfield was relieved to round
out a tough season with second place,
while Turner continued his run of
podium finishes this season, now up to
three from three starts, with another
third - not bad considering he had
never had an NZRC podium at the start
of the season.
Inkster, Hawkeswood, Holder,
Cox, Featherstone, Kingsley Jones
and Robson rounded out the top 10,
narrowly edging out the frustrated
Cunningham and Phil Campbell.
Jono Walker, Carl Davies and series
sponsor, Brian Green, rounded out the
top 15 on an event that started with
the highest numbers of the season,
and ironically offered up the least DNFs
after a crazy season of rallying.