Motorsport Briefs

Bay of Plenty riders Michael Phillips and Cody Cooper are the nearest challengers to international star Josh Coppins after the opening round of the NZ Motocross Champs near Timaru on Sunday.
In a strong opening round performance, Rotorua and Mt Maunganui-based Honda rider Phillips won the opening MX1 moto and followed up with two second places behind Coppins.
"To win the first race and get two seconds and to be three points behind Josh is a good start. I'm very happy," said Phillips, who has stepped up to the MX1 class after twice winning the MX2 title.
"I need to work a little more on my fitness. In the last 5 minutes of the second and third races I struggled a bit and that's where Josh got me. He's used to doing those 40-minute Grands Prix.
"I'm happy with my speed. I got the fastest lap time of the weekend in the third moto."
Coppins (Yamaha) has 72 points going into this weekend's second round at Patetonga with Phillips on 69 points. Cooper (Suzuki) is third in the standings after a fourth and two third placings earned him 58 points and is two points ahead of Honda's defending champion Justin McDonald (Christchurch).
Also making a strong start to the Demon Energy MX Nationals was Tauranga teenager Scott Barr-Smith in the 125cc 2-stroke class.
Barr-Smith posted a 4-3-5 result across the three heats and ranks third in the 125cc class behind Yamaha's Ethan Martens (Waitakere) and KTM rider Shaun Fogarty (Auckland).
The 125cc class also includes an under-21 Youth category and Barr-Smith is second in that contest behind Martens and two points ahead of Suzuki's Dion Picard (Atiamuri).
Also contesting the 125cc and Youth classes were Tauranga's Logan Blackburn and Roydon White who are 12th and 13th respectively in the 125cc standings and 10th an 11th in the Youth rankings after the first round.
In an MX2 (250cc) class where Australians Cody Mackie (Honda) and Daniel McCoy (Suzuki) set the pace at Timaru to lead the series, Tauranga's Peter Broxholme (Honda) is fifth after riding to a fifth and two fourth placings.
The series opener also proved a solid start for two Mt Maunganui riders on the comeback trail from injury.
Mason Phillips (Kawasaki) is sixth in the MX1 standings in his first ride since breaking his collar bone in December. He posted a 10th and then two sixth placings at Timaru.
"It was hard work and I struggled," said Phillips.
"I only qualified 15th but I got through it okay and I was pleased to finish where I did. Hopefully I can do the same this weekend."
Phillips is looking to gain points from the first two rounds and then continue this training before the last two rounds. His priority is another Canadian Championship campaign later this year.
Rhys Carter - who has switched to Suzuki and is back in action after suffering a serious shoulder injury while racing in Canada last year - is sixth in the MX2 standings.
Stock car dates
Baypark Speedway has announced March 11-12 as the rescheduled date for the North Island stock car championship.
Originally on the January calendar but postponed due to heavy rain that flooded the track, the North Island Champs had originally attracted an entry of more than 120 drivers. Entries have now reopened for the event.
The stock car title is the main attraction of a revised Baypark calendar announced last week that runs through till April 9 with six more nights of racing.
The other dates are March 5, March 26 for the Metalman Recyclers Ramp Derby, April 2 for BOP Championship night and April 9 for the season finale and fireworks spectacular.
Pushing at PaeroaBMW Superbike racer Sloan Frost (Tauranga) was busy riding double duty at the Mobil 1 Battle of the Streets event at Paeroa on Sunday.
Frost rode his M1 Motorsport BMW S1000RR to victory in both BEARS races and was involved in a three-way battle with Australian Dan Stauffer (Yamaha) and Taranaki's Hayden Fitzgerald (Honda) in the premier Formula Paeroa class.
Frost finished 0.3secs behind Stauffer in the opening Formula Paeroa race and was third behind Stauffer and Fitzgerald in race two.
The King of the Streets feature race saw Stauffer complete a hat-trick of the major events ahead of Frost and Fitzgerald.
Karting in dark
Four Bay of Plenty Kart Club racers were in action at the opening round of the Rotax Max Challenge of New Zealand at Palmerston North on Saturday.
The KartSport Manawatu "Kart in the Dark" event was the opening round of the series which will offer four New Zealand drivers the chance to race at the Rotax Grand Final, which will be held at Al Ain in the United Arab Emirates later this year.
Tauranga's Justin Herbert finished ninth in the Rotax Lights final with teenager Michael Scott (Paengaroa) finishing 15th in the same class.
In the Rotax Heavy class BOP racers Stuart Gould and Arryn Hill finished sixth and seventh respectively.
The six round Rotax Max Challenge continues with round two at Tokoroa on March 12-13 while the BOP Kart Club hosts round three at its Fagans Valley track at Te Puke on March 26-27.
'Cat and mouse' The scenic dirt oval track above Waihi Beach saw some new action on Sunday with Motorsport BOP staging a "cat and mouse" autocross which attracted 33 drivers.
Contested over four rounds of racing with the fastest lap deciding the outcome it was Subaru Impreza drivers Gary Skinner (Waihi) and Ben Thomasen (Tauranga) who set the pace with Skinner setting the fastest lap of 16.09s to pip Thomasen by 0.02s seconds.
Tauranga's Phil Campbell claimed third place in his V6-engined Mitsubishi Mirage and was the leading two-wheel drive competitor.
Upcoming Motorsport BOP events include a motorkhana at the TECT All Terrain Park on March 6 and the annual Old Coach Rd tarmac sprint event near Pukehina on March 27.
Motorsport BOP Waihi Dirt Track Autocross - results (fastest lap):
1 Gary Skinner (Subaru Impreza) 16.09s; 2 Ben Thomasen (Subaru Impreza) 16.11s; 3 Phil Campbell (Mitsubishi Mirage) 16.17s; 4 Shane Tofts (Toyota Sprinter) 16.24s; 5 Grant Clayton (Subaru Impreza) 16.43s; 6 Pete Housham (Subaru Impreza) 16.52s; 7 Chris Flegg (Sunbeam Imp) 16.57s; 8 Nick Flegg (Ford Escort) 16.64s; 9 Chris Hawkes (Chev Pickup) 16.68s; 10 Wayne Cochran (VW Beetle) 16.80s.