Speedway: Fiery welcome back for Joe Faram

Wayne Talbot's superstock (right) caught fire after a spectacular collision with Joe Faram (left) during Sunday night's opening meeting at Meeanee. Photo/John Faulkner

Welcome back former national superstock champion Joe Faram.

The 2012 national champion and Speedway New Zealand board member, Faram, 53, was involved in a spectacular and fiery collision with clubmate, East Coast champion Wayne Talbot, during the feature race for their 16-car class at Sunday night's first meeting of the season for the Hawke's Bay Speedway Club at Meeanee.

Talbot was sent up into the air after they collided and when he came down his car caught on fire.

Talbot was unable to continue but Faram resumed racing and finished sixth. It was Faram's first meeting after having last season off and it wasn't the first time he had received a harsh welcome back to the racing scene.

In November, 2014 after an 11-month spell Faram was knocked out and collected a broken elbow and sore pelvis when he was hit by clubmate Matt Demanser.

Track announcer Mike Wilson, who is in his 20th year of commentating at Meeanee, described Sunday night's hit as "one of many highlights on an action-packed night which attracted a great crowd and good fields".

The Hawke's Bay-based Palmerston North-contracted Andy McCabe won two of the superstock heats for the class and Hawke's Bay's Quinn Ryan the other.

Host track super saloon driver Grant Flynn won the Hawke's Bay championship for his class with three second placings in a 10-strong field.

Second place went to the Rotorua-contracted three-time national champion Mark Osborne. Flynn's brother and two-time national champion Steve Flynn was third.

Two trophies donated in memory of long-time Hawke's Bay Hawkeyes and Meeanee Maulers supporter and former production saloon driver Kevin Milne, who died in March after a battle with cancer, were up for grabs on the night - one in the production saloon class and one in the minstock class.

First, second and fourth placings in a 10-strong field gave Hawke's Bay driver Denton Hodgkinson the trophy in the production saloon class. Clubmates Taylor Emerson and Greg Redington were second and third respectively.

The Gisborne-contracted Angus Briant, who is also a member of the Hawke's Bay club, is the inaugural winner of the Kevin Mijlner Memorial Trophy in the ministock class. Second place went to Stratford's Will Hart and former Palmerston North driver Nicole Hickmott, who is now contracted to the Bay, was third.

With 39 starters in the ministock class they were divided into two groups, a junior one for first and second year drivers and a senior one for third year drivers and above. The top six drivers from the junior group were eligible for the final for the trophy.

Ashton Osborne, a son of Osborne and Tyler Flynn, a son of Grant Flynn, were the respective winners of the first two heats for the junior groups.

Hawke's Bay's 3NZ in the TQ class, Duane Todd, won the first two races in his eight-strong class and his second victory came after he started at the back of the field.

Clubmate Kris Gillies did well to win the feature and Gisborne's Ryan MacGregor was the most consistent in the class with a second and two thirds.

Aucklander Keegan Orr won all three heats in the 28-car stockcar class. Ethan Anderson and Jemma Palmer were the best of the Bay starters in the class with second placings.

With no solobikes on the programme Hawke's Bay rider Michael Patey raced in Auckland on Sunday night and won the King of Rosebank title.