Whakatane's Tony Rees (Honda CBR1000), with another Paeroa win under his wheels. Photo/Bikesportnz.com
Whakatane's Tony Rees (Honda CBR1000), with another Paeroa win under his wheels. Photo/Bikesportnz.com
It has been a long time between drinks for Bay of Plenty's Tony Rees and that just made it all the sweeter when he won the Formula One class at Paeroa's annual Battle of the Streets on Sunday.
The Whakatane man first won the premier title at Paeroa more than20 years ago, but the 46-year-old is now celebrating his eighth big win there after clinching the trophy at Sunday's 23rd annual running of the iconic event. It's probably fair to say that Rees does not need a street map for the town of Paeroa ... he knows his way around there very well indeed.
Rees (on his Honda Rider Insurance-supported CBR1000) crossed the line at the end of the 10-lap race ahead of New Plymouth's Hayden Fitzgerald (Suzuki GSX-R1000) and Aucklander Ray Clee (Suzuki GSX-R1000). The day at Paeroa was cut short because of safety concerns when oil was accidentally dumped on the public street course during one of the sidecars races, which meant there was no chance for any comeback by Rees' rivals, but, as the Honda man pointed out, he was "feeling very strong and comfortable on the bike" and a second win was always very likely anyway.
"Hayden was on pole, but I grabbed the holeshot at the start of the race," Rees explained.
"I opened up a bit of a gap but then Hayden and Ray caught me up. I managed to put a back-marker between me and them and that gave me an advantage at the finish. "I was looking forward to having another race," said Rees. "I have not won here for a few years ... it's been a while between drinks ... but I have always gone close over the past few years and now I have won here eight times.
"There may have been a few disgruntled spectators with the action being reduced to just one race per class today. We can all ride through oil and cement dust (that is used to mop up spilled oil), but this is a fast and dangerous track as it is, without having oil on the surface," said Rees. "We didn't have a fatality and everyone went home at the end of the day. That's what matters. The next day of "fighting" for Rees and his superbike rivals will be at round three of the New Zealand Superbike Championships at Taupo Motorsport Park on March 23, that third round including the New Zealand TT title races.
The national championship wraps up with a double-header fourth and final round at Manfeild Park, on the outskirts of Feilding, on March 29-30.
