Motorsport: Pukekohe promises nailbiter for finale

Two-time and defending BNT V8s champion John McIntyre has reasserted himself at the top of the points table heading to Pukekohe this weekend.

The seventh and final round of the New Zealand V8 championship is sure to be action-packed as McIntyre's lead over previous series leader Kayne Scott is only 38 points.

McIntyre scorched back into the lead at Manfeild two weeks ago when he scored a remarkable three-from-three wins while the mechanical gremlins struck Scott, leaving him ruing his bad luck.

Scott and Angus Fogg yesterday topped topped the times during testing.

Although lap times during the two official test sessions don't count towards qualifying, Scott's first time of 1m 01.602s was a handy 0.09s quicker than Fogg who holds sixth place overall.

Craig Baird was third fastest in the first session, with Andy Booth and McIntyre completing the top five.

In the second session Fogg was quickest with 1m 01.372s and Scott had a time of 1m 01.541s. McIntyre was third quickest with 1m 01.676s with Booth and Baird again making it the same five fastest drivers.

With McIntyre holding the championship lead of 1022 points compared to Scott's 984, the competition for pole position in tomorrow's final official qualifying session is likely to be intense.

The fast and unforgiving Pukekohe circuit has a habit of producing upsets so the drivers will have to be on top of their game. Last year saw a seven-car pileup going into the right-hander at the end of the front straight that decimated the field.

McIntyre has been busy between rounds making sure his car is in top running order.

"Our gearbox has required new components and we have also installed a new clutch and flywheel, rekitted the brakes, replaced the rear windscreen, checked the engine (still on our first change) and had all of the suspension apart," he said.

As with all the rounds, qualifying will play a vital part in who commands the race when the lights go out. At the previous round held at Pukekohe last November, it was Paul Manuell who put the cat among the pigeons when he put his Holden on pole.

But there will be five or six drivers capable of getting within a few tenths of a second of one another, including lap record holder Fogg, Baird, Booth and as well as McIntyre, Scott and Manuell.

"Having pole position will be important, but there are also good opportunities for passing at Pukekohe, so we'll be fighting for the championship right down to the wire," said McIntyre.

Best-placed Holden driver Booth slipped back to fourth after the last round and is determined to finish the series in the top three.

He will have to be at his best to get one over third-placed Baird, who has really come to grips with the big taxis and is fast improving.

"It's going to be an exciting weekend no matter where you're standing," said Booth. "Puke's a track where anything can happen and there'll be a big group of cars on a similar pace."

Baird has all but wrapped up the Porsche GT3 Cup championship as he has a commanding 99-point lead over David Reynolds.

Although Mitch Cunningham has a 134-point buffer in the Toyota Racing Series, there are 225 points up for grabs and second-placed Sam MacNeill is on a roll.

There will also be close racing from the NZ Production Racing cars, the Formula Fords, and Mini Challenge.

V8 POINTS

1022 - John McIntyre, Nelson (Ford Falcon)
984 - Kayne Scott, Hamilton (Ford Falcon)
856 - Craig Baird, Gold Coast (Ford Falcon)
827 - Andy Booth, Auckland (Holden Commodore)
738 - Paul Manuell, Auckland (Holden Commodore)