Big guns vie for kart nationals

Record entries for the KartSport New Zealand sprint kart championships in Hawke's Bay over Easter have underlined the popularity of the country's most accessible motorsport.

When entries closed the total was a record 249 - that's 53 more than last year's sprint nationals at Invercargill, 45 more than at the 2004 nationals at Auckland and eight more than the previous record-holder, the 1997 meeting at Hamilton. Competitors are coming from throughout New Zealand and Australia for the three-day meeting.

With an all-expenses-paid trip to Japan for the winner, the senior 100cc Yamaha light class has attracted the most entries at 40.

Junior 100cc Yamaha is the next most popular class with 34, then the 100cc junior restricted Yamaha and formula junior, each with 25, senior 100cc Yamaha heavy with 22, cadet with 21, formula 100 and 125cc Rotax Max light, each with 20, 125cc Rotax Max heavy with 18, intercontinental C with 13 and formula 125S with 11.

Included in the star-studded list of entrants are 23 national and South Island or North Island champions, including last year's two-class title holder William Thomason (senior 100cc Yamaha heavy and formula 100) from Wellington.

Also set to defend their New Zealand titles are 100cc junior restricted Yamaha champion Mitchell Evans, 125cc Rotax Max light champion Paul Cameron, formula 125S champion Jason Lee (all from Auckland) and 125cc Rotax Max heavy champion Nikki Mills, from Christchurch.

Other 2005 national titleholders - cadet class champion Arie Hutton and open class title winner Regan Carter - will be at the meeting, but competing in other classes, Hutton in 100cc junior restricted Yamaha and Carter in senior 100cc Yamaha light and formula 100.

Wanting to add a national title to their North Island ones are Ben Drummond (Cadet), Nick Cassidy (100cc junior restricted Yamaha), Lydia Dickinson (senior 100cc Yamaha light), Jared Carlyle (senior 100cc Yamaha heavy and 125cc Rotax Max heavy) and Phillip Watkins (formula 100).

New Zealand's growing stature on the world karting and single-seater motor racing stage is reflected in the return of Auckland 18-year-old Mitchell Cunningham from Italy, where he is driving for the works CRG team in the European and world championships, 23-year-old Christchurch international Matthew Hamilton, and karter-turned-single-seater driver Earl Bamber.

This year, Hamilton is competing in the Indy Pro series in the United States, and Bamber is competing in the Formula BMW Asia series. Matthew Hamilton's sister, Fiona, will also be competing at the national meeting in the 125cc Rotax Max light title.

The Hamilton siblings have dominated the Rotax Max light class at the nationals since 2001. Last year's champion Paul Cameron was the first non-Hamiltonian to win the New Zealand title held by Matthew in 2001 and 2004 and by Fiona in 2002 and 2003.

Local interest will focus on father and son Paul and Jacob Ross, and Hawke's Bay hotshot Zac Zaloum.

Hawke's Bay club stalwart Paul Ross is entered in the senior 100cc Yamaha light class and his son, Jacob, in the junior 100cc Yamaha. Zac Zaloum will compete in junior 100cc Yamaha and formula junior.

There will be action at the ZM Raceway on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Lap times set in the time trials on Friday will be used to determine grid positions for the two heats, pre-final and final on Saturday or Sunday (depending which classes the competitors are in). And a repechage will be held on Friday to reduce the senior 100cc Yamaha light field to the 34-kart track limit.

Grid positions for the pre-final will be determined by points gained in the two heats. Grid positions for the final will be determined by the finishing order of the pre-final. Heat race-repechage length is 10 laps, pre-final length 15 laps and final length 25 laps.

Classes on Saturday are cadet, senior 100cc Yamaha light, senior 100cc Yamaha heavy, Junior 100cc Yamaha, Formula 125S and 125cc Rotax Max light.

Classes on Sunday are the junior restricted 100cc Yamaha, formula junior, 125cc Rotax Max heavy, Formula 100 and intercontinental C.

The championships are at Roy's Hill on State Highway 50, west of Hastings.