Stockcar driver Walker wins Taranaki Champs for third time

Driver Tyler Walker, who has been in top form all season, including placing second in the New Zealand Stockcar Championship in Greymouth recently, beat home 30 other competitors to win the Taranaki Stockcar Champs at Stratford Speedway on Saturday night.

This is the third time in the last four seasons that Walker has now won the Taranaki champs, more than any other competitor in the 19-year history of the class in Stratford, since they split from what is now known as Superstocks.

Over the course of the three races for the class, Walker recorded a third, fourth and first to win the champs by eight points from Kylee Symes.

Along the way he was poked into the wall twice by Steve Michielsen before placing a perfectly timed hit in retaliation and smashing him up the back straight wall and out of contention with rear end damage.

Bevan Phillips and Mark Duthie were tied on points for third place and used a four-lap run-off for third, which Duthie won after he rolled Phillips in turn two.

The V8 Saloon series was also in town for their final round, with 19 competitors. After qualifying heats, a pole shuffle and then a close a fast paced 25-lap feature, Hawke's Bay racer Josh Smith won from Jarred Fletcher and Scott Lansdown.

A quality field of nine Modifieds raced for the Rusty Kay Memorial, including Ricky Paul who fronted with an old, but fully restored, ex Willie Noonan car.

After recording a first, third and fourth in the three races, Newton Gordge was the winner of the Memorial by two points from John Jackson while Richard Pierce was third.

Streetstocks were the last class on the programme to race for the Best Pairs trophy. Adam Young won two races which assisted him and his pairing partner Jason Dunn to the top of the podium with a points haul of 39.

Ron McGrath and Daryl Washer were second, 10 points behind while Anthony Washer and Darron Jeffrey were third.

Adult and Youth Ministocks also raced on the night with race wins in the Adult class going to Nathan Nolly, Lauren Thompson and Bradley Korff while Youth wins were picked up by Corban Swan and Zen Dodunski.

On the same weekend at Rotorua Speedway, Stratford Stockcar driver Carol Podjursky beat home the competition to win the Aotearoa women's Stockcar Crown.

The next race meeting at Stratford Speedway is on February 15th and will feature the Taranaki Sprintcar Champs and the Taranaki Adult Ministock Champs.