Jetsprints: Drivers fume over drop round

Wanganui's Hayden Wilson and navigator Chris Hausman have dropped to second spot in the Jetpro 400 series after the points from their victory at ASB Baypark Stadium in January were discounted. Photo/File

Wanganui's leading drivers in the 2014 NZ Jetsprint Championship Series are fuming this week after it was decided their best efforts on a difficult day at the new ASB Baypark Stadium track on January 25 was for nothing.

Heading into this Sunday's fourth round of the series at Riverside Jet Sprint race track at Crownthorpe near Hastings, the New Zealand Jetsprint Association held a vote regarding the lopsided results from round two at Mt Maunganui where a number of leading contenders crashed out of contention in the Group A and Jetpro 400 classes.

The digger went out to change the rotations of the new track before the headline Suzuki Super Boats took their turn that afternoon.

Nonetheless, Wanganui's 400 contender Hayden Wilson and Group A defending champion Richard Murray not only survived but thrived - finishing first and second respectively in their classes at Baypark.

But those results are null and void after the committee of the New Zealand Jetsprint Association, who were initially considering introducing a "drop round" to the six-round campaign, instead voted recently to wipe the points from the January round for those two classes because of the rotation change.

This decision drops Wilson down to second place on 55 points behind Piopio's Brett Thompson, who finished 13th at Baypark and then second to Wilson at the following Meremere round in February.

Murray, who came sixth in Meremere, also drops back to a share of third spot with Waitotara driver Duncan Wilson, now sitting six points back from Australian Paul Gaston and Hamilton rival Sam Newdick.

Wilson, who will head over to Hawke's Bay tomorrow morning, said he could only use the vote as motivation from this point given he has beaten Thompson twice in a row but no longer leads the series.

"Four points behind, you've got to do something.

"They just bent me over and shafted me. Me and probably two or three others, depending on how you look at it.

"Definitely one of those points that I don't like talking about at the moment."

Murray's partner Julia Murray said her husband, the committee chairman, had decided not to vote to avoid any conflict of interest.

But the final call obviously rankled.

"He didn't believe in drop rounds anyway," Julia Murray said.

"Absolutely [it's motivation], to go back there and fight for the position that was taken from you.

"Anything can happen, remember Richard was 12 points back from Sam last year, coming into the last round."

Newdick had a shocking final run at the final round for 2013 at Wanganui's Shelter View, allowing Murray to scoop the title from him by winning that night.

After coming second at Shelter View and Baypark this season, Murray chose to experiment with a different grille at Meremere and came sixth, with Julia Murray saying he was likely to return to the original set up in Hastings.

Also likely to be playing on Murray's mind is the spectacular crash he had at Riverside last year, which left navigator Kesty Manning injured for the last two rounds.

While this is Wilson's first season as a driver, he has four years experience at Riverside as a navigator for 2013 champion Gerry Linklater.

After initially having problems with the islands, they had gotten used to the track and could attack hard after the one tight hairpin, he said.

In the Super Boats, the results from all three rounds still count, leaving Wanganui's Leighton Minnell in fifth place 12 points back from series leader Graeme Hill, who is on his home track in Hastings.

Defending champion Peter Caughey of Christchurch moved to second after his win at Meremere, with Australian Phonsy Mullan in third.