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The group one rookie and the veteran, ready for the tintops |
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Wednesday, 12 March 2008 |
As April’s Tin Top Titles at Willowbank Raceway fast approaches, local stars
Dave Newcombe of Pro Stock and Gary Phillips of Top Doorslammer cannot wait for
the first of the two home-track hit-outs which will round out their respective
2007/2008 ANDRA championships.
Thirty-six year old Dave Newcombe of Petrie in Brisbane’s North is currently
sixth on the championship ladder heading into Pro Stock’s penultimate round at
Willowbank Raceway – not a bad result seeing as it is his first season in a
Group One category.
Not that he has any limit on his drag racing
experience that is, with the 2004 and 2005 Australian Super Gas Champion holding
eight years of drag racing pursuits under his belt, bred from his initial love
for fast cars and big motors.
Now with the final two rounds of the
championship set to be held at his local stomping grounds, the Village Motors
car dealer is looking forward to what he hopes will be his Pro Stock finals
debut in April.
“We are looking to be dangerous at Willowbank – it is
our home track and we have plenty of testing under the belt and just love going
there, so hopefully we can come out and make it into the finals, and maybe beat
one of those Tremayne boys (brothers Aaron and Tyronne, Pro Stock series
leaders) on the way!” laughed Newcombe.
“It would be really great to
break into the final round in the Village Motors/Brisbane Izuzu Pontiac GTO, and
to get some good points on the board so we can hopefully make it into the top
four for the championship.
“This year has really been a learning year –
and I can tell you we have learnt a lot!
"What I would love is to just
have a good end to the season and to be able to take what we have learnt into
the next and hopefully be dangerous – that is something I think we can do.”
While Newcombe is enjoying his first season in the Group One category,
the same cannot be said for Phillips – somewhat of a Group One veteran with 13
Group One Australian Championship Titles to his name.
Fresh from Top
Doorslammer's last outing in Perth at the start of this month, the reigning Top
Doorslammer Champion and pilot of the Lucas Oil Products Studebaker is
determined to put up the big numbers at his home track.
A margin of less
than three metres was all that separated Phillips and fellow Queenslander Brett
Stevens in Perth – an event which saw an extremely quick Doorslammer field, just
off the record-setting Sydney performances of two weeks earlier.
While
Phillips was the one loading up the trailer after that encounter, it has by no
means dampened his spirit, with the Hillcrest racer who holds 13 ANDRA
championships in total – 12 in Top Alcohol and one in Top Doorslammer – ready to
put his Lucas Oil Products Studebaker down the track looking for a win this
April.
“Perth was frustrating – it was just one of those deals where I
had the better light (start) but it was ‘close but no cigar’ I guess,” mused
Phillips.
“In any other round my run (6.08s) probably would have been
enough for the win, it must have been one of the quickest losing elapsed times,
but for that run it just wasn’t enough and unfortunately you can’t rewrite the
storybook how you would like it.
“The car is running good though, which
was obvious with how it performed in Perth, so to head to Willowbank we will
just tune it in to the track and hope to give the car what it wants when we hit
the strip.”
Currently sitting fifth in the ANDRA championship, the
reigning champion mathematically cannot defend his title, however that doesn’t
mean he isn’t still out there looking for a win.
“To take anything other
than first is to lose, and unfortunately we know that we are not going to end up
first in this championship - so we will just do what we can this season and come
out all guns blazing for the next one,” said Phillips.
“With the final
two rounds at our home track, hopefully we can get out there with the less
stress from travelling and costs, a high knowledge of the track and hopefully
good weather, and put up some fast numbers for the fans and for Lucas Oil
Products and see if we can’t win the Event at the same time.”
The April
program will feature the penultimate round of Group One activity in Top
Doorslammer and Pro Stock categories as drivers enjoy one final hit out prior to
the season-ending Castrol EDGE Winternationals at Willowbank Raceway on June
5-8.
Four wheels and a roof to boot will be standard for most entries in
this quarter mile extravaganza, which brings together many traditional drag
racing categories coupled with a selection of unique race cars that enjoy cult
following among their loyal fans.
For the first time ever in Australia,
a 16 car Top Doorslammer Field and for only the second time ever in Australia a
16 Car Pro Stock field will be hitting the track at Willowbank Raceway for the
2008 Tin Top Titles.
In a usual event, fans would see eight competitors
line up against each other for the first round eliminations, but at the Tin Tops
they will get to see the top 16 competitors in two of Australian Drag Racing’s
powerhouse Group One categories duke it out for the win – effectively giving
them twice the amount of racing than ever before.
This will be the first
time ever that Top Doorslammer has had such a large competitive field, and will
be only the second time for the Pro Stock category in Australia and the first
time for Queenslanders to see so many Pro Stockers up against each other.
TIN TOP TITLES (April 18 & 19) – featuring Jack Daniel’s Top
Doorslammer and Travelaire Tours Pro Stock
Other racing includes:
Lifestyle Carpets & Vinyl Super Stock, Lifestyle Carpets & Vinyl
Competition, S&S Competition Bike, Carpenter Ford Supercharged Outlaws,
Bailey's Brake & Clutch Modified, American Rides Modified Bike, Slick
Industries Super Sedan, Crossroads Freightlines & Car Carrying Super Street,
Queensland Diesel Spares Junior Dragster, High Impact Promotions Super Gas,
Perfect Print Perfect Light. Also racing are Sport Compact & Pro Street
brackets.
TICKETING: All ticket prices include paddock admission
Friday
Adults $20
Student (must show ID) $10
Saturday
Adults $30
Student (must show ID) $20
Children 13 & under are admitted FREE
SCHEDULE
Qualifying Friday from 4.00pm, Feature Qualifying
from 6pm
Qualifying and Racing Saturday from 10.00am, Feature Racing from
4.00pm
LOCATION
Willowbank Raceway
Champions Way (off
Cunningham Highway 5km past the Rosewood turnoff)
Willowbank QLD 4307
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