McIntyre wins BNT B8s round two at Pukekohe to take championship lead
Sunday 9 November 2008, 9:12PM
By The MotorSport Company
856 views
One race win apiece for Paul Manuell, John McIntyre and Kayne Scott saw the BNT V8s Championship battle take on a more traditional Holden versus Ford look after three dramatic races at Pukekohe this weekend.
The three drivers – all former champions in this class – took the top three places for the round, the Hydraulink 200, with McIntyre beating out Manuell then Scott for the weekend’s honours.
McIntyre now also heads the overall championship points’ table with 345 points ahead of Scott who, coming into this second round of the BNT V8s Championship shared the points’ lead with the injured Paul Radisich. The trio of Holdens prepared by Wayne Anderson’s AV8 Motorsport workshop – Andy Booth, Paul Manuell and Andrew Anderson – now complete the overall top five.
Pukekohe’s fast circuit delivered a few surprises for what started out as a field of 28 V8s during Friday’s testing.
Manuell scored his first pole position for a couple of seasons in the three-part shoot-out style qualifying on Saturday morning and went on to win the first of three races after an intense battle with Scott.
“It’s great to have the Holdens back into serious contention,” said Manuell who drives the distinctive red-orange Orix-backed Holden. “We’re relatively confident we can continue to perform as strongly at the next round at Powerbuilt Tools Motorsport later in November.”
Sunday’s second race took nearly two and a half hours to complete due to an eight car pile-up that required considerable work to the circuit’s safety barriers before racing could resume
No one was injured and until in-car camera footage is assessed in detail by officials it’s difficult to know exactly how the incident started, but the end result saw Chris Adams’ and Boyd Norwood’s car spin over the safety fence, while the cars of Nick Ross, Cam Hardy, Alan McCarrison, Angus Fogg and Tim Edgell were strewn along the left hand side of Pukekohe’s first sweeper.
When the race finally resumed, Manuell and McIntyre again battled intensely with McIntyre getting the chequered flag this time. Dean Perkins again finished third with Andrew Anderson and Paul Pedersen rounding out the top five.
“I had several attempts at getting passed Paul and managed to get the inside line coming over the hill,” said McIntyre. “It’s nice to claw back the deficit we had from Kayne after round one at Taupo and now extend a small lead.”
Compared to the weekend’s first two races, the crash-prone reverse grid third race was relatively incident-free with the safety car called out only once to retrieve debris on the circuit. Boyd Norwood, formerly a competitor in the development V8s series, had pole position with Chris Adams alongside. Andrew Porter was quick to take the lead, a position he held until Kiwi racing star Craig Baird passed him on the tenth lap.
From 13th, Scott roared through the field to pursue and catch Baird with five laps to go. Porter held on for third, while McIntyre and Manuell had also driven through the field to finish seventh and eighth respectively.
The BNT V8s Championship moves to Powerbuilt Tools Raceway outside Christchurch for round three over the weekend of 28-30 November 2008.
RACE ONE IN MORE DETAIL
Pukekohe’s Paul Manuell made it a start-to-finish win in the first of three races this weekend in the BNT V8s Championship.
Having secured pole position during Saturday’s qualifying for the Hydraulink 200, Manuell, a former V8s champion in the Orix Holden, went on to win an action-packed race from defending V8s champion John McIntyre and long-time top V8s competitor Dean Perkins.
The twelve lap race involved two incidents that required safety car intervention – the first being on the very first lap when, racing very closely, Andy Booth, Craig Baird, Andrew Porter and Michael Bristow clashed. Booth then scored a drive-through penalty by officials.
Manuell kept to the front, successfully fighting off a very determined Kayne Scott in the Fujitsu Ford while McIntyre and Fogg were also involved in a battle at close-quarters. McIntyre had the inside line going around Pukekohe’s infamous right-handed sweeper as Fogg was forced wide, shooting off onto the grass into the esses. Coming back onto the circuit, Fogg touched the unfortunately-placed Tim Edgell, sending him off.
The 28-strong field down to 24, the next incident saw Scott spun at the hairpin, allowing McIntyre and Perkins through behind Manuell for the chequered flag.
“Kayne [Scott] had real good pace down the chute,” explained a delighted Manuell. “He was right on my tail at the hairpin and the next thing he was gone. It’s been a couple of years since I’ve had a pole position so it’s fantastic to win from pole and show the team I’ve still got a bit of talent!”
“Our car isn’t quite as good as we’d hoped today,” said McIntyre, but the two-time V8s champion was delighted to move into the overnight series lead with the points earned from his second place.
Earlier in the day, Fogg’s successful appeal against an official decision that excluded him from the results of race three at the BNT V8s Championship opening round in Taupo in October saw the points’ leader-board reshuffled. At that point Paul Radisich, who’s not racing this weekend due to injuries sustained at Bathurst, led with 181 points, Kayne Scott was second with 178 points, Andy Booth third with 162 points, John McIntyre fourth with 161 points and Fogg moved into fifth place with 122 points.
However Fogg’s interaction with Edgell saw him penalised. As Edgell hadn’t finished the race, Fogg was also deemed a non-finisher.
Perkins was also delighted to be on the podium for his first race of the season. The long-time V8 campaigner is running a truncated V8 series this season as he looks for a new sponsor. “There was quite a bit of action in the field! Kayne going off just left me in the right place, which is great for our team which is running a new Ford engine built by Wayne Anderson who also builds Paul’s [Manuell] engines,” said the Pukekohe driver.
RACE TWO IN MORE DETAIL
Seconds after the start of the second race in the BNT V8s Championship at Pukekohe an eight-car crash halted racing. Chris Adams’ and Boyd Norwood’s car ended up over the safety fence, while the cars of Nick Ross, Cam Hardy, Alan McCarrison, Angus Fogg and Tim Edgell were strewn down the left hand side of Pukekohe’s first sweeper.
No drivers were injured in the mid-field incident which saw the cars of Andy Booth and Andrew Porter, and possibly others, damaged but continue running.
Nearly two and a half hours later the 16 lap race was finally completed with John McIntyre the victor.
The teams of Fogg, Adams, Ross and Norwood took full advantage of the time needed to fix the circuit’s crash barriers, repairing their cars and returned to the starting grid for the second attempt at the 16 lap race.
With the event director having specified no passing between the safety marshal points on either side of the crash site and that the first two laps should be completed under the control of the Porsche Cayenne safety car, Manuell headed up the starting grid of 22 competitors in the Orix Holden.
On the third lap, the first lap of real racing, Scott was quick to move from his tenth starting position passing Michael Bristow and Dale Williams. In fifth, Steve Owen lost the brakes in the HPM Ford and slewed off the circuit at the hairpin to end up in the Hydraulink sponsors’ hoardings. This bought the safety car out briefly; at the same time, Angus Fogg suffered yet another misfortune when the driveshaft in the LG Electronics Ford failed and he stopped on the side of the circuit.
The battle between Manuell and the hard-charging McIntyre heated up when the safety car exited the circuit. The field settled into eleven straight laps of full-on racing with Manuell and McIntyre drawing away from the rest as their personal battle turned super-heated. After several attempts, McIntyre powered the Talleys Ford passed Manuell’s bright red Orix Holden as the pair swept up over the Ford mountain to cross the start-finish line to complete the 13th lap. Scott has also passed Eddie Bell who was having a strong run in the Metalman Ford, finishing six. Behind McIntyre and Manuell, Dean Perkins in the GT Radial Ford and Andrew Anderson in the ITM Holden ran brilliantly clean and tidy races to take third and fourth while former V8s champion Paul Pedersen bought the Tigercat Ford home in a well-deserved fifth place. Of the four caught up in the day’s earlier massive crash, Adams and Norwood delivered determined performances to finish the race 19th and 21st respectively.
RACE THREE IN MORE DETAIL
With the event director’s no passing around the crash site edict still in force, Norwood and Adams were on the front row of the 20-lap reverse grid race, adding another high pressure aspect to their already action-filled day. In row two, Andrew Porter and John Penny made it another Ford-Holden line-up.
At the rolling start, Porter was quick to take the lead from Norwood, while Craig Baird was even quicker to take the United Video Ford from fifth to third.
Top-running drivers like Manuell and McIntyre, starting at the back of the grid, normally allow the field to sort themselves out for a few laps, but from 13th, Scott was making his move. The Hamiltonian was soon up to fifth and then fourth, pressurising Penny who was racing strongly behind Porter and Baird.
Baird took the lead from Porter at the race’s mid-way point with Scott hot on his tail, while McIntyre and Manuell were working their way through the slower cars. In a well-practised move, Scott went passed Baird in the dipper after Pukekohe’s hairpin to take the lead.
Scott’s win gave him third place for the weekend’s Hydraulink 200 event, behind McIntyre and Manuell. “We’ve got to stop fiddling with the car’s set-up,” laughed the former V8s champion who secured a 12th, a sixth and the third race win. “We had a great car at Taupo and we do this every time we come to Pukekohe. Results could have been better otherwise, but we’re in a strong position for round three at the end of the month.”
In second, Baird was followed across the line by Porter for one of his best-ever finishes in the BNT V8s. Paul Radisich’s replacement, Steve Owen, finished fourth and looks set to be confirmed as Radisich’s replacement for further rounds of the 2008-09 BNT V8s Championship while Radisich recovers from injuries sustained at Bathurst in October.
“We certainly need to find some pace to that front couple [of drivers],” said the Melbourne-based Owen. “Now that I’ve got a chance to run with them in the reverse-grid race I know where we are lacking so I we can go away and work on that for the next round.”
Penny was a well-deserved fifth in the Penny Homes Holden with Booth, McIntyre, Manuell, Bristow and Timaru’s John Hepburn rounding out the top ten.
ENDS/
BNT V8s Championship – Round 2, Race 1 (12 laps, revised results)
Position, Driver, Hometown, Car, Points earned
1, Paul Manuell, Auckland, Holden Commodore, 75
2, John McIntyre, Nelson, Ford Falcon, 67
3, Dean Perkins*, Pukekohe, Ford Falcon, 0
4, Andrew Anderson, Auckland, Holden Commodore, 60
5, Steve Owen, Melbourne, Ford Falcon, 54
6, Paul Pedersen, Rotorua, Ford Falcon, 49
7, Eddie Bell, Christchurch, Ford Falcon, 45
8, Dale Williams, Auckland, Ford Falcon, 42
9, Andy Knight, Christchurch, Ford Falcon, 39
10, Cam Hardy, Hamilton, Holden Commodore, 36
11, Michael Bristow, Pukekohe, Ford Falcon, 33
12, Kayne Scott, Hamilton, Ford Falcon, 30
13, Adam Brook, Christchurch, Ford Falcon, 28
14, Simon Richards, Hamilton, Ford Falcon, 26
15, Nick Ross, Cambridge, Holden Commodore, 24
16, Inky Tulloch, Gore, Ford Falcon, 22
17, Alan McCarrison, Auckland, Ford Falcon, 20
18, John Hepburn, Timaru, Holden Commodore, 18
19, Andy Booth, Auckland, Holden Commodore, 16
20, Dave Stewart*, Wellington, Holden Commodore, 0
21, Boyd Norwood, Palmerston North, Ford Falcon, 14
22, Chris Adams, Mosgiel, Holden Commodore, 12
23, John Penny, Taupo, Holden Commodore, 10
EXCL, Angus Fogg, Auckland, Ford Falcon
DNF, Andrew Porter, Auckland, Ford Falcon
DNF, Craig Baird, Gold Coast, Ford Falcon
DNF, Tim Edgell, Auckland, Ford Falcon
DNS, Shaun Turton, Pukekohe, Holden Commodore
* These drivers are competing on a round-by-round basis under a “parked V8 franchise” agreement and therefore are ineligible for championship points.
BNT V8s Championship – Round 2, Race 2 (16 laps)
Position, Driver, Hometown, Car, Points earned
1, John McIntyre, Nelson, Ford Falcon, 75
2, Paul Manuell, Auckland, Holden Commodore, 67
3, Dean Perkins*, Pukekohe, Ford Falcon, 0
4, Andrew Anderson, Auckland, Holden Commodore, 60
5, Paul Pedersen, Rotorua, Ford Falcon, 54
6, Kayne Scott, Hamilton, Ford Falcon, 49
7, Eddie Bell, Christchurch, Ford Falcon, 45
8, Dale Williams, Auckland, Ford Falcon, 42
9, Michael Bristow, Pukekohe, Ford Falcon, 39
10, Adam Brook, Christchurch, Ford Falcon, 36
11, Craig Baird, Gold Coast, Ford Falcon, 33
12, Andy Booth, Auckland, Holden Commodore, 30
13, Andrew Porter, Auckland, Ford Falcon, 28
14, Simon Richards, Hamilton, Ford Falcon, 26
15, Inky Tulloch, Gore, Ford Falcon, 24
16, John Penny, Taupo, Holden Commodore, 22
17, Andy Knight, Christchurch, Ford Falcon, 20
18, John Hepburn, Timaru, Holden Commodore, 18
19, Chris Adams, Mosgiel, Holden Commodore, 16
20, Nick Ross, Cambridge, Holden Commodore, 14
21, Boyd Norwood, Palmerston North, Ford Falcon, 12
DNF, Alan McCarrison, Auckland, Ford Falcon
DNF, Angus Fogg, Auckland, Ford Falcon
DNF, Cam Hardy, Hamilton, Holden Commodore
DNF, Dave Stewart*, Wellington, Holden Commodore
DNF, Steve Owen, Melbourne, Ford Falcon
DNF, Tim Edgell, Auckland, Ford Falcon
DNS, Shaun Turton, Pukekohe, Holden Commodore
* These drivers are competing on a round-by-round basis under a “parked V8 franchise” agreement and therefore are ineligible for championship points.
BNT V8s Championship – Round 2, Race 3 (20 laps, reverse grid)
Position, Driver, Hometown, Car, Points earned
1, Kayne Scott, Hamilton, Ford Falcon, 75
2, Craig Baird, Gold Coast, Ford Falcon, 67
3, Andrew Porter, Auckland, Ford Falcon, 60
4, Steve Owen, Melbourne, Ford Falcon, 54
5, John Penny, Taupo, Holden Commodore, 49
6, Andy Booth, Auckland, Holden Commodore, 45
7, John McIntyre, Nelson, Ford Falcon, 42
8, Paul Manuell, Auckland, Holden Commodore, 39
9, Michael Bristow, Pukekohe, Ford Falcon, 36
10, John Hepburn, Timaru, Holden Commodore, 33
11, Paul Pedersen, Rotorua, Ford Falcon, 30
12, Andrew Anderson, Auckland, Holden Commodore, 28
13, Simon Richards, Hamilton, Ford Falcon, 26
14, Dean Perkins*, Pukekohe, Ford Falcon, 0
15, Dale Williams, Auckland, Ford Falcon, 24
16, Adam Brook, Christchurch, Ford Falcon, 22
17, Alan McCarrison, Auckland, Ford Falcon, 20
18, Boyd Norwood, Palmerston North, Ford Falcon, 18
19, Chris Adams, Mosgiel, Holden Commodore, 16
20, Angus Fogg, Auckland, Ford Falcon, 14
21, Nick Ross, Cambridge, Holden Commodore, 12
22, Eddie Bell, Christchurch, Ford Falcon, 10
DNF, Inky Tulloch, Gore, Ford Falcon
DNS, Andy Knight, Christchurch, Ford Falcon
DNS, Cam Hardy, Hamilton, Holden Commodore
DNS, Dave Stewart*, Wellington, Holden Commodore
DNS, Shaun Turton, Pukekohe, Holden Commodore
DNS, Tim Edgell, Auckland, Ford Falcon
* These drivers are competing on a round-by-round basis under a “parked V8 franchise” agreement and therefore are ineligible for championship points.
BNT V8s Championship – Provisional Points after Round 2
Position, Driver, Hometown, Car, Total Points
1, John McIntyre, Nelson, Ford Falcon, 345
2, Kayne Scott, Hamilton, Ford Falcon, 332
3, Andy Booth, Auckland, Holden Commodore, 253
4, Paul Manuell, Auckland, Holden Commodore, 239
5, Andrew Anderson, Auckland, Holden Commodore, 238
6, Paul Pedersen, Rotorua, Ford Falcon, 234
7, Michael Bristow, Pukekohe, Ford Falcon, 222
8, Craig Baird, Gold Coast, Ford Falcon, 196
9, Eddie Bell, Christchurch, Ford Falcon, 193
10, Dale Williams, Auckland, Ford Falcon, 189
11, Paul Radisich, Melbourne, Ford Falcon, 181
12, Andrew Porter, Auckland, Ford Falcon, 175
13, John Penny, Taupo, Holden Commodore, 163
14, Adam Brook, Christchurch, Ford Falcon, 144
15, Simon Richards, Hamilton, Ford Falcon, 140
16, Angus Fogg, Auckland, Ford Falcon, 136
17, Steve Owen, Melbourne, Ford Falcon, 108
18, Inky Tulloch, Gore, Ford Falcon, 99
19, Boyd Norwood, Palmerston North, Ford Falcon, 98
20, John Hepburn, Timaru, Holden Commodore, 91
21, Chris Adams, Mosgiel, Holden Commodore, 90
22=, Alan McCarrison, Auckland, Ford Falcon, 88
22=, David Besnard, Gold Coast, Ford Falcon, 88
23, Nick Ross, Cambridge, Holden Commodore, 83
24, Andy Knight, Christchurch, Ford Falcon, 77
25, Cam Hardy, Hamilton, Holden Commodore, 54
26, Tim Edgell, Auckland, Ford Falcon, 49
27, Julia Huzziff, Auckland, Holden Commodore, 48
28, Shaun Turton, Pukekohe, Holden Commodore, 18
2008-09 BNT V8s Championship calendar
Round 1 (Fujitsu 200), Taupo Motorsport Park, 3-5 October 2008
Round 2, Pukekohe Park, 7-9 November 2008
Round 3, Powerbuilt Tools International Raceway (Christchurch), 28-30 November 2008
Round 4, Timaru International Motor Raceway, 9-11 January 2009
Round 5, Teretonga Park (Invercargill), 16-18 January 2009
Round 6, Manfeild Park (Fielding), 27 February - 1 March 2009
Round 7, Pukekohe Park, 13-15 March 2009