HIGHAM HONES IN ON NZ1 TITLE @ ROUND 7

Despite ongoing illness, North Shore’s Matt Higham put in a superhuman effort over the weekend to take out the penultimate round of the Weldwell New Zealand Formula First championship, held at Manfeild Park.

Higham held off a constant onslaught consisting of drivers second and third in the title chase, Rowan Shepherd and Ryan Hellier, along with Formula Ford rookie of the year Michael Scott.

The #23 Juiced magazine machine would claim two wins from three, but vitally for his Championship lead, Higham would followed home twice by the bright yellow first of Michael Scott, thus gaining a considerable points advantage over both the Rookie of the year and Hellier.

The final race of the weekend would be a well deserved victory to the 53 of Scott, the third of his Formula First career, with Rowan Shepherd finishing the weekend on a high with a second overall. But third place was enough for Higham to take the round.

Speedsport Scholarship winner Malcolm Finch would continue to impress nearing the end of his rookie year, running on the tail of the top four and going 5/8/5 for the weekend, with Taylor Cockerton right on par with a 7/5/6 round.

Someone who would have been fighting it out for a top five spot was the 8 Holmes Flooring/Waiuku Car Spares challenge of Cory Holmes. Holmes would be running near the front, only an ill-advised late brake manoeuvre and a few racing incidents would cost him dearly, going 10/11/15 for the weekend.

The epitome of consistency that is David Ruthven would carry on a steady charge, finishing within another competitive pack of four, including Kyle George in the 3NZ Purple People Eater and Oliver Gordon – who was another to say ‘what could’ve been’ over the weekend.

Ruthven would finish with two eighths and a seventh, while George would start off the weekend with a sixth and would end Sunday with a ninth and seventh respectively. After finishing ninth and sixth over the first two races, Oliver Gordon was gunning for a top five, only an incident into splash would cost him, finishing P15.

Former Formula First champion Dom Kalasih would take another shot in the McConkey machine at Manfeild Motorsport Park. This time around, with the engine firing on all cylinders, Kalasih would fight for top ten finishes all weekend long. Race three’s P9 would be the highlight of the weekend for the Wellingtonian.

Feilding local and the driver of Black Sunshine, Dave Scammell would have another round fighting with the youth of New Zealand motorsport. During races one and two, Scammell would encounter the Holmes machine recovering after earlier incidents, which gave him an opportunity to showcase his skills from years of Formula First campaigns. But it was the final race of the weekend where Scammell peaked, claiming a top ten finish.

Behind Scammell, an epic battle ensued for the final positions in the field. The radical Greenwood Challenge was duelling throughout the weekend with the Daytona Indoor Kart machine of Bramwell King/Paul Butler. Deciding to focus on his Formula Suzuki ride, King handed the keys to a keen Butler, who proceeded to carry on where King left off running with Craig Greenwood.

Fractions behind the two, Jason Carter’s weekend wasn’t what the Mt Maunganui resident would have hoped for. Carter and the team struggled for pace throughout, but managed a top 13 run in the final race.

The final two runners included the true rookie in Bob Dillow, experiencing running a race car for the first time this season, and David Russell – who unfortunately had an incident during race two that would put him out for the round. This left Dillow to focus on consistent pace, which lead him to top 16 finishes all through the weekend.

With the final round over a month away, the pressure will be on the heir to the Formula First throne, Matt Higham to not lose the focus and determination that has put him in this favourable position. While for the challengers, three races is all that is left for the chance to get their names engraved into New Zealand motorsport history and take the 2011/12 Weldwell NZ Formula First trophy from Higham’s grasp.

April 7/8. Taupo Motorsport Park. The Grand finale. It’s on.