In a meticulous
performance from the
third row of the grid,
two-time national champ
Darren Kane emerged
victorious in the
opening round of the Ian
Boettcher Proton Super
Sedan Championship
Series at Maryborough
Speedway on Saturday
night (September 25).
Kane plotted his run
through traffic with
precision, charging into
the lead with 10 laps
remaining. However, it
was runner-up Steve
Jordan who had the crowd
buzzing after a
spectacular display
throughout the night,
refusing to concede
defeat despite smoke and
flames spewing from the
engine bay of his
Dodge-Sweet through the
closing stages of the
30-lap Carters Transport
feature race.
Earlier in the night,
Jordan put in a stunning
performance in the
unique pole shuffle,
combining guile,
gamesmanship, bravado
and outright speed to
secure pole position.
The unique ‘reverse’
format for the pole
shuffle saw the two top
qualifiers from the
heats forced to do
battle in the opening
round, with the loser
relegated to position 6,
while the winner
advanced to take on
another challenger in a
bid to climb his way
back onto the front row.
After defeating Bevan
Collins in the opening
clash, Jordan
subsequently downed
Kane, Jason Campbell,
rookie standout Darren
Lester and Rockhampton’s
Craig Torr to reclaim
pole position.
Kane was unstoppable in
the opening heat,
finishing almost half a
lap clear of Chris
Albert and Steve
Pearce. Collins was
equally emphatic in heat
two, downing Torr and
Jordan.
The third heat saw
Jordan edge out Collins,
with Lyall Fisher
finishing a distant
third. Heat four saw
Campbell snare a good
win over Ashley Peall
and Tim O’Shea.
In an outstanding debut
outing, Lester triumphed
in heat five ahead of
Campbell and Torr, with
Jordan doubling up to
win the final heat in
advance of Des Korn and
Kane.
Following his pole
shuffle heroics, Jordan
occupied pole position
for the feature race
with Torr alongside.
Lester and Campbell
shared row two, with
Kane starting from
position five beside the
luckless Collins.
Albert and Korn were
next in line, followed
by O’Shea, Fisher,
Graeme Elliott, Steve
Van Zeeland, Pearce and
Peall, with Grant Shaw,
Peter Smith, Craig Shaw
and Brendan Doyle
completing the grid.
When the green flag
flew, Jordan jumped into
the lead ahead of Torr,
Campbell, Lester, Kane
and Collins. The first
stoppage came on lap 3
when contact between
Kane and Lester sent the
latter into a spin.
There was bedlam at the
ensuing restart when a
four-car pile-up in the
main straight put
O’Shea, Fisher, Peall
and Elliott out of
commission. Once back
underway, the status quo
remained out front until
lap 15 when Kane pounced
in lapped traffic,
moving ahead of both
Campbell and Torr with a
precision pass. Collins’
great night ended on lap
17 when he spun to a
halt in turn 2 and
headed infield. Jordan
continued to lead from
the restart, but Kane
was lurking with intent
and, after several
failed attempts to wrest
the lead, he zoomed
around the outside on
lap 25 to take control
of the race. Despite
smoke billowing from the
engine – which
ultimately manifested
itself into a fire with
two laps remaining -
Jordan refused to
surrender and chased
Kane to the chequer.
Meanwhile, Korn moved
ahead of Torr on lap 25
to secure third place
overall, with Van
Zeeland rounding out the
first five. Campbell,
who lost two spots in a
restart mix-up, was next
best in an excellent
result, with Smith,
Grant Shaw, Lester,
Albert, Craig Shaw and
Pearce completing the
finishers.
Round two of the Ian
Boettcher Proton Super
Sedan Championship
Series will be contested
at Brisbane
International Speedway
on Saturday, October 9.
The
2010/2011 Ian Boettcher
Proton Super Sedan
Championship Series is
proudly supported by the
following sponsors:
Ian
Boettcher Proton
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