POWELL IS 2008 OFFROAD RACING NATIONAL CHAMPION
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Daniel Powell - Race Shock Specialists NZ1 winner for 2008
Christchurch racer Daniel Powell, a newcomer to the sport’s top unlimited class, has won the 2008 Asset Finance New Zealand Offroad Racing National Championship.
At the final round, raced over two days of Labour Weekend at Manukau, Powell held on through a wet and miserable day of short course racing to stay in contention for the title, and then went out from 2nd position on the grid for Sunday’s 163 km endurance race to take second overall and second in class behind Beachlands racer Neville Smith. The combined results were enough to hand Powell the title.
His car, an American Jimco single-seater powered by a 3.5-litre twin-turbo Nissan V6, was engineered by 2007 national champion Andrew Thomason. It is the second time a Jimco has won the national championship, and there are now three Jimco cars active in the sport in New Zealand.
Dennis Andreassend - Leader Products Class 3 Winner
Third across the line in Sunday’s enduro, and second overall in the championship after a gritty drive, was Nelson’s Dennis Andreassend.
He fought his way through in-class heats on the Saturday against 13 other top Super 1600 cars despite having received two rear of the grid starts in the random draw for start order.
Andreassend also survived a last-lap fuel scare in the Sunday endurance race, diving into the pits for a “splash and dash” top-up when his engine starved of fuel approaching the start-finish line.
Nick Hall -The Workshop Class 5 Winner
Winner of Rookie of the Year
After seven championship rounds and fifteen races, just six points separated first and second place, with Rookie of the Year Nick Hall of Papakura finishing third overall and 22 points behind Powell.
Raana Horan - Camco Class 8 Winner
The final day of the championship was not without its dramas. Raana Horan, who won the popular Camco ThunderTruck class, hit Lyndsay Dowler’s Toyota Hilux, smashing his rear wheel rim and puncturing the tyre. Endurance race winner Neville “Max” Smith was hit midships whilst lapping Daniel Powell but managed to continue his start-to-finish enduro lead.
Championship contender Ryan Densem crashed heavily when a slower competitor drove in front of him entering the start-finish area, the car slewing into a concrete safety barrier and smashing its transmission and rear wheel.
Troy Tufnell (c76) - V-Dubb Shoppe Challanger Class Winner
Troy Tufnell salvaged some North Island pride when he carried his points advantage in VW Shoppe Challenger class through to a class title, as always enjoying a tussles on the way with Shawn Dickins. Geoff Matich was second in the class after a solid performance in the short course heats; Paul Thomas third.
Like Tufnell, Nigel Newlands scored for the North Island when he came home the winner of Camco production trucks. He beat Maurice Bain in the drag race to the first corner of the first heat and was the class of the field when Bain – who had led the championship outright earlier in the year – smashed his Navara’s suspension over the start-finish jump.
Simon Smith - Camco Class 4 Winner
Early weekend dramas for Simon Smith of Christchurch and Wellington racer Glenn Turvey didn’t stop Smith from winning Camco Class Four for the series. The pair came together over the start-finish jump, Smith’s “shorty” Hilux becoming lodged on the rear of Turvey’s US-built pre-runner version. Once the pair disentangled it was Turvey who was away first but then parked the orange truck with smashed front suspension, allowing Smith to take the class for the weekend ahead of Brendon Holland. The additional points gave Smith an unassailable lead in the class and handed him the class title.
Nigel Newlands - Camco Class 2 Winner
The 2009 championship title will be decided at a final round to be held in Christchurch.