Four days of history-making Australian drag racing has come to a thrilling conclusion today as the inaugural National Drag Racing Championship (NDRC) champions were crowned alongside event winners and Aeroflow National Sportsman Championship Eastern Conference victors at the season-ending Gulf Western Oil Winternationals.
There was no shortage of edge-of-your-seat action across the day at Willowbank Raceway with plenty of side-by-side runs, rookies lifting championship Gold Christmas Trees, and nail-biting finals to decide who would lay claim to championship and event glory.
In Top Fuel Motorcycle, Benny Stevens took out the championship Christmas Tree, while his Dananni Hotshots teammate Aaron Deery took the event win on ‘The Gorilla’ with a 7.182-second, 278.75kph pass over Corey Buttigieg – who had dispatched Stevens in round two following a win over Damian Martini in round one.
Deery got a fantastic launch off the start and was well down the track before Buttigieg crossed the line, taking out timing boxes along the way. He had found his way to the finals with a round one win over John Zahra before a broken drive belt and other mechanical issues struck Top Qualifier Damian Muscat in round two, leaving Deery to ride through for the win. In both wins, Deery was ecstatic with the performance of his bike.
“It has been a great year, we have had some really good wins, some really good races and really good times,” Stevens said.
“I am really happy with the outcome. It is a mission running two bikes, and at the end of the day, it is really rewarding. It is great to see the efforts paying off. And I was so happy to see Aaron get the win for the event, it means the world.”
Deery was equally happy with his result, feeling that they are in a good place as a team at the end of the season.
“Oh my god! I can’t even believe this is happening,” he said.
“We have such a strong team here; we just never give up. This bike has been a real pain since we put this new motor in, but we are really starting to get a handle on it now and I feel we are somewhat competitive. Lady Luck probably got us here, I don’t know, I just can’t believe it. I am speechless. This is a dream come true.”
In Pro Stock Motorcycle, it was inaugural NDRC championship-winning racer Luke Crowley who would secure event honors, claiming a rare third consecutive Winternats win.
Phillip Webster took the win in Performance Bike over Edge Mallis.
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