Jason Bargwanna has made a dominant return to the MINI CHALLENGE taking a clean sweep of all three races in the Round 4 meeting at Sandown raceway. Starting on pole for the first race the former Bathurst winner established an early lead and never looked like being headed. Denyer closed slightly, but was never seriously able to challenge. Third placing in the opening race was Nathan Geier, with Stokell bringing the DecoRug machine home in fourth.
In race two Jason Bargwanna became the first driver to win from sixth in a top six reverse grid start when he came out on top of a spirited battle with West Australian, Nathan Callaghan (Calmack Smash Repairs). Callaghan resembled a sprintcar driver as he backed his MINI into the hard braking zone at the end of the long back straightaway on lap four of 10, allowing Bargwanna through. After re-passing the former Bathurst champion when he missed a gear, the 24-year-old from Mandurah eventually succumbed to Bargwanna’s superior speed. Callaghan was able to hold out a hard charging Grant Denyer, who set the fastest lap of the race on the eighth circulation on his way to the third placing – a perfect complement to his earlier second.
Callaghan was philosophical when speaking about Bargwanna’s superior speed, “starting from the pole in race two, I just wanted to get a good start and try to establish a lead. I could see the guys fighting behind me and was liking what I saw, but then Bargs came through and he was just making up so much ground on the back straightaway. I got a bit out of shape and he got past me. Where I half spun is the fastest part of the racetrack – it isn’t a good place to get sideways, let me tell you!”
On Monday Bargwanna’s perfect weekend in the MINI CHALLENGE at Sandown International Raceway was complete, using the wet conditions to his advantage, he took a dominant race victory by some 10.4 seconds over Neil McFadyen (M3 Motorsport). McFadyen scorched away from the line and made a decisive move on Grant Denyer (DecoRug Motorsport) during the opening lap. The move was crucial as it secured second placing for the Sydney-sider and stemmed the growth of Denyer’s Series lead – which increased to 30 points across the weekend.
“I really found it difficult coming into the MINI having driven in the V8 Supercar Development Series race earlier in the day,” said Denyer, who one his V8 race by the way. “Today for me was about protecting the Series lead and we were able to actually increase it, which was a great result. I’m really enjoying my time in the series and being able to fight with Bargs – who I partnered in last year’s endurance races is just fantastic!”
Neil McFadyen was happy with his team’s continuing good form, “being able to finish in third spot is a great reward for the team. They have done a magnificent job in preparing our race car. Hopefully this may be able to stimulate some interest from sponsors so that we can keep moving forward and work towards our goal – which is to win the series. Phillip Island is a place that I’ve been to a few times and I’m aiming to be right up there again.”
MINI CHALLENGE UBER-STAR CAR driver for this round, Paul Mercurio had a fantastic run in race three, following on from his solid showing in the first two races, and spent much of the race dicing with Nick Stillwell (Bib Stillwell MINI Garage). Ultimately, Mercurio finished 13th – a fantastic effort in his first time behind the wheel of the car.
But it was all about Bargwanna – he is the first driver to complete a clean sweep of MINI CHALLENGE – heading the field in every single session throughout the weekend and the perfect way to debut the new Bargwanna Motorsport team.
“Having done a few wet races at Sandown in the past, it really helped me out today in the conditions,” said Bargwanna. “These MINI racecars are amazing to drive, particularly in the wet conditions. We are excited to bring two new sponsors to the sport in Trivett Classic MINI Garage and Matchmaster TV Reception Systems. We always try and do the best for our supporters and in this case, we have got off to the best possible start for them.”
2008 MINI CHALLENGE Top 20 leaderboard after Round 4 of 8:
- Grant Denyer – 594
- Neil McFadyen – 564
- Paul Stokell – 429
- Nathan Geier – 420
- Paul Fiore – 414
- Gary Young – 351
- Todd Fiore – 282
- Nathan Callaghan – 243
- David Turner – 216
- Jason Bargwanna – 180
- Damien White – 156
- Darren Berry – 129
- Iain Sherrin – 117
- Nick Stillwell – 114
- Michael Stillwell – 93
- Scott Bargwanna – 69
- Michael Sherrin – 66
- Damien Flack – 60
- Chris Oxley, Ricky Occhipinti – 54
TV highlights
Channel 7’s Round 4 highlights package will go to air on Saturday 28 June. Check your local guides for broadcast times.
One reply on “2008 MINI Challenge – Round 4 Wrap up”
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