Seventy Sports Sedan competitors descended upon Redline Raceway (on Saturday 15th/March) for the Victorian Sports Sedan title for the 24/25 season and put on a spectacular show with the defending Victorian champion Jamie Lock almost completing the ultimate back-to-back result, just falling short by following Chris Rieck from Bannockburn to the finish after thirty gruelling laps in the title event.
Also on the night, Kacey Ingram from Warragul made the trip worthwhile when he won all three of his qualifying heats before winning the feature event for the Standard Saloon category.
Three rounds of qualifiers for the Sports Sedan title provided twenty-one heat races with Brendan Miller the only driver to win all three of his races to put him off pole position in the title race. Jamie Lock, David Donegan and Caleb Lincoln from Beveridge won two heat races each to both secure starting spots on the front two rows.
Rhys Meakins, Ian Thomsen, Jamie Thomsen, Chris Rieck, Tommy McDonald, Corey Knox, Damien Miller, Zac Swanson, Jack Chiminello, Shane O’Brien, Jay Nicolaisen, and Jacob Tinworth from Riddell’s Creek all won heat races. Brendan Miller was the fastest winner of the heats in his very first heat race with a ten-lap time of 2:56.528, whilst Lincoln won the closest finish holding off Daniel Knight by just .225 in the second-round heats. Nathan O’Brien and Tinworth won last chance qualifiers into the main race completing a twenty-four-car starting field.
Defending champion Lock led the field past the start-finish line on lap one before a crash in between turn one and two on lap two took Brendan Miller, Caleb Lincoln, Jay Nicolaisen, Corey Knox and Nathan O’Brien out of the title race. Lock led the first eight laps with Rieck who started back on the six-row moving into second by lap eight. Donegan took the lead on lap fifteen moving from third to first and led until lap twenty when Rieck hit the front. Donegan was to hit the front again, however, was penalised for passing from underneath the pole line.
Rieck went on to claim a tremendous victory over Lock and Donegan with Shane Simpson fourth and Jake Tinworth in fifth place after a penalty for passing from below the pole line was placed on Drew Harrison.
Both Lock and Donegan were complimentary of Rieck and pleased with their own results, whilst Rieck enjoyed the race and thought it had got away from him when Donnegan hit the front, reclaiming the lead he believed he had the set up to finish the race off with the win, and done just that.
In Standard Saloon competition Ingram who travelled from West Gippsland won all three of his heat races with the others going to Ballarat’s Bailey Sinclair, Mitch Foster, and Austin Chivers also from Ballarat. Ingram was never headed in the final, despite being seriously challenged all the way and almost passed late in the race by Foster who attempted to slide up the inside of Ingram through turn three. Ingram taking the feature race win by just .849 with foster ahead of Zac Barwise, Austin Chivers and Sinclair.
Redline Raceway returns on March 29th with the Wingless Sprints Super Series, the Standard Saloon Gold Rush and Unlimited Sedans.
Belmont Speedway Drivers Club value and appreciate our commercial supporters for the 24/25 season. They are;
Wren Diesel – Truck & Trailer Specialists
Ballarat Skip Bins
Ballarat Concrete Recyclers
B.A.C Civil Agricultural Earthworks
AWM Electrical Wholesalers
Shillito Electrical
Kings Marine Scrap Metal Dealers
United Forklift & Access Solutions
True Blue Floors
Truckline Ballarat
IPTA Fibreglass
Australian Racing Products
Ballarat Mobile Sandblasting & Painting
Norman St Automotive
Modern Towing & Salvage
East Suburban Towing
Rusty Cars Downunder
Total Tools Ballarat
G.T Earthmovers
Grist Earthworks
Aussie Soils
Effective Electrical
AGF Seeds
Brian Patterson Painting
Fuelled Ticketing
Distinct ITC Australia
R & J Davey Earthworks & Concreting
Scooters Metal Fabrication
Walsh Ballarat Quarries
Stewarts Bakery
PP Designs & Signs
UBC Web Design
Power FM
DMT Sports Media
Dean Miller Photography
Colac Wreckers
Allsport Trophies Geelong
Written by
Dean Thompson
DMT Speedway Media
For Belmont Speedway Drivers Club