Speedway fans in Victoria flocked to Alexandra Speedway on the Kings Birthday weekend to see the annual 100 Lap Derby with thousands packing the venue and fans walking a long way just to get inside the venue gates to watch the racing in the ‘Foodworks’ 100 Lap Derby along with the Standard Saloon Cup and Junior 1200cc Sedans supported by ‘Donnaz Underground’.
Two nights of action would see thirty six races on day one followed up with twenty on day two which included the feature events.
Racing on night one was fast and seriously competitive with club member David Donegan setting a new one lap record for mono construct/shell cars in his eight-cylinder powered Cortina of 31.143, eclipsing the previous record for the type of car by more than half a second. Also beating the previous mark yet not the fastest of the night were Damien Miller the previous record holder, his brother Brendan Miller, and Shane O’Brien.
Overall fast competitors on night one were the likes of Darren Forrest, Lennie Bonnici, Daniel Scott, Warrick Taylor, and Frank Ramsdale in chassis cars and in mono construct/shell cars David Donegan, Damien and Brendan Miller, Shane O’Brien, Jamie Lock, and Lee Beach were setting race lap times where they needed to be to win the big race on speed.
In chassis car victories, regular Sprintcar racer Daniel Scott got close to breaking the six-lap heat race time record by a chassis car, however Darren Forrest got closer with a race time of 3:06.855 just .303 outside of Warrick Taylor’s record set in 2018. Just missing out on the chassis car and overall one lap record for the dog-leg circuit was Darren Forrest also. He was just .057 outside the previous mark also held by Taylor, this time from 2023.
Round one wins went the way of Damien Miller who is the defending race champion, Daniel Scott, Travis Ramsdale, his father Frank Ramsdale, Lennie Bonnici, Taylor, Tony Moule a former winner, Darren Nelson and Forrest.
in round two Shane O’Brien a winner from two seasons back won the first heat of nine then Brendan Miller, Forrest once again, Anthony McKean, William Leeson, Corey Lincoln, Daniel Scott for win number two Dylan Barrow and popular crowd favourite and also regular Sprintcar racer David Donegan who had prepared a four car team along with Carl Orme, American’s Wally Beaty and Billy Meazell III.
Rounding out night one qualification races, Jamie Lock the state Sports Sedan champion picked up a win, Scott, and Forrest both secured win number three each for a night one clean sweep. Then Damien Miller won once more and Daniel Unternahrer along with Colin Lincoln in the legendary eight cylinder powered EH Holden bodied race car. Shane O’Brien, Frank Ramsdale and Brendan Miller rounded out the last round winners.
Flicking through the heat race winners on night one, considering there was over ninety entrants in the pit enclosure on night one for competition, there is not a whole lot of variation in regard to who won. Four-time event winner and local Alexandra resident Luke Fallon was not one of the winners on night one, nor were former Sports Sedan Victorian champions Lee Beach and Josh Service or multi times state title winner up and down the east coast of Australia Matt Nelson.
In Standard Saloon Cup competition amongst the faster drivers were the likes of Bradley Hill, Andrew Miles, Neil Ingram who to his credit didn’t race more than a night or two if any through the season due to his and his wife’s commitment to their kids racing was third fastest on the time sheets with Chris Miles, Kane Gibson, Matt Leek, Ally Morrison, Mitch Blencowe, Tracey Ingram and Brodie Robertson all under the 36 second mark as far as their best lap times were concerned.
Rhys Lansdown, Mitch Blencowe, and Andrew Miles all won races in round one of competition, whilst Andrew Miles again plus Neil Ingram and Mitch Blencowe for a second time won the races for round two. Chris Miles, Ally Morrison, and Andrew Miles for a clean sweep three from three on night one, were the winners in the final round of racing for the first night. The one lap record was not troubled nor was the six-lap record.
Despite his speed, Brad Hill was not a winner on night one and neither was Wayne Sheerman who is a consistent feature race winner around the state during the oval track season.
Night two racing was nothing short of sensational. The perfect clay racetrack weather all day and through the racing seen a number of new racetrack records set, some which may never be broken on the current course layout at Alexandra.
Darren Forrest started the open sedan 100 Lap Derby final round with a victory in the first heat race with a new one lap record for his type of car, a chassis car, and the overall race at 29.867, the first time a lap had been set below thirty seconds and almost .3 of a second better than the previous record. Not only did Forrest smash a record, Dylan Barrow in his type of car, a mono/shell construct sedan of 30.085, he smashed the record that was broken the night before by Donegan by over a second and only finished second to Forrest in the first heat whilst Beach broke the previous nights record also in finishing third, just not quicker than Barrow.
Donegan won heat two with laps faster than he was the previous night and set a new six lap record of 3:07.764 for mono/shell cars for the race. Bonnici won the next heat race, then Frank Ramsdale, Brendan Miller, Josh Service, Stuey Robinson, Taylor, and Damien Miller. Tony Moule was victim of a racing incident in the final heat going for a roll in the dog-leg. Whilst the car was deemed in condition to continue, the rules state that after a rollover the driver has to be medically cleared and with that not something everybody could wait around for, meant that Moule was unable to finish the final heat.
Two last chance qualifiers added four more drivers to the feature event, whilst both the Americans started on the very back row of the one hundred lap derby. Lenny Bates, Braiden Webster, Brad Warre and Rob Bushell all moved into the feature event from the last chance races.
Before the 100 Lap Derby could be run, a tip in competition that gained traction via the announcers and then with Marcus Reddecliffe chipping in that he would put money up and then a rush of other sponsors chipping in, all the sudden their was $6000 plus dollars up for grabs with $3000 plus to the winner. The ‘Wheelman’ Brad Warren putting his XF Falcon’s tail right up against the wall as he sent it in, was a massive crowd favourite and took the cash for the impromptu competition.
As usual the 100 lap Derby was eventful with drama striking cars in strong positions at the most unfortunate times knocking them down the field or out of contention altogether. Eleven chassis cars and thirty-one sedans made the big event final. Forrest led the race for twenty-two laps before last years winner Damien Miller hit the front with his brother Brendan back in third, Barrow in fourth and Bonnici a four-time winner of the race in fifth spot. Donegan was the first of the big front runners in the top quarter of qualifiers to come unstuck as he dropped out at lap twenty-five.
On lap thirty-three, Barrow was next to drop out whilst Brendan Miller, Bonnici, Jamie Lock and Frank Ramsdale all dropped way back down the field with damage and pit stops required, Bonnici didn’t make it back on track. Forrest snatched the front spot once again on lap thirty-seven in a top five changed dramatically with Damien Miller second, Shane O’Brien third, Luke Fallon fourth and Daniel Scott fifth. Scott dropped down the order himself the very next lap and at the halfway mark Forrest was still out front.
Damien Miller once more hit the front on lap eighty with Shane O’Brien then Forrest, Dale Smith, and Nathan O’Brien. Six laps later Forrest hit the front for the third time in the race as Brendan Miller had stormed up the leaderboard back into sixth after being down the field for much of the second half of the race trying to claw his way forward. When the chequered flag unfurled, Forrest had won by more than seven seconds. Damien Miler was two seconds in front of Shane O’Brien in third then came Dale Smith and Nathan O’Brien all on the lead lap and completing the top five.
The best of the American’s was Wally Beaty two laps down on the winner and all the way from the back row start in the race setting lap times faster than fifth spot in the race.
The buzz from those at the event and those that competed was huge. The club was delighted at the support they had received from the racing fraternity and in the same format, everybody is keen to go at it again next season.
In Standard Saloon second night action, they two were setting records at every junction. Matt Leek won the first heat of the night and the first driver to break the previous lap record for the class was Neil Ingram with a 34.294 over half a second faster than the previous leading mark. Andrew Miles, Leek, and Rhys Lansdown all broke the previous one lap record, just not faster than Ingram.
In the second heat race won by Kane Gibson, Bradley Hill finished second and along the way pipped the new lap record of Ingram by just .001 of a second. Brendan Sheedy rounded out the heat race wins with a win in the final heat of the Standard Saloons weekend.
In a drama filled shortened feature race Ingram from the front row led the first nine laps of the race before Hill hit the front to lead Ingram, Andrew Miles, Leigh Gooding, and Wayne Sheerman on lap ten. Four laps later Andrew Miles would see his race end due to damage/mechanical whilst Sheerman on a charge dropped out of the top five and down to twelfth on lap eighteen. It was a crazy finish with Sheerman storming his way back through the field after a rear of field penalty that caused him to drop out of the top five in the first place, only for the chequered flag to halt his charge as Hill set another one lap record of 34.194 on his way to a victory in front of Ingram, Leek, Ally Morrison, and Brodie Robertson.
Victorian Speedway Council Junior 1200cc Sedans joined the action on night two and Jaylen Knight, then Brody Barton, then Brad Marshall twice, claimed heat race wins. In the final heat won by Marshall, Knight set a new one lap record for the class that would last all but one race. In the twenty-lap final one of the race contenders Will Fallon and his car didn’t make it past lap two and another favourite Riley Taylor also exited the race. At the halfway mark Marshall led Barton, Andrew Mitchell, Knight and Maddy Beach with ten laps to go.
Knight found herself dropping down the field and needing to play catch up and with three laps to go she sat in fifth spot. At the chequered flag with a new one lap fast time of 34.553 Marshall claimed the win by two seconds with Xander Baxter in second, Barton, Knight and Dayne Murdoch. Rounded out the top five. Baxter had moved from sixth to second in the final ten laps of the race and just did not have enough to run with Marshall at each re-start.
Alexandra committee members would like to thank the following race meeting specific supporters for contributing the running of this event.
Foodworks IGA
CTE
Melton Trucking
Elite Crane Trucks
Latrobe Waste
Metrotow
Crash n Bash Drivers Association
Wandin Haulage
Down Under Graphics
Gippsland Metal Recyclers
Bunyip Motors
Aussie Car Bogan
Power Up Performance
Quicktime Automotive
Alexandra and District Speedway club thank and acknowledge the following valuable season long supporters;
Alexandra & Yea Pre-Mix
Alexandra Panels & Towing
AusBuilt Rural
Beach Earthmoving
Bendigo Bank
Belkblast Protective Coatings
Custom Transport Equipment
Donnaz Underground
Eastern Suburbs Locksmiths
Elite Racking Installs
Endeavor Petroleum
Exhaust Fix Lilydale
Fallon’s Bus Services
Fineblade
Foodworks
Highline Racewear
Ismail’s Building & Construction
LS Quarry
Matthew & Sons Drilling Services
Metro Tow
Outer Eastern Steel
Pakenham Towing
Precision Race Parts
Raslarr Engineering
Revegetation Victoria
S&N Builders
Smooth Suspension
Town & Country Tennis Courts
Tritech Lubricants
Tyrepower Alexandra
Valley Onsite
Victory Lane Racegear
Wandin Heavy Haulage
Waverley Exhaust & Brake Centre
Yenckens Hardware Alexandra
Written by
Dean Thompson
DMT Speedway Media
For Alexandra and District Speedway Club