PETER WARD’S V8 UTES LEAD REDUCED AS SHANE DIAS WINS AT TAUPO.

PETER WARD’S V8 UTES LEAD REDUCED AS SHANE DIAS WINS AT TAUPO.

Photo Credit: @dillonphotonz

The Taupo round of the RYCO 24•7 V8 Utes racing series was a one of mixed fortunes. Shane Dias won the round with two race wins and a second, but for other competitors it was a weekend of panelbeating and head scratching.

After racing from pole to the chequered flag in race one on Saturday, Shane Dias started Sunday’s reverse grid Race Two in fast forward. After starting at the back, Shane worked his way up to lead by lap three with championship hopeful Brad Kroef chasing hard.

Further back in the midfield, however, drama was unfolding. As Simon Ussher approached the back straight on lap 3, he locked up and ran wide into Stu Monteith’s Holden. Sensing carnage ahead, Phil Ross braked, locked up, nudged Brad Kroef, then hit Stu. Hard. Out came the safety car and in went a bruised and battered Phil Ross into the pits.

Despite the mayhem, Brad Kroef recovered to ultimately win Race Two as gear linkage issues relegated Shane Dias to 2nd just ahead of Greg Kroef and championship leader Peter Ward in 4th.

With the title race closing up, Race Three in the afternoon was destined to be a heated affair. Shane Dias and Brad Kroef were on the front row. When the lights went out it was a drag race to turn one. Brad prevailed. Shane piled on the pressure and managed to get around Brad on the back straight. From there, his race was in the bag.

Yet as Shane kept extending his lead, the battle between the two Kroefs and Peter Ward was less predictable. Brad Kroef was holding onto second, but father Greg was trying to get around the highly experienced Peter Ward in third. Trying perhaps a little too hard – Greg Kroef braked late and ran off into the kitty litter at the start of lap 7 and Peter Ward left him for dust.

That’s how the positions of the championship contenders remained at the chequered flag. So as Shane Dias celebrated his 27th birthday that weekend, two race wins and a second place gave him something more to celebrate, helping close the gap to championship leader Peter Ward.

So as the points battle tightens, it sets up a nail-biting final round for the RYCO 24•7 V8 Utes final round at Hampton Downs in 4 weeks.

RACE 3 RESULTS

1st Shane Dias                  Holden

2nd Peter Ward                Holden

3rd Brad Kroef                  Ford

4th Greg Kroef                  Ford

5th Simon Ussher             Ford

6th Brent Main                 Holden

7th Paul Fougere              Holden

8th Stu Monteith              Holden

9th Bruce McRae              Holden

DNS Phil Ross                   Holden

SERIES POINTS AFTER ROUND 3

1st          Peter Ward        Holden               315 points

2nd         Shane Dias         Holden              271 points

3rd          Brad Kroef          Ford                   270 points

4th          Greg Kroef         Ford                    233 points

5th          Simon Ussher    Ford                    207 points

6th          Paul Fougere     Holden                184 points

7th          Stu Monteith     Holden                172 points

8th          Bruce McRae     Holden                170 points

9th          David Lowe        Holden               148 points

10th        Phil Ross             Holden               115 points

11th        Daniel Ludlam   Ford                    112 points

12th        Brent Main        Holden                60 points

13th        Nick Ross            Holden               58 points