11 Nov 2022 APC BROUGHT TO YOU BY LIQUI MOLY FINALE UNDERWAY
Race one of the final round of the 2022 APC brought to you by LIQUI MOLY season has been run and won at the Bathurst International this afternoon, with three more 30-minute races to be completed before the weekend is out.
Taking out the outright and class X honours was the #31 Secure Wealth Advisors BMW F82 MR or Simon Hodges and Jayden Ojeda, with Ojeda taking the lead from Drew Russell in the #58 Go-Karts-Go BMW M3 on lap eight of the 11 laps completed.
Third across the line outright and in class X was the #23 Bruce Lynton Service BMW M3, driven by Tim Leahey, with Iain Sherrin (#27 Sherrin Rentals BMW M4) and Shane Smollen (#56 Prestige Connex BMW M4 rounding out the top five outright and in class.
Jimmy Vernon and the #50 Hunter Pacific Ceiling Fans Mitsubishi Evo X took out the winning honours for class A1 from seventh outright, finishing the race ahead of fellow A1 competitor Cameron Crick and his #118 DA Campbell Transport Mitsubishi Evo X. Third in class for A1 was Matthew Boylan in the #777 Pomelo Designs Mitsubishi Evo X (20th outright).
In Class A2, the win went to Ryder Quinn in the #7 Local Legends Ford Mustang, with Quinn finishing the race in 9th outright. Second in class was George Miedecke who persevered through overheating issues in the #33 York Miedecke Ford-backed Ford Mustang (11th outright) while Daniel Oosthuizen claimed third in class and 12th outright in the #04 Oosthuizen Motorsport HSV R8.
The Class B win went to Rob Rubis in the #90 BMW 135i in 19th outright, with his nearest class rivals finishing out the race in 23rd and 24th outright (Marco Giltrap – #73 Giltrap Racing Holden Commodore VF SSV and Adam Gosling – #43 MH Autocare Honda Civic Type R.
Jake Camilleri continued his class leading ways in Class C in the #36 Grand Prix Mazda Caboolture Mazda 3 MPS to claim the Class C win from 25th outright. Second in class was Zoe Woods (#210 TekworkX Motorsport Hyundai i30N – 32nd outright) while Sam Silvestro in the #55 S-Sport Racing Mazda RX8 rounded out the top three in class from 34th outright.
Class D was taken out by James Keene in the #51 MWM Racing Mini R56 JCW ahead of Michael Sloss in the #74 Syntec Mini R56 JCW (33rd outright). The #39 LME Care/Gtechniq Ford Fiesta of Amar Sharma and Daniel Natoli were the next finishers in class D, however after sighting the checkered flag and returning to the pits before the actual end of the race, their finishing position is currently being reviewed by track officials. The entry had earlier started the race from pit lane due to a vibration issue in the steering of the #39.
Andrew McMaster claimed the class I win from 31st outright in the #62 DJA Mechanical BMW E82 125i, while the Class E win was taken by Allan Jarvis in the #70 TOA57ED Motorsport Suzuki Swift Sport from 35th outright.
As much as the race was full of success, there were also plenty of hard luck stories as well.
Karl Begg in the #40 Btuned Euro Specialist BMW M4 experienced a blown turbo on the formation lap, while Michael Osmond in the #17 Ozzy Outhouse Hire BMW M135i was unable to front for the race due to clutch issues.
Chris Holdt in the #25 La Rocca Marble HSV Astra was forced to the pits when his CV shaft “blew apart” on his way to the formation lap, while Chris Gunther in the #15 Wahlstrom Financial Services BMW 130i started the race from pit lane with a MAF sensor issue which eventually saw the entry forced to retire from the race.
Meanwhile, Aaron Tebb started the race but encountered an electrical issue at the top of the Mountain on the first lap and parked his #93 Waltec Motorsport HSV Clubsport R8 in a safe place to wait out the race.
Running into trouble during the race proper were the #16 Levitt Motorsports Mercedes C63 AMG of Tony Levitt and #19 One World Charter/Griffith Corp Mercedes A45 of Mark Griffith and Will Brown, with a gearbox issue and power issues respectively seeing these entries retired mid-way through the proceedings.
Earlier in the day, Shane Fowler withdrew his #135 Raceaway Tracktime/Shane’s Signs Mazda SP25 entry after breaking a clutch during practice and will take no further part this weekend.
The APC brought to you by LIQUI MOLY field will be back on track for two 30-minute races on Saturday at 7.20am and 1.15pm, with the 1.15pm race to be broadcast on Stan Sport.
Sunday will then host a fourth and final race for the weekend and the season, at 8.05am – this race will also be broadcast on Stan Sport.
For more information, visit www.ausprodcars.com.au or contact Troy Williams on troy@ausprodcars.com.au