McIntyre retains championship

Nelson’s John McIntyre is celebrating winning his second consecutive New Zealand V8s Championship title this weekend, but it wasn’t an easy run to the end for the BP Ultimate Ford driver.
Having run the same engine all season, McIntyre’s Ford suffered a broken timing chain during the weekend’s first race at Teretonga Park outside Invercargill meaning McIntyre was unable to finish the race, his first DNF of the season.

His car repaired overnight, McIntyre started the second race nearly at the back of the field, while Fogg started in position two beside pole sitter Kayne Scott in the Fujitsu Ford. Fogg followed Scott home by the time the chequered flag came out, while McIntyre had carefully negotiated his way into 14th place, but the points’ margin was down to only 12 points with the controversial full reverse grid race yet to come.

The third and final race of each New Zealand V8s’ round sees the points each driver earned in the round’s first two races added together and then the order reversed. McIntyre was therefore started a little ahead of mid-field, while Fogg and Scott were on the back row with 25 V8s ahead of them.

McIntyre swiftly worked his way into the lead. “Once I was past Andrew [Porter] to take the lead, I eased off a bit, but then my crew chief radioed me that Angus was up to fourth. I needed to press on; it’s when you slow up that you make mistakes.”

The professional racing driver and team owner – who celebrates his 31st birthday on 10 March – set up his own racing team at the beginning of the 2006-07 V8s racing season. To win the hotly-contested championship in his first year with his own team was a significant achievement, and to win it again the following season indicates the level of commitment and professionalism demonstrated by John McIntyre Racing – as do the other top-running V8 teams.

“It’s better to have won this second championship,” said McIntyre. “We’ve won two rounds and won seven of the 18 races. We got off to a good start early on and have put more on the line this year to win. Overall it’s much more satisfying.”

Taking second place overall with 977 points to McIntyre’s 1004, Fogg said you just had to look at the last race at Teretonga to see just how close this series is. “I was very lucky to get through one major incident in that last race – I was nearly t-boned. We’ve made a few stuff-ups, but my driving has generally been more mistake-free. That’s a good trend to be setting,” said the Auckland-based driver who is also the chief engineer on his Havoline Ford.

Former V8 champion and multiple TraNZam champion Kayne Scott took third place this season with a total of 932 points. He also won the Teretonga round, taking home the Hydraulink 200 cup, having scored his first two race wins this season on the world’s most southern racing circuit which he enjoys very much.

“You’ve got to get out of the blocks early to win this championship and we didn’t do that,” said the Hamiltonian who is driving a Ford this season after four seasons in a Holden. “What’s really telling about how close-fought this series is now is qualifying. We fight tooth and nail for pole position – we’re only a few hundredths of a second apart in time – and to be on pole makes all the difference between winning and a lower placing.”

Scott will be racing both the Team Kiwi Racing Ford and the Fujitsu Ford at the Hamilton 400 V8 Supercar event in April, a task he expects to be challenging with back-to-back qualifying sessions and races to contest in the two different Ford V8s.

Two-time former V8 champion Andy Booth improved his 2007-08 placings with strong results at the final two rounds to take fourth place overall with a total of 809 points. “Today’s reverse grid race involved half good luck and half good judgement – there were potentially two crashes I could have been involved in, but having said that, Teretonga is one circuit where I don’t mind the reverse grid so much because it’s wide enough to pass.”

The Big Ben Pies Holden driver said the top ten in this series is getting stronger and stronger. “Just look at the consistent results that John had to deliver to win (McIntyre finished 15 of the 18 races in the top ten) and when drivers like Paul Radisich and David Besnard are struggling to get into the top five … well, that says a lot about the competitiveness and quality of our field.”

Melbourne-based kiwi expatriate Paul Radisich finished fifth overall in his first season in the New Zealand V8s. Another former champion Paul Manuell was sixth and fellow Aucklanders Clark Proctor and Dean Perkins seventh and eighth respectively. Australians David Besnard and Luke Youlden rounded out the top ten. Rookie of the year was Andrew Porter who finished a highly creditable 16th.

While the 2007-08 championship is now officially complete, the New Zealand V8s contest a trophy round comprising three races at the first Hamilton 400 V8 Supercar street race in April. The exact format of the three races is yet to be confirmed, but most of the current competitors are expected to be racing. Specific ticket and event information is available on the event website www.v8supercar.co.nz while full results for the New Zealand V8s Championship are available on www.nzv8s.co.nz.

The First Windows & Doors Development V8s have also been running at Teretonga this weekend. Pukekohe’s Michael Bristow is leading the championship and, with three wins in this fifth round of the six round series, has extended his lead over Peter Butler. Bristow has also been racing the Tex Onsite Ford in the main New Zealand V8s championship series and achieved placings of 12th, seventh and 18th.