Round 7 - Race Report
Whiteriver Park, Co. Louth played host to Tullyallen Kart Club’s seventh round of the 2016 Tullyallen Kart Club Championship. Conditions were ideal on October 9th which paved way for a day of great racing as competitors fought for championship positions in what was the penultimate round of the championship.
TKC were delighted to have introduced a number of newcomers on the day who fiercely enjoyed themselves and made steady progress throughout the day in their respected classes. We look forward to seeing all these newcomers back with us at the final round of the championship at Watergrasshill, Cork on October 30th – the latest venue to be added to the TKC Calendar. Entries are now open for this including gearbox. These can be submitted by entering your details here. All guest competitors are welcome to the event and spectator admission is absolutely free.
Bambino
Round seven of the 2016 Bambino championship saw another phenomenal entry of fourteen competitors aged between five and nine years old. Luke Agnew picked up another great win in the final with Kenzie McNally finishing in second and Carrickfergus youngster Kyle Irvine finishing third. Ballyclare’s Agnew had now extended his championship lead from Callum Doak in the overall championship standings with Tadgh Buckley holding off Kyle Irvine for third position.
Junior Cadet IAME
Junior Cadet IAME saw another mighty showdown between rivals Andrei Dabija and Jake Cudden, both drivers won a heat each and both started at the front for what would be a thrilling final. Unfortunately Cudden made a slight error whilst overtaking a back-marker and took himself out of contention for victory leaving Dabija to take a well-deserved and valuable win from Cudden. Brandon Boland valiantly held off a charging Alex O’Grady to take a podium finish.
Junior Cadet Open
Gavin Dewart once again demonstrated his star quality with three wins from three races, finishing ahead of second placed Kyle Thompson. This was Thompson’s second podium of the season and we are sure there will be plenty more to come from the youngster as he progresses in what is only his first year of racing. Andrei Lomov made yet more steady progress as he finished off the podium in third. Letisha Conn suffered a mechanical failure on lap three which sadly dropped her out of a potential podium result. We are sure Letisha will bounce back from this at the final round of the championship in three weeks time.
Senior Cadet IAME
Senior Cader Iame seen an exceptional performance from Portglenone’s Peadar O’Boyle who finished ahead of the #95 driver Sean Hogan and #141’s Zach Rodger in third.
Senior Cadet Open
The Senior Cadet open class saw an impressive battle take place between northern drivers Robert Orr and Irish Kart GP winner Lewis Duff. Both drivers exchanged positions many times in the final race with Orr eventually coming out of top with Duff finishing second. Newly crowned NI Champion Nicholas Wilkinson finished third which highlighted a successful day for the Newtownards driver on his Whiteriver debut.
Minimax
The Mini Max class produced some of the closest and thrilling racing of the day with all twelve 11 -14 year olds demonstrating their great talents on the racetrack. The final race of the day saw an exciting battle commence between #77’s Nathan Glenn and #IRL’s Karl O’Brien, both providing excellent entertainment for spectators in the paddock. Unfortunately the final lap saw a racing incident leave both drivers out of contention for victory leaving Team Kartsport driver Philip Patton to take a well-deserved victory from championship leader Jack Irvine. Irvine’s main championship rival Matthew McDowell finished in third meaning the championship will now go down to the wire in Watergrasshill.
Junior Max
Junior Max saw the welcome return of Jack Hall, who held off a charging Simon Cunningham from a close Cian Broderick. Anton Martin now leads the 2016 TKC Junior Max championship with one round to go.
Senior Rotax 165
Once again Shane Mullins demonstrated a class act taking victory from Andrew Hemeryck and Lorcan Bellew in third. Bellew was delighted to finally make his return to the podium!
Senior Rotax 180
Senior Max 180 welcomed several newcomers to the class including eventual race winner Jason Curran who challenged championship contender Barry Smith for the top step of the podium. Smith consolidated his championship lead with second place and a mighty effort was witnessed from Frank Joyce to finish in third. Championship contender Domhnall Lennon sadly suffered a DNF (did not finish) resulting in Smith taking a considerable step forward in sealing the 2016 Senior Max 180 Championship. But as the saying goes – “Anything can happen in motor racing” and we are sure neither driver will give up till the flag drops in Cork.
Tullyallen Kart Club would like to take the opportunity to once again thank all competitors, officials, marshals and spectators for their assistance and support for this event, it was a highly enjoyable day for all. We would also like to draw readers attention towards the 2016 TKC Club Celebration and Awards Presentation evening being held on Saturday 28th January 2017 at the Crown Plaza Hotel, Dundalk, Co. Louth. This event will include a three course sit down meal (for adults and kids), drinks reception, and ballot with some brilliant prizes up for grabs. This is not a night to be missed, tickets are 20 Euro for Adults and 10 Euro for children, ticket prices subsided by TKC. Tickets available at Round 8 Watergrasshill, Co. Cork (30th October) and at the T-Plate in December
