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| February 20, 2012 |
| Kiwi News: Kinsman Leads Kiwi Kart Charge at First Rotax Round |
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 | Rotax Max Challenge of New Zealand 125cc Rotax Max Light class winner Daniel Kinsman (2) leads Fraser Hart (69) and Daniel Connor (1)
(Photo: Fast Company - Hagen Hopkins) |
Defending champion Daniel Kinsman got his 2012 Right Karts KartStars Rotax Max Challenge campaign off to a winning start at the opening round of this year's six-round series at Palmerston North on Saturday.
Though he was pipped in qualifying by fellow Aucklander Daniel Connor, Kinsman was back in front in the races, winning the first heat from Connor and multi-time South Island sprint class champion James Penrose, the second and Pre-Final from top local driver Fraser Hart and the Final from Connor, Hart and his (Kinsman's) older brother Mathew.
This year's opening series round was run in conjunction with Palmerston North kart club KartSport Manawatu's annual twilight meeting and attracted four Australian drivers, Tyler Greenbury in Right Karts 125cc Rotax Max Light, Thomas Randle in Arai Junior Max, Lane Moore in Strata Networks 125cc Rotax Max Heavy and Reese Sidebottom in one of the support class categories at the meeting, Junior Restricted 100cc Yamaha.
Randle ended up the best of the visiting Australians with a clean sweep in the Arai Junior Max class. Despite the presence in the field of the driver who set the pace in the class in 2010, Scott Manson from Christchurch, Randle qualified quickest and won all four races. In the heats it was from Manson and either Josh Drysdale or Chris Sinclair, and the Pre-Final and Final from Manson, Drysdale and Sinclair.
Gold Coast-based expat Lane Moore ended up next best visitor home, finishing third in the Strata Networks 125cc Rotax Max Heavy class behind eventual winne, reigning North Island class champion Zach Zaloum from the Hawke's Bay, and Auckland's Shane Hodgson.
Former rally ace Andrew Grant from Auckland got his weekend off to a good start by setting the quickest Heavy qualifying time - from Zaloum and former New Zealand Challenge representative Niki Urwin from Tauranga - but after Urwin won the first heat from Grant and Hodgson, Zaloum found his mojo and won the next three races in a row, the second heat from Christchurch driver Daryl Crighton and Andrew Grant, the Pre-Final from Grant, Hodgson and last year's Heavy class winner Aarron Cunningham, and the Final from Hodgson, Moore and Urwin.
Queenslander Tyler Greenbury found the going a little tougher in the blue riband Right Karts 125cc Rotax Max Light class, qualifying eighth then finishing fifth in the first heat, seventh in the second, then sixth in both the Pre-Final and the Final.
And Reese Sidebottom?
The pint-sized Victorian certainly proved a quick learner, qualifying quickest before swapping heat wins with top local driver Jacob Cranston then going on to win both the Pre-Final and the Final, the former from Dylan Drysdale, Cranston and Trey Nairn, and the Final from Cranston, Thomas Poooley and Josh Drysdale's younger brother Dylan.
Saturday's opening Right Karts KartStars Rotax Max Challenge of New Zealand series round was the first of six with subsequent rounds to be held at Tokoroa, Hamilton, Te Puke, Auckland and KartSport Rotorua's new track in the Mamaku Ranges. |
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