Nothing Dusty about higgs in a controversal Super Sedan Stampede Series - 30th Sept, 09

Gary “Dusty” Higgs has wrapped up his 2nd straight, Super Sedan Stampede Series after a controversial finish to the 3 night, northern WA campaign last weekend.

Higgs, in his 2nd year back in the category after a 10-year lay off was the class act in a series that was marred by a controversial track issue on night 3. In a bizarre twist, the feature event at Port Hedland Speedway was cancelled due to the track being flooded just prior to the event on Sunday night. A decision was made to not go ahead after majority of drivers agreed that the surface was unsafe. Efforts were made all night to keep the dust to a minimum on a very fast, but dry, but it was inevitable that the track would need to be graded.

Kevin Bell won the opening heat in sensational style but was relegated two positions for passing on the infield. This handed the win to Gary Higgs from Darren Larson. Reigning WA champion, Kodee Brown won the next heat race and Darren Larson who was having a great run winning the final heat of the night.

Earlier in the weekend the teams assembled in Newman for the opening round of the series at Hillview Speedway.
You could be forgiven for thinking it was 2008 revisited but the result was the same with Gary Higgs winning the first Feature race of the season.

Travis Jackson would be the first casualty of the series after being pushed to the wall on the back straight and then collected by Darren Larson, who had nowhere to go. Larson’s Pontiac Grand Prix was repaired for the feature event but for Jackson it was over for night one. The damage was so severe that the team missed the next round at Tom Price. Higgs won all three of his heats, and was joined by Bussleton’s Kevin Bell, who was driving like never before on the front row of the grid for the feature event. Bell kept a very flu induced Dustin Higgs at bay for the first few laps when he and Higgs clashed, cutting down the rear tyre on Bell’s #55 entry. Kodee Brown was the mover and shaker in the field, starting from 6th spot, he roared his way into the top 3, and finishing 2nd behind Gary Higgs while Dustin Higgs filled the final spot on the podium.

The teams and drivers then headed to the picturesque, Tom Price Speedway just 3 hours down the road from Newman in the heart of the Pilbara region. And again it was Higgs domination, albeit this time he had his work cut out by younger son, Dustin in the feature event.

The 20 year old led the feature event from the green flag and if it weren’t for a minor mistake in the second half of the event, he may have wrapped up a much needed and sought after victory. Higgs Snr would win his second straight event from Dustin Higgs, while Kodee Brown again found the podium in the 3rd spot. Brent Halliday would finish in a lonely 4th place with no one to race with ahead or behind the Broome based racer. Peter Lyall was a non-starter after hurting the Rotary powered Autopro Carnarvon Mazda RX8 in the opening heat race. It would also end his series campaign for 2009. Local Tom Price racer, Darren Ahearn was forced to replace a water pump in his Sun City Transport #19, it was to be a tough night for he and the team, who were hoping for a strong showing in front of the solid home crowd. Kevin Bell was also a non-starter in the feature event after the team found metal filings in the oil filter. Bunbury based racer, Adyme Harvey was a notable performer in the ex Darren Larson Pontiac Grand Prix. The sprintcar driver adapted well to the sedan division well over the three nights, often in the mid pack, but showed a great turn of speed in a well-developed car.

So with the final feature event not going ahead, this gave Gary Higgs his 2nd straight series win from Dustin Higgs, Kodee Brown finishing 3rd overall.

End release
Produced and Released by Matt Naulty Media – www.mattnaulty.com.au

BACK