Many of Australia’s very best speedway competitors will converge on Bartercard Lismore Speedway this Saturday night (November 23) to contest the Northern Rivers Hotel Super Sedan Shootout.

The race, which doubles as round five of the prestigious Metro Nissan and Renault Super Sedan Championship Series, has attracted a star-studded field that includes 7 state or national championship winners!

Widely regarded as Australia’s premier Super Sedan competition, this series comprises 15 rounds of competition across two states and this weekend will give local race fans a rare opportunity to see the dirt track equivalent of V8 Supercars do battle on the tight confines of the picturesque showground circuit.  In fact, this event is the first of two scheduled visits to Lismore this season by the Super Sedan brigade.

The Lismore/Northern Rivers region has a rich history of producing many of Australia’s finest Super Sedan stars and this tradition continues today, with local drivers currently occupying the first three positions in the series point standings. 

Murwillumbah veteran John Leslight currently leads the championship chase, having won three of the four completed rounds thus far to establish a sizeable lead in the early weeks of the competition.  Leslight has an outstanding record of success on the Lismore circuit, including two victories in the prestigious East Coast Grand National and a plethora of feature race wins against the very best from across Australia and overseas.  His current winning form, combined with his record at the venue, has ensured that he will enter this weekend’s event as the pre-race favourite. 

Currently running second overall on the points table is former Casino resident Wayne Randall, a driver who launched his racing career on the Lismore track before being lured north of the border to drive for Ipswich-based team owner Ian Boettcher.  Randall still rates the Lismore circuit as one of his favourites and drives the tight showground layout as good, if not better, than anybody else.  In fact, Randall was victorious when the Super Sedan brigade last appeared in Lismore, taking out the East Coast Grand National in May to complete a stellar 2001/2002 season of success.

Lismore’s own Tania Smith is currently enjoying one of her best seasons for quite a while, finishing inside the top ten in each of the completed rounds, with 3rd-place finishes in the last two feature races propelling her into 3rd overall in the series points.  With strong support expected on her home track, Smith will be looking for a continuation of her form as she seeks to become the first female to score a feature race victory in series history.

Popular Gold Coast charger Jamie McHugh, who won a New South Wales Championship at this circuit, will be looking to avenge his disappointment from the previous round in Brisbane when a blown engine forced him out of the feature race with just 5 laps remaining.

One driver definitely looking to improve on his last Lismore appearance is Brisbane’s Michael Gee.  The former Litre Sprintcar pilot was involved in a spectacular crash last season when a broken wheel sent his Ford Taurus somersaulting through turn one and into the safety fence.  In only his second outing for the season aboard a brand new Taurus, Gee will be determined to show the local fans what he is capable of when all four wheels remained planted on terra firma. 

Other drivers expected to feature prominently, and challenge for victory in the 30-lap feature event, are Bruce Marshall, Wayne Brims, Craig McGeorge, Gary Pagel, Ian Brims, Newcastle’s Greg Smith and former Tasmanian Darren Kane, who finished runner-up behind Leslight in round three.

Also included in the field are the likes of Graeme Lehmann, Paul Geary, Paul Carlish, Les Pascoe and newcomer Lance Batchelor, who will be making his debut appearance in Super Sedan competition.  In fact, nine of the top ten drivers in the series standings will be a part of the action!

The format for the event will see each driver contest two qualifying heats in an effort to secure a berth in the all-important Pole Shootout, a series of 1-lap sprints against the clock.  The driver recording the quickest time will start the feature race from pole position, with the remainder of the grid also starting in accordance with their performance in the shootout.

The Super Sedan Association will also have fantastic series posters to give away, so make sure you are trackside this Saturday night when a big field of V8 superstars invade Bartercard Lismore Speedway for a feast of dirt track excitement. Gates open at 3.30 and racing starts at 6.30.

Prices

Adults $20, Conc.(aged+inv+students)$15, Family(2A+2u/16) $49, under 12 free.