FINK IS KING AT THE 2009 DRIFT AUSTRALIA
2009-09-23 11:09:15 Author: admin Source:
Over 4,000 fans headed to Oran Park to enjoy the full day of on and off-track entertainment in the event, a one-off for 2009 before the Drift Australia Series resumes as a full, five-round championship next year
The biggest winner was Fink (Nissan Silvia), who beat a crop of Australia’s best drifters to become 2009 Australian Drift Champion.
Having finished second in last year’s Drift Australia Series, Fink and the Holford Motors team were one of the event favourites and didn’t disappoint.
On the second run of the final, Fink executed a clean overtaking move on Podlewski (Nissan 180SX) to secure victory.
Fink said, “We were really keen to go one better this year; the car was fantastic, it didn’t miss a beat all day and we’re going home with the trophy. We’re looking forward to tackling the full championship again next year.”
Third place went to Jake Jones, who fought back after a crash in the pre-event practice session. Elsewhere, Dan Mackie and Bryce Chapman were the pick of the New South Wales drivers, with Mackie finishing fourth behind Jones.
On debut at national level, Chapman made it into the Top Eight, knocking out former round winner Tom Monkhouse in the process.
Nathan Weissel made it three locals in the Top Eight, which was completed by Adam May and another debutant, Josh Coote, last year’s Super Drift champion from Queensland.
Further down the order, Eugene Arendsen led the hard luck stories, having qualified second behind Fin. Arendsen was struck by mechanical problems and unable to line up for his first-round battle.
Top contender Fernando Wiehrl was among the other front-runners to fall early, eliminated in the Top 16 by May. Andrew Roney took out the second-tier Super Drift class, defeating Jim Turner in the final, with David Browne finishing third.
The third big winner on the day wasn’t a competitor, rather a fan, Ben Madden, who won a drift-ready Nissan Silvia S13 in the SABER drift car giveaway.
With the exciting Drift Australia finale concluded, planning for the 2010 Drift Australia Series is well advanced with the five-round calendar to be announced soon.
