Brad Jenner has become the first Champion-elect in the 2024 SP Tools Australian Kart Championship, presented by Castrol after a masterful performance in Coffs Harbour to secure his third Australian X30 Championship, his fifth career Australian title. From the first round of the Championship this year, Jenner has been in control and entered the weekend 102 points clear a top of the standings.
CXR Racing’s Jace Matthews was valiant throughout the weekend as he attempted to defend his title, winning each race aside from the final, using any chance he could take the Championship to a final round decider. Nevertheless, the determination of Jenner could not be overcome.
After dropping to fifth from the start, he moved back to second and closed a 2.2 second deficit to the 2023 Champion to win the final, ending the weekend with a 105 point lead, winning the JND Racing team its first Australian Championship. Returning to the podium for TF Racing in X30 this weekend was Sydney-sider, Tyler Howard, placing him one point behind third-placed Max Walton in the standings race with a round to go.
The KZ2 gearbox final delivered a first-time winner in Leon Cordato after an epic drive from the third row. The Scape Student Accommodation-backed racer drove through to chase down front-row starter, Nik Mitic. He looked to have the race in his safekeeping until Mitic fought back with just over a lap to go. BRM racer Mitic ran wide at the final turn after getting underneath Cordato, allowing the youngster by and the momentum shift was enough to allow Cordato to take an emotional win.
Flatout Karts-backed West Australian Dicker started on the pole with Josh Fife behind. The latter went too deep under brakes at turn two and dropped to 10th in the order. He charged his way forward to finish in fourth position right behind his closest Championship rival, ensuring an enthralling battle at the final round. Fife heads to Oakleigh four points clear of Dicker with Cordato edging his way into third in the Championship, two points ahead of Henry Johnstone.
The win by Leon was a silver lining on what had been a frustrating weekend for his younger brother Lewis in the premier junior division, KA2.
Lewis entered the weekend some 23 points in the Championship lead, but after mixed results and a non-finish in Saturday’s heats he left Coffs Harbour second behind round winner, Isaac McNeill. The gap between the pair is now five points in McNeill’s favour.
McNeill dropped only one heat win Saturday and took a 1.5 second victory in the final. The story of the race though was the determined charge of Cordato, coming from ninth on the grid to claim second. It was similar to his charge earlier in the day coming from an 11th starting position in heat four to finish fourth. Fittingly, Ky Burke, who is a clear third in the Championship completed the podium.
In TaG 125, Australian Champion, Harrison Hoey completed virtually the perfect weekend and took the Championship lead. After coming into the weekend second on points, the Parolin mounted Queenslander took a comfortable win by 2.4 seconds over his now closest Championship rival, Jacob Dowson. The South Australian elevated himself up to second in the title race and just 20 points separate them heading to Melbourne.
Third in the final after leading the race in the early stages was Oscar Priest, securing his second consecutive podium for the Top Gun Racing team. Jackson Souslin-Harlow moved to third in the Championship, two points ahead of former leader, Ben Holliday.
Mika Lemasurier leaves Coffs Harbour a commanding leader of KA3 Senior with a 46 point advantage over William Thompson after a tumultuous day. This morning he struck a technical problem and didn’t finish the fourth heat, therefore scoring no points. He was able to strike back in the final aboard his BirelART chassis and take the win by over five seconds while chaos ensued behind.
Max Walton - making a category cameo - finished second while William Thompson moved to second in the title race after hanging tough for third in the final. Championship contenders, Christian Estasy and Dominic Penman didn’t make it far past the halfway point when three didn’t go into two as Jace Matthews tried to force the issue under brakes.
Cadet 12 sees Victorian Parolin racer, Archie Bristow heading to home turf at Oakleigh with a 61-point Championship lead after a perfect weekend, not being headed, including a narrow one-second win in Cadet 12.
A mid-race full-course yellow intervention closed the field which gave BirelART racer, Cooper Folley the opportunity to challenge Bristow’s Parolin. The duo swapped the lead on several occasions before Bristow was able to assert his authority to take the win over Folley. A last-lap scramble between several competitors saw Cruz Patroni emerge as the final podium placegetter. Jack Larsen held onto second in the Championship and Jay Kostecki’s tough weekend sees him remain in third place, while Joseph Bianchini moved into fourth position in the title race.
In Cadet 9, Oliver Williamson has left Coffs Harbour with a 29-point Championship lead, however, the Kart Republic racer’s battle with Oliver Armitt will come to an interesting conclusion at the final round. With Williamson taking a 6.3 second win, Victorian, Armitt finished third after a race-long battle with Lazarus Anonuevo. Anonuevo’s will to finish on the podium saw him take the fight to Armitt throughout the course of the race, the pair swapping places throughout the race. Second delivered Anoneuvo his best ever AKC round performance and another to achieve a personal best was Marcus Culbi with fourth.
The other Championship contenders had mixed days - Lukas Loeskow finishing the final in seventh placing and Jarvis Hindle exiting early in a multi-kart collision, however, has remained third in the Championship.
In KA3 Junior, Jack Szewczuk leaves round four on top having won the final by five seconds for Empire Kartsport over Jye Flynn and Zach Tucker getting his second consecutive podium. Szewczuk made a change of teams ahead of this weekend and ends the fourth round with a 48-point Championship lead over Isaac McNeill.
Curiously, with his sixteenth birthday falling prior to the final round, Szewczuk cannot enter Oakleigh as a Junior, so will be watching from the sidelines and doing the calculations to see if he will become Champion.
McNeill was within touching Szewczuk’s title lead, however, a late race collision with Ayce Buckley fighting for the podium cost McNeill significant points, dropping him to sixth at the chequered flag. Samuel March emerged third in the Championship over Riley Harrison.
The SP Tools Australian Kart Championship, presented by Castrol will come to a conclusion over the weekend of August 31-September 1 at the Oakleigh Kart Club in Melbourne, where the Championship will visit for the first time.