The Hamilton 400 Trophy
There’s nothing quite like a street circuit.
The media very publicly stated that the Hamilton 400 street circuit had been “significantly altered and smoothened” ahead of its second ever event. In reality, it was bumpy as hell, but it sure made for an exciting ride!
The Blackwoods Paykels (http://www.blackwoodspaykels.co.nz) and International Motorsport (http://www.internationalmotorsport.co.nz) teams went into Hamilton with high hopes for success after the pace we had collectively shown at Pukekohe four weeks prior.
They weren’t disappointed.
With a single test session to reacclimatise myself to New Zealand’s only street circuit, I was happy to finish second quickest in the field, and to translate that pace into a front-row qualifying start also.
Qualifying was a real hair raiser, however, with a number of cars having accidents and me personally having a very close shave with the tyres at the wild turn five chicane. It’s the most dangerous string of mini-corners I’ve ever come across, and it paid to take real caution through there on every single lap.
The opening race went really well. The car wasn’t all that strong on cold tyres, however it came good late in the race and I finished in second place, half a second off the race winner with a considerable gap behind me.
I finished runner up in race two also, setting consistently quick laps in what was a pretty lonely twelve laps out on my own. This also meant that I would line up in fifth spot for the reverse top six finale on Sunday morning.
Having finished second in every session of the weekend thus far, it wasn’t inconceivable that I might end up there again. I made a storming start and quickly moved into fourth, while my main rival Craig Baird ran wide at the opening corner and made contact with the concrete barrier, ending his race.
With the pressure off and a very real chance that the weekend was mine, I settled in behind two of my International Motorsport team mates and watched the race unfold.
The three cars in front of me had good pace, and the battle for second absolutely riveting. I wasn’t about to ruin the races of my comrades in front of me by trying to be a hero, so I fended off another hard charging team mate in Ant Pedersen behind me, took fourth place and won the weekend outright.
It was a great feeling to once again stand at the top of the podium, victorious.
The final race at Hamilton was a huge success for International Motorsport, with four of its cars filling the top five positions, and Jody Vincent (3rd) and I on the overall podium also. After such a tough season for all of us, there was no better way to end the chapter.
For me, there’s nothing more satisfying than ending on a high. Though there’s much to busy myself with in the domestic off season, racing and otherwise, my attitude between times is firmly based around the way in which my last race panned out.
I can get pretty moody if it all turns to custard.
Hamilton was also the highest profile event on the calendar, so to win in front of a huge crowd and a number of my sponsors was wonderful, and my support base was a little larger than normal at the Hamilton 400.
With the support of Stewarts Electrical (http://www.stewarts.co.nz), Thorn Lighting (http://www.thornlighting.co.nz) and Safety Step (http://www.safetystep.co.nz) on top of Blackwoods Paykels, JBS Tools, and my other current backers – not to mention Dad and the International Motorsport crew, and hands on assistance from Sam Robinson and Team PETRONAS visitors Imran Zaharias and Melvin Moh – the Hamilton 400 Trophy was shared by many.
Thanks must also go to you all for your support, well wishes, emails and phone calls throughout the season.
It’s been a crazy six months. There’s been wins, trophies and podiums as frequently as there has been bad luck, disappointment and sour grapes, but it’s fair to say that we’ve all come a long way as a team and I have come a long way as an individual and a driver.
You’ll be hearing from me soon, as there are some pretty exciting developments over the horizon.
Until then…
Jono
