NZV8 race driver Tim Edgell has achieved a new career best in the tough BNT V8s Championship, taking the round win at Manfeild on 13 February.
Edgell’s
round win, scoring more points during the weekend’s three races than former NZV8
champion Kayne Scott, is a significant milestone for the hard-working North
Shore-based driver and his team.
“It’s absolutely fantastic to win the
round, especially after not being happy with our results in the previous three
rounds,” said the #26 Chesters-BNT Falcon driver.
Having qualified
second-fastest during Saturday’s top ten shootout to start Sunday’s first 12-lap
race from the front row beside Scott, Edgell says he was pretty happy to run at
or close to Scott’s pace throughout the first seven laps.
“We were
second when the race was red-flagged with John McIntyre having an issue, so
that’s where we finished on the official results. This also meant we started
from the same position for race two and this time I got a better start than
Kayne, basically drag racing him into the first corner. I managed to build up a
little buffer for several laps, then Kayne closed in on me and I had to cover my
position at the front of the field for the last couple of laps. It’s always
great to win another race – it’s a worthy reward for the team and sponsors for
all our hard work!”
The weekend’s final reverse grid, 22-lap race saw
Edgell start right at the back of the field with Scott, seeing as the pair had
equal best points from the first two races.
“From 19th, I got a good
run initially to get through the traffic to be roughly mid-field midway through
the race, having been able to keep Kayne behind me. The tyres went off a bit and
there were a few other competitors to contend with, but right towards the end I
was able to make a pass on Andy Knight to finish the race two places in front of
Kayne, which gave me the round win!”
While Edgell thought the #26
Chesters-BNT Falcon wasn’t initially the fastest, he said the team kept working
at on the car throughout the day.
“And here we are with our first round
win. I’m lucky to have, and appreciate very much the support of all our sponsors
and our whole team. We can savour this success and look forward to the
second-to-last round of the season in Taupo in March now we’ve moved up into
sixth position on the championship points-table.”
Tim Edgell and Edgell
Performance Racing thanks the following sponsors: Chesters Plumbing and
Bathroom, BNT, Marley, Hansen Products, Fuchs, Tru-Test Group, North Harbour
Ford, Roca, FujiFilm, Element 82 Ltd, Wurth NZ and Journey on Roadside
Solutions.
Keep up with the latest news from Edgell and his team via the
Tim Edgell Racing Facebook page.
Race 1(12 laps), Round 5,
BNT V8s Championship
Position, Driver, Car, Hometown, Total race
time/difference
1, Kayne Scott, Falcon, Hamilton, 11:00.207
2, Tim
Edgell, Falcon, Auckland, +1.909
3, Craig Baird, Falcon, Gold Coast,
+5.223
4, Andy Booth, Commodore, Auckland, +11.728
5, Wade Henshaw,
Falcon, Christchurch, +12.370
Race 2 (12 laps), Round 5, BNT V8s
Championship
Position, Driver, Car, Hometown, Total race
time/difference
1, Tim Edgell, Falcon, Auckland, 14:50.012
2, Kayne
Scott, Falcon, Hamilton, +0.368
3, Wade Henshaw, Falcon, Christchurch,
+8.298
4, Andy Knight, Falcon, Christchurch, +9.198
5, Craig Baird,
Falcon, Gold Coast, +10.701
Race 3 (reverse grid, 22 laps), Round 5,
BNT V8s Championship
Position, Driver, Car, Hometown, Total race
time/difference
1, John McIntyre, Falcon, Nelson, 27:16.191
2, Paul
Manuell, Commodore, Pukekohe, +9.445
3, Angus Fogg, Falcon, Auckland,
+10.809
4, Haydn McKenzie, Falcon, Auckland, +12.561
5, Martin Short,
Falcon, Hamilton, +13.818
8, Tim Edgell, Falcon, Auckland,
+26.555
BNT V8s Championship points after Round 5
1, Angus
Fogg, Falcon, Auckland, 829
2, Craig Baird, Falcon, Gold Coast, 792
3,
Kayne Scott, Falcon, Hamilton, 766
4, John McIntyre, Falcon, Nelson,
716
5, Andy Booth, Commodore, Auckland, 665
6, Tim Edgell, Falcon,
Auckland, 649