Early on Friday morning the new car of defending national Saloon Car champion Chris Cowling (Tauranga) was sitting in the team workshop waiting for a rebuilt engine to arrive and be fitted.
At the end of Friday evening the car hadn’t missed a beat as Cowling raced through the first three rounds of qualifying heats in the New Zealand Saloon Car Championship at Mount Maunganui’s Baypark Speedway with an unbeaten performance.
Cowling went three from three to have a perfect 60-point scorecard and lead the 51-car field into the Saturday decider.
Former champion Ethan Cook (Gisborne) was in spectacular form and sits second with 54 points after a fifth and two second placings with North Island champ Jarred Fletcher (Cambridge) one point further back in third. Fletcher posted two wins early in the night but had a spin in his third outing before recovering to eighth.
Tied in fourth on 51 points are Tauranga’s Trent Amrein, Southlanders George Phillips and Campbell McManaway and Christchurch teenager Ashton Osborne. All three of the southerners have shown title-contending pace and Phillips’ effort as notable for two wins, a tenth place with a front right puncture, and the fastest lap time of the night.
