MOTORSPORT - High drama as Lobb cops load of bad luck

Whangarei driver Caine Lobb had an eventful weekend at the wheel of the Mark Cromie Holden NZV8RU at the second round of the ENZED V8 Ute Series at Teretonga Park in Invercargill.
Setting the quickest times in practice, Lobb went on to claim pole position on Saturday earning some much needed points after a DNF at the opening round last weekend in Timaru.
However, the grid position for the start of the first race was determined by a marble draw with Lobb finding himself on the front row in second place with the qualification result just going towards round points.
Lobb took the front row start and turned it into a clear win drawing first blood for the Invercargill meeting, finishing in front of Mack Peach and Simon Bierne in second and third places.
With the second race, a reverse grid of the marble draw Lobb worked his way through the field from 13th with some fast driving around the Teretonga Park circuit.
He managed to cross the line in third place with Simon Beirne winning from the front row, followed by Matthew Lockwood in second.
An accumulation of points gained from the first two races determined the starting order for race three. Lobb found himself on the front row starting alongside Beirne with one win apiece but this was where the weekend went awry for Lobb.
"In that last race everything that could go wrong went wrong. Firstly I got off the line from pole but missed third gear and Beirne got in front of me.
"After a few laps my car came on and I was all over him like a rash but he was doing a pretty good job of blocking. Over the back of the circuit he left open a little gap so I stuck my nose in and he turned in on me. I bumped into him and he went wide and I got through but a lap later it came across the radio I had a drive-through penalty," Lobb said.
Lobb was gutted and was just slowing the Mark Cromie Holden Commodore down to enter into the pits when he received another call on the radio.
"Just when I was pulling into the pitlane they called and said the drive-through was cancelled and I could carry on," he said.
Apparently a message had got through to race control from the officials on the ground that there was no wrong-doing on Lobb's part as he contested for the lead against Beirne. But it was too late, Lobb had already buttoned off consequently giving Lockwood the lead.
Lobb managed to get back on the track before the pit entrance and the crew did all they could to keep the slightly over-heated driver calm and focused, because they knew if he placed second they would still have enough points to win the round.
But the worst was yet to come.
"Five laps after that the car filled up with smoke but there were no warning lights coming on so I kept going but at one point I couldn't see out of the windscreen.
"The car then cut out and my race was over, I jumped out and grabbed the extinguisher, I was lucky the whole thing didn't go up I think."
Apparently the heat of the exhaust had come through the floor of the modified Commodore and turned the centre console into a wad of melted plastic eventually wiping out a wiring loom causing the racecar to cut out.
Car builder James Brock is looking into the problem to ensure there is no repeat of the situation on the Mark Cromie Holden or any other car coming from his workshop in Melbourne.
Dipping out of that race left the fastest man on the Teretonga circuit with a fourth place overall for the round and Lobb is looking forward to the Taupo round next month, where he hopes to move up the championship ladder.