R3K RACES - Kelly's country produces debut win
6/5/2001 22:45 (V8 Wire - Jason Whittaker) -
In the heart of Victoria’s Kelly country, 24-year-old rookie Owen Kelly aptly won a bruising third round of the Konica V8 Supercar Series with a near-perfect performance at Winton Raceway.
Kelly, aboard an aging John Faulkner Racing Commodore, took overall honours with wins in races two and three, and a second in the opening heat.
Veteran David Parsons is an unlikely leader in the title chase after finishing third on overall points this afternoon. Gibson Motorsport’s Paul Dumbrell benefited from the support of Craig Lowndes’ engineer throughout the weekend, finishing second.
But the race was marred by a number of controversial incidents. A massive pile-up at the first turn in race one culled the field by seven, leaving a number of campaigns in tatters.
Craig Harris, Mal Rose and Michael Simpson were among those caught-up in the tangle, forcing all three into premature retirement from the event.
Simpson’s season is now in serious doubt, with his ex-Stone Brothers EL Falcon in need of repairs to the tune of $20,000 – money the un-sponsored Queenslander simply doesn’t have.
“We have damaged the car pretty badly and that has really put us behind the eight-ball because our budget is virtually non-existent,” a dejected Simpson said.
The race was eventually red-flagged. On the restart, Simon Wills skipped away to record his fourth race victory of the year.
It would be the last the crowd would see of the Team Dynamik Commodore however, with Wills a non-starter in the final two races.
The reverse-grided second race produced some storming drives, none better than Paul Dumbrell (eleventh to second) and race winner Owen Kelly (starting from ninth). Pole-sitter Daniel Miller failed to finish.
The final 20-minute sprint produced the same trifecta as the second – Kelly finishing ahead of Dumbrell and Parsons. Only a dozen cars finished the race.
Parsons holds a 38-point lead over Dumbrell in the Konica Series standings, ahead of Kelly and former championship leader Simon Wills.
The fourth round of the Konica V8 Supercar Series is scheduled for Phillip Island Raceway in three week’s time.
**RACE ONE - TOP TEN**
1st SIMON WILLS (Team Dynamik) - VT Commodore
2nd OWEN KELLY (John Faulkner Racing) - VS Commodore
3rd MICK DONAHER (John Scotcher Motorsport) - EL Falcon
4th LEANNE FERRIER (Garry Rogers Motorsport) - VT Commodore
5th DAVID PARSONS (Gibson Motorsport) - VT Commodore
6th RIC SHAW (Ric Shaw Motorsport) - VS Commodore
7th TERRY WYHOON (Terry Wyhoon Racing) - VS Commodore
8th DALE BREDE (NRC Racing) - VT Commodore
9th PHONSY MULLAN (GM Motorsport) - VS Commodore
10th DANIEL MILLER (Miller Racing) - VS Commodore
**RACE TWO - TOP TEN**
1st OWEN KELLY (John Faulkner Racing) - VS Commodore
2nd PAUL DUMBRELL (Gibson Motorsport) - VT Commodore
3rd DAVID PARSONS (Gibson Motorsport) - VT Commodore
4th LEANNE FERRIER (Garry Rogers Motorsport) - VT Commodore
5th TERRY WYHOON (Terry Wyhoon Racing) - VS Commodore
6th DALE BREDE (NRC Racing) - VT Commodore
7th MICK DONAHER (John Scotcher Motorsport) - EL Falcon
8th RIC SHAW (Ric Shaw Motorsport) - VS Commodore
9th TIM ROWSE (Rowse Motorsport) - VS Commodore
10th GARRY HOLT (Eastern Creek Kart Racing) - EL Falcon
**RACE THREE - TOP TEN**
1st OWEN KELLY (John Faulkner Racing) - VS Commodore
2nd PAUL DUMBRELL (Gibson Motorsport) - VT Commodore
3rd DAVID PARSONS (Gibson Motorsport) - VT Commodore
4th LEANNE FERRIER (Garry Rogers Motorsport) - VT Commodore
5th DALE BREDE (NRC Racing) - VT Commodore
6th TERRY WYHOON (Terry Wyhoon Racing) - VS Commodore
7th TIM ROWSE (Rowse Motorsport) - VS Commodore
8th EDDIE ABELNICA (TBA) - VT Commodore
9th GARRY HOLT (Eastern Creek Kart Racing) - EL Falcon
10th BILL ATTARD (Scotty Taylor Racing) - VS Commodore
**CHAMPIONSHIP TABLE**
1st DAVID PARSONS (Gibson Motorsport) - VT Commodore [616]
2nd PAUL DUMBRELL (Gibson Motorsport) - VT Commodore [578]
3rd OWEN KELLY (John Faulkner Racing) - VS Commodore [558]
4th SIMON WILLS (Team Dynamik) - VT Commodore [556]
5th DALE BREDE (NRC Racing) - VT Commodore [506]
6th LEANNE FERRIER (Garry Rogers Motorsport) - VT Commodore [490]
7th TERRY WYHOON (Terry Wyhoon Racing) - VS Commodore [454]
8th MICHAEL SIMPSON (Michael Simpson Racing) - EL Falcon [418]
9th CRAIG HARRIS (Castrol/Harris Racing) - AU Falcon [384]
10th GARRY HOLT (Eastern Creek Kart Racing) - VS Commodore [382]
For complete race results:
http://www.racetime.com.au/racedata/w0131/
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