20 July 2011

Despite the incomplete end to the second running of the Winternationals at Willowbank Raceway Newby Racing are celebrating, and with good reason.

Rain all day Saturday put paid to Wayne’s hope of improving his number two qualifying position, with all remaining qualifying rounds abandoned in favour of all eliminations on Sunday.

Race day saw blue skies in the morning and despite the late start following track drying, a fairly incident free day meant the schedule was only slightly affected.

Round one of Top Alcohol eliminations saw Wayne paired against Debbie O’Rourke. It all came down to reaction time in this extremely tight race, Wayne running a 5.672 at 250.55mph to defeat Debbie running a 5.673 at 249.12mph.

When a starter problem threatened to prematurely end Wayne’s chances in the semi-final it was truly heartening to see Ben Bray and Aaron Hambridge run to the team’s aid with starters in hand. Wayne and the crew would like to thank both Ben and Aaron for their quick response and sportsmanship, which is what sets drag racing apart from so many other sports, the willingness for competitors to lend a helping hand, often at a critical moment.

However the lack of qualifying rounds took its toll as the team had only the data from the one run to determine the set up for the car. Unable to get the correct car/clutch/conditions set up for the semi-final resulted in Wayne shaking the tyres and himself, giving the win to Stephen Ham.

Despite the disappointment the team still had reason to celebrate for Newby Racing can now be officially declared the winners of the 2010/2011 Championship Season for ANDRA Pro Series Top Alcohol, adding yet another Gold Christmas Tree to the already well stocked trophy case.

This very likable racer and team were certainly not short of people visiting the pits to congratulate them on their much deserved win. Their consistency throughout the year has been attributed to a great working team, fantastic fan support, and terrific sponsors who continually show Newby Racing tremendous support in helping to get the job done.

So despite the event finishing without the usual ceremony, the Newby Team still have a great reason to smile as they take a well deserved break until the beginning of the new season at the Australian Nationals at Sydney Dragway in September.

Wayne Newby would like to sincerely thank the entire team and our valued sponsors JBS Tools, Fabre Australia, Smithfield Diff and Gear, Coldy’s Tow & Bullbars, Redline Oils, VP Racing Fuels, Mick’s Metal Craft, CRC Industries and Newby Engineering for their continued support, without whom racing would not be possible.