[ Summary | First Qualifying | Second Qualifying | Race 1 | Race 2 | International Championship ]

Round 6

Pukekohe, Auckland

17th & 18th January 1998

Summary

The final round of the New Zealand Touring Car Championship delivered all of the drama that it promised, with the BMW pair of Richards and Riley slogging it out to the end and Ross Heffernan proving that the BMWs did not have a monopoly on winning! However in the end it was Brett Riley's weekend, having started out not knowing if he would be piloting for the BMW Motorsport Team, to winning the New Zealand Touring Car Championship and securing the one off winner takes all International Touring Car Title. His team mate Jason Richards, after a shaky start to his season, came back with a strong finish in the second half of the series to clinch the New Zealand Touring Car Summer Series. With the series winding up at Pukekohe the BMW Motorsport Team once again made a clean sweep of the series, completing a one-two finish.

From the moment Ross Heffernan took his Wilkinson Insurance Toyota Corona out on the track it was obvious that the BMWs were going to have problems keeping up with him. Past experience had shown that the ex-factory Toyota Corona is very fast at Pukekohe and in previous seasons the BMWs had struggled to keep up with it. Therefore the first qualifying session was a nail biting affair as Riley, Richards and Heffernan battled for supremacy, each in turn holding pole. Ultimately BMW's fears were confirmed, with Heffernan recording 1:06.47 to take pole from Richards, with Riley in third.

Race One was a textbook race for Richards who paced himself well and who only momentarily looked under threat from Ross Heffernan in the early stages of the race. The race was a heart breaking affair for Heffernan. Having blasted into second place past Riley on the first lap and shown just how fast the Toyota Corona is on the Pukekohe circuit, his race came unstuck in spectacular fashion as his engine blew up sending a huge sheet of flame several metres into the air. This created some anxious moments for Heffernan as he waited for the emergency services to arrive and put out the fire. Barrie Thomlinson used the Hairpin to great advantage, aggressively advancing places at both Peter van Brugel and Brett Riley's expense. Richards did everything right to keep his championship hopes alive, but even Barrie Thomlinson's second place was not enough to stop Brett Riley winning the New Zealand Touring Car Championship. Riley's third place gave him enough points to take an unbeatable lead in the championship with a race to spare.

Race Two was the last race of the 1997/98 New Zealand Touring Car Championship. Although the title had already been decided, everyone had axes to grind. Heffernan, Thomlinson and van Brugel desperately wanted to knock the BMWs off their podium perches, Richards wanted to show his consistency and Riley, who hadn't claimed a victory since Ruapuna, wanted to finish his season with a win. The hard work that Heffernan and his crew had put in overnight to repair the damage caused by fire the previous day paid off handsomely, with the first and only non BMW win of the season. Barrie Thomlinson for the first time all season also managed to cross the line ahead of BMWs. Both Richards and Riley had suffered from gear linkage problems, locking their cars in fourth gear. Mechanical problems also defeated Peter van Brugel, placing him out of contention for a top three finish.

The international race was a winner takes all, no holds barred affair. Riley and Richards were still smarting from their earlier defeat and both drivers were intent on having the last say for the season. Ross Heffernan, who hadn't contested the championship due to a persistent misfire early in the season had boosted the confidence of the non BMW camp, having shown in the previous race that the BMWs weren't invincible. It was a chance for him to pick up a title designed for those who hadn't contested all of the chmpionship rounds. Barrie Thomlinson and Peter van Brugel had both had their share of engine problems over the weekend and now with the Touring Car Title already decided, here was their final opportunity to out drive the BMWs. The race was a thriller, particularly out front as Riley and Richards diced for the lead which changed three times. Riley looking like he had found his second wind for the season, driving superbly to take the win and make it a double title for 1997/98. Jason Richards finished a close second, with Ross Heffernan unable to repeat his performance in the second race to come home third.

Qualifying

First Qualifying - Session started at 9:30 am

The weather for qualifying on Saturday 17th January was bright with an average air temperature of 22 degrees Celsius, patches of cloud and a light wind. The track is particularly suited to the Toyota Corona and BMW Motorsports unbeaten record of pole positions posted by pilots Riley and Richards was finally broken as Ross Heffernan in the Wilkinson Insurance Toyota Corona recorded a time of 1:06.47. There was less than the blink of an eye between Richards and Riley, with Richards five hundreds of a second ahead of championship leader Brett Riley. The top of the field was tight with only eight tenths of a second separating the top five cars. In the 1600 cc and under cars Mike Eady again posted the quickest time. Barrie Thomlinson had rebuilt his engine overnight, doing well to even get out on the track.

No.	Driver	Car	Best Lap Time
6	Ross Heffernan	Toyota Corona 2.0	01:06.47
2	Jason Richards	BMW 320i 1991cc	01:06.52
1	Brett Riley	BMW 320i 1991cc	01:06.57
3	Peter van Brugel	Nissan Sentra SSS	01:07.18
7	Barrie Thomlinson	Ford Telstar 2000cc	01:07.23
18	Robbie Ker	Toyota Corona 2.0	01:07.82
12	Geoff Short	Ford Telstar 2000cc	01:08.49
10	Grant Aitken	Suzuki Baleno 1840cc	01:11.07
91	Mike Eady	Toyota Corolla GTi 1600cc	01:13.76
37	Philip Colvin	Suzuki Swift 1298cc	01:14.64
81	Ted Jarvis	Toyota Corolla GTi 1600cc	01:14.58
14	Dean Mildenhall	Nissan Sentra GT 1600cc	01:15.97
84	Shayne Lawrey	Peugeot 106 1300cc	01:16.02
38	Glenn Collins	Nissan Sentra GT 1600cc	01:16.41
30	Wayne Moore	Nissan Sentra 1596cc	01:17.32

Second Qualifying - Session started at 1.30 pm

The track was not quite as quick for the second qualifying session with time on average 0.5 seconds slower. In previous rounds of the championship, the results for the second qualifying session carried championship points and were used to determine a reverse grid for the top six cars in the second race of the meeting. While the championship points from this session were important to Richards and Riley, Heffernan was probably more interested securing a good position on the grid. However, in a change from the previous format, the order on the grid for the second race was to be determined by using the fastest lap time from both qualifying sessions, meaning that Heffernan's fastest time placed him at the back of the top six anyway. Richards with a 1:06.86 was the only driver to record a time in the sixes, with Riley half a second behind him. Peter van Brugel stretched the legs of his Nissan Sentra SSS to place him ahead of Heffernan. Only three tenths of a second separated these three cars, with Thomlinson, Ker and Short rounding out the top six places.

No.	Driver	Car	Best Lap Time
2	Jason Richards	BMW 320i 1991cc	01:06.86
1	Brett Riley	BMW 320i 1991cc	01:07.34
3	Peter van Brugel	Nissan Sentra SSS	01:07.45
6	Ross Heffernan	Toyota Corona 2.0	01:07.67
7	Barrie Thomlinson	Ford Telstar 2000cc	01:08.33
18	Robbie Ker	Toyota Corona 2.0	01:08.44
12	Geoff Short	Ford Telstar 2000cc	01:09.32
10	Grant Aitken	Suzuki Baleno 1840cc	01:10.80
91	Mike Eady	Toyota Corolla GTi 1600cc	01:13.98
37	Philip Colvin	Suzuki Swift 1298cc	01:14.48
81	Ted Jarvis	Toyota Corolla GTi 1600cc	01:15.52
14	Dean Mildenhall	Nissan Sentra GT 1600cc	01:16.56
38	Glenn Collins	Nissan Sentra GT 1600cc	01:16.78
84	Shayne Lawrey	Peugeot 106 1300cc	01:16.95
30	Wayne Moore	Nissan Sentra 1596cc	01:18.00

Full Race Report

Race One

Saturday's race was held in the late afternoon. There was considerable pressure on Jason Richards in the BNT BMW 320i to score maximum points and keep his Championship hopes alive. He was the only driver with enough points to have any mathematical chance of beating his team mate Brett Riley in the Castrol BMW 320i for the championship. However, the outcome of the championship was also dependent on Riley having a very poor meeting, something that Riley was determined not to have! Ross Heffernan in the Wilkinson Insurance Toyota Corona had sent chills down the backs of the dominant BMW team with his fantastic pole sitting performance and spectators were excited by the possibility that the results board could see a different marquee at the top of the winners list. Expectations were high for a good performance from Peter van Brugel who had been qualifying well all weekend and that Barrie Thomlinson's engine problems were all behind him for the race.

Richards got away to another of his clean fast starts. The rear wheel drive BMW 320i powered off the line and headed down into the Nissan Sweeper ahead of Heffernan and Riley. Riley made a good start, getting the jump on Heffernan in the front wheel drive Toyota Corona. Riley took a wild ride on the outside line through Nissan, with he and Heffernan heading into the Esses side by side. Peter van Brugel had also made a great start, beating Barrie Thomlinson off the line and dropping in behind the duelling Corona and BMW to maintain his fourth spot on the track. Barrie Thomlinson made up the top five as they dived through the Esses, with a short distance back to Robbie Ker.

Riley was able to squeeze Heffernan out and as the cars headed down the back straight it was Richards, Riley, Heffernan, van Brugel and Thomlinson. However this situation didn't last for long as the raw horsepower of the Toyota Corona came into play and Heffernan blasted past Riley down the back straight through Shell Curve. Heffernan then set his sights on Richards, who had placed a handy gap on the field. As the cars came into the braking area before the hairpin they bunched up, Heffernan and Riley closing in on Richards. Barrie Thomlinson took a wider line round the outside of van Brugel at the hairpin, but van Brugel made the faster exit to deny Thomlinson fourth place.

On the second lap the expected charge on Richards from the Corona did not eventuate and it was Barrie Thomlinson who made progress, passing Peter van Brugel as the cars headed into the breaking area going into the hairpin. Riley then came under pressure from Thomlinson as they came over the top of Mobil Mountain, Heffernan mounting another charge on Richards as the cars headed towards the Nissan Sweeper. The handling of the BNT BMW 320i showed through the Esses and Richards made a fast exit onto the back straightaway to place plenty of clear air between him and Heffernan. Peter van Brugel had dropped slightly off the pace and sat off the leading group of four cars.

On to the start/finish line for the fourth time and Ross Heffernan got close enough to Jason Richards to move on the BMW down the outside, the Toyota Corona momentarily overlapping the back end of Richard's car. Richards hugged the inside line to hold off the Toyota Corona. On lap five an unidentified piece of Heffernan's car flew off at Nissan Sweeper and by the end of the lap Heffernan had fallen into the clutches of Riley and Thomlinson, the Toyota's engine sounding as if it was going through it's death throws.

Lap six and both Riley and Thomlinson had passed Heffernan who had slowed dramatically. As the cars slipped down the back straight, Heffernan pulled to a stop as a two metre sheet of flame licked the air from under the Toyota's bonnet. There were a few anxious moments for driver and car before the emergency services arrived on the scene. The promise of Heffernan's car had literally blown up in his face and with it the possibility of someone beating the BMWs to the line. In the mean time Barrie Thomlinson had grasped an opportunity in the braking area to move on Riley down the outside. The Ford Telstar drifted very wide as the cars headed into the corner associated with the pit entrance. Riley feeling that discretion was the better part of valour relented, loosing a place but maintaining his championship lead. Peter van Brugel was quick to try and capitalise on this battle, but by the time the cars were streaming over Mobil Mountain, Riley was consolidating his position and pressuring Thomlinson for his old place.

The tail enders were caught by lap eight, Thomlinson, Riley and van Brugel bunching up as they passed Wayne Moore's Nissan Sentra through the Esses. As had occurred through out the season, there was another race going on in the 1600 cc and under classes, with Philip Colvin and Mike Eady hounding each other for lap after lap. On this occasion it was Eady being made to do all the hard work as Colvin made the little Suzuki Swift too wide for the 1600cc champion.

In the closing stages of the race, Barrie Thomlinson made a late charge on Richards, but was not really close enough to give Richards any grief. Richards took the well deserved win, followed by Thomlinson, Riley and van Brugel, about 0.5 seconds separating each car. Richards couldn't have done any more to outscore Riley. Unfortunately for Richards, like F1 World Champion Alain Prost, Professor Riley had used his head and a calculator to take the New Zealand Touring Car Championship for 1997/98!

Results - Race 1 (10 Laps)

No.	Driver	Car	Best Lap Time
2	Jason Richards	BMW 320i 1991cc	01:07.27
7	Barrie Thomlinson	Ford Telstar 2000cc	01:07.18
1	Brett Riley	BMW 320i 1991cc	01:07.18
3	Peter van Brugel	Nissan Sentra SSS	01:07.40
18	Robbie Ker	Toyota Corona 2.0	01:08.70
12	Geoff Short	Ford Telstar 2000cc	01:08.93
10	Grant Aitken	Suzuki Baleno 1840cc	01:11.78
37	Philip Colvin	Suzuki Swift 1298cc	01:14.14
91	Mike Eady	Toyota Corolla GTi 1600cc	01:14.36
81	Ted Jarvis	Toyota Corolla GTi 1600cc	01:14.91
14	Dean Mildenhall	Nissan Sentra GT 1600cc	01:16.39
84	Shayne Lawrey	Peugeot 106 1300cc	01:16.79
38	Glenn Collins	Nissan Sentra GT 1600cc	01:16.79
30	Wayne Moore	Nissan Sentra 1596cc	01:17.98
6	Ross Heffernan	Toyota Corona 2.0	DNF

Race Two

Despite the New Zealand Touring Car Championship being decided the previous day, the final race of the 1997/98 New Zealand Touring Car Championship still managed to keep fans on the edge of their seats, making a fitting end to a dramatic and exciting weekend. It was a race where none of the drivers had anything to loose and much to gain. Heffernan and his crew had worked through the night to replace the engine that had blown the previous day. In a show of team co-operation Lyall Williamson's BMW Motorsport Team loaned Heffernan an engine hoist to help with the the replacement of his blown engine. Richards wanted to prove his consistency with a final win, while Riley wanted to finish his championship on a strong winning note. No one had beaten BMW all season so van Brugel, Thomlinson and Heffernan all wanted to prove before the seasons end that it could be done.

The second race was 18 laps long, with the order of the top six cars reversed. In a change from the usual format, these positions were determined by using the best times from both qualifying sessions. Ross Heffernan's first qualifying time was the best of the meeting and this placed him in sixth position, with Richards in fifth and Riley in fourth. Peter van Brugel sat on third spot, with Thomlinson second. Robbie Kerr took pole position from Geoff Short.

Robbie Ker's start was a little too enthusiastic for officials and resulted in him being penalised 5 seconds for moving forward prior to the green light. It was Barrie Thomlinson who got the best start from the second row of the grid, rocketing past Robbie Ker to comfortably take the lead. Peter van Brugel opted for the centre of the track. That gave Jason Richards an opportunity to make a start reminiscent of the one he made at Manfeild the previous week, driving off the track and up the inside of Robbie Ker. Riley had followed Thomlinson through, so that by the time the cars pasted the main Grandstand, they were four abreast. As Peter van Brugel and the BMWs out dragged Ker's Toyota Corona, it was the Nissan Sentra SSS driver who gained a slight advantage over Richards to squeeze the BNT BMW 320i out of room. Brett Riley was positioned on the outside of van Brugel as the cars swarmed through the Nissan Sweeper for the first time. Entering the Esses, Thomlinson was two car lengths ahead of Riley, followed by van Brugel, Richards, Ker and Heffernan who had not got a good start.

Peter van Brugel had to give his third spot away to Richards and then Heffernan as they overhauled him down the back straight. Out front, Thomlinson and Riley had placed a substantial lead on the rest of the field.

Riley pressured Thomlinson for lap after lap, probing for a way passed, finally succeeding on lap four as the pair came down into the braking area at the Hairpin. Thomlinson got very out of shape at the apex of the corner, allowing not only Riley, but Heffernan who had eaten Richards up down the back straight and then Richards to pass him.

Heffernan's second position was shorted lived as Richards came back at him. Once again the BMW duo appeared to have the race under control, with another strong head to head battle between Riley and Richards developing. However, the incredible reliability, so much a part of the BMW performance this season came unstuck as first Riley and then Richards were to suffer identical gear linkage problems.

Riley's car broke first, the Castrol BMW 320i driver finding it increasingly difficult to locate gears as the linkage at first bent and then finally gave way completely, locking him in fourth gear for the rest of the race. Richards had hunted Riley down and pasted him by lap six. Heffernan followed him past Riley on lap eleven as did Thomlinson. Richards all the while looked comfortably in the lead, and poised for a second win.

The same bump at the top of Mobil Mountain that put paid to Brett Riley's plan foiled the BNT BMW 320i as well, Richards at first finding it difficult to find gears and finally getting locked in fourth. There was now no stopping Ross Heffernan, who finally pounced on Richards on lap sixteen to the delight of fans who had to wait until the very last race of the championship for a different marquee to cross the line first. Barrie Thomlinson also managed to catch and pass Richards to secure second place.

Ross Heffernan crossed the line almost seven seconds ahead of Thomlinson to score his well deserved twenty points. Thomlinson came home behind him, with Jason Richards 0.5 seconds behind Thomlinson. Riley, Short and Kerr rounded out the top six, mechanical problems relegating van Brugel to seventh at the finish.

Results - Race 2 (18 Laps)

No.	Driver	Car	Best Lap Time
6	Ross Heffernan	Toyota Corona 2.0	01:07.16
7	Barrie Thomlinson	Ford Telstar 2000cc	01:07.44
2	Jason Richards	BMW 320i 1991cc	01:07.22
1	Brett Riley	BMW 320i 1991cc	01:07.34
12	Geoff Short	Ford Telstar 2000cc	01:08.48
18	Robbie Ker	Toyota Corona 2.0	01:08.22
3	Peter van Brugel	Nissan Sentra SSS	01:07.41
91	Mike Eady	Toyota Corolla GTi 1600cc	01:14.04
37	Philip Colvin	Suzuki Swift 1298cc	01:14.16
81	Ted Jarvis	Toyota Corolla GTi 1600cc	01:14.43
38	Glenn Collins	Nissan Sentra GT 1600cc	01:16.07
14	Dean Mildenhall	Nissan Sentra GT 1600cc	01:16.18
30	Wayne Moore	Nissan Sentra 1596cc	01:17.27
84	Shayne Lawrey	Peugeot 106 1300cc	DNF
10	Grant Aitken	Suzuki Baleno 1840cc	DNF

Race 3 - The International Touring Car Championship

Designed to give drivers who were unable to contest the whole season a chance to secure a title, the International Touring Car Championship race was a one race winner takes all event staged at the end of the six meeting, twelve race New Zealand Touring Car Championship. The grid for Race 3 was determined by the number of points each driver had accumulated in the previous six races. Reflecting his strong finish this season, not surprisingly, Jason Richards in the BNT BMW 320i qualified on pole, with the Castrol BMW 320i of Brett Riley partnering him on the front row of the grid. Barrie Thomlinson in the F1 Autotrader Ford Telstar occupied third spot, with his nemesis Peter van Brugel beside him in fourth position. Geoff Short's consistency in the Collingwood Mower/Husqvarna Ford Telstar earned him fifth spot, with the sensation of Manfeild and Pukekohe Ross Heffernan rounding out the top six cars.

Richards got away to a clean fast start and the modifications Riley had made to his car gave him new drive off the line to slot in behind the BNT BMW 320i as the cars headed down to the Nissan sweeper for the first time. Likewise Barrie Thomlinson and Peter van Brugel got away well, with only Geoff Short losing a place to Ross Heffernan as they entered the Esses for the first time.

As the cars roared down the back straight, the BMWs streaked away from the rest of the field. Riley and Richards are good friends, but out on the track they give each other no quarter. Having played a safe tactical performance in the second half of the season to secure the Touring Car Championship, Riley was hungry for a win. The pair had ribbed each other all weekend regarding the International Title and this translated into a furious battle up front. Positioning himself on the inside line, Riley braked late to overhaul Richards going into the Hairpin. Riley was then able to hold Richards off down through Dunlop and onto Mobil Hill.

At the same time Ross Heffernan was overhauling van Brugel in the Nissan Sentra SSS to move into fourth. Determined to catch the two Rs, Heffernan set out in pursuit of Thomlinson, with Robbie Ker sitting at the back of this pack. As the cars raced down the back straight and into the breaking area for the third time Richards made a strong challenge for the lead, first moving to the outside and then swinging to the inside line as the pair exiting the Hairpin. Riley and Richards then diced side by side under the Dunlop bridge, Riley being forced to button off a little earlier than Richards as the two BMWs emerged over Mobil Mountain. Richards moved into the lead, with only Thomlinson in the Ford Telstar able to keep up with their blistering pace.

Heffernan's Toyota Corona is wickedly quick down the back straight at Pukekohe and had almost passed Thomlinson as they exited at Railway on lap four. The Toyota driver nailing home his advantage on lap five, moving into third spot down the back straight. Thomlinson then fell back into the clutches of van Brugel, the two duelling through the Hair pin. On lap seven van Brugel moved on the outside of Thomlinson at Railway to grasp fourth. The Esses and Castrol Corner where causing all kinds of problems for the under 1600 cc Classes, with Glenn Collins and Dean Mildenhall getting loose, dropping off into the gravel coming out of the Esses.

The front runners caught the tail enders by lap eight. Richards was able to keep the 1997/98 New Zealand Touring Car Championship title holder at bay for lap after lap, opening up some daylight between the cars by lap twelve. Dean Mildenhall had a nasty moment on lap 12 giving himself a big fright as the Nissan Sentra GT 1600cc sliced through the dust to run perilously close to the armco before coming to rest at Castrol Corner.

As the race drew to a close, Brett Riley showed that the move Richards had made on him earlier in the race had not been lost on him. There was a touch of irony on lap 13 as Riley made a copybook dice under braking as the pair went into the Hairpin, first going to the outside and then exiting on the inside line to force Richards to surrender his lead as the pair catapulted over Mobil Mountain. Onto the back straight for the second to last time and Richards made another big move down the outside through Shell curve, momentarily passing Riley before they slowed into the braking area. With the two BMWs fighting between themselves, Ross Heffernan saw an opportunity to challenge them. However Riley maintained his cool, making his car too wide for Richards or Heffernan to get by.

In an impressive finish to the 1997/98 Touring Car season Brett Riley added the International Touring Car Championship to his New Zealand Touring Car Championship title. Jason Richards finished 0.22 seconds behind him, with Ross Heffernan rounding out the top three places. Ted Jarvis was the best of the under 1600 cc cars finishing eighth.

International Touring Car Championship (15 Laps)

No.	Driver	Car	Best Lap Time
1	Brett Riley	BMW 320i 1991cc	01:07.29
2	Jason Richards	BMW 320i 1991cc	01:07.34
6	Ross Heffernan	Toyota Corona 2.0	01:07.28
3	Peter van Brugel	Nissan Sentra SSS	01:07.84
12	Geoff Short	Ford Telstar 2000cc	01:08.66
18	Robbie Ker	Toyota Corona 2.0	01:08.77
7	Barrie Thomlinson	Ford Telstar 2000cc	01:07.72
81	Ted Jarvis	Toyota Corolla GTi 1600cc	01:15.03
30	Wayne Moore	Nissan Sentra 1596cc	01:17.67
38	Glenn Collins	Nissan Sentra GT 1600cc	01:16.45
14	Dean Mildenhall	Nissan Sentra GT 1600cc	DNF