Clean Sweep For Richards!
by Tony Bunyan 

Its the Holy Grail of Motorsport - the perfect score. And thats what Jason Richards achieved in the third round of the New Zealand Touring Car Championship. First in qualifying, first in all three races and setting a new lap record, with a maximum points score to boot!

Race One
Race One at Ruapuna Park was held in hot dry conditions. Jason Richards in the Team Kiwi Pitstop Nissan Primera powered off pole position, but it was Brett Riley in the International Motorsport Castrol BNT BMW 320i that got the better start.

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Richards held his ground and as the cars headed through the first turn, it was Richards, Riley, Bell, Thomlinson and Fogg. But Riley wasn't ready to concede either and as the cars headed down the back straight he slipped past Richards and made it stick through the hairpin.

On the second lap, with his sights clearly set on regaining his position Richards overcommitted himself and ran wide at the hairpin allowing Bell and Thomlinson to overtake him. On the third lap race leader Riley was holding off team mate Bell, with Richards fighting his way past Barrie Thomlinson's Lexus 200IS. Fogg in the other Team Kiwi Primera was having a tougher time keeping on the pace, overtaking Scharmach in the Toyota Corona and pressing on towards Thomlinson, passing him by the end of the lap.

With three quarters of the race completed, time was running out for the movers in the pack. Richards was ringing every last bit of performance out of his car, as he attempted an assault on Bell. On more than one occasion he used the grass as well as the track to get pasted. So did Peter Scharmach's Toyota Corona. Race leader Brett Riley mean time held a comfortable lead, running fast and smooth. Fogg in the second pack was six car lengths behind.

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Richards relentless pressure finally paid off as he tucked up under Bell at the hairpin. Bell attempted to retake the position as they exited, but Richards was on a mission to retake the lead. Ahead of him was his target! - Riley in the BMW that was such a familiar workplace for Richards

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With one and a half laps left, Riley had a three car length advantage over the Nissan Primera. As the cars streamed towards the bottom sweeper, Riley lost his momentum and his lead evaporated as Richards flew by. So did the rest of the cars and Riley came to a halt on the infield. His race run. "It all comes back to the oil pump problem we had on Friday. The oil light came on and I knew my race was over. That's racing". Kevin Bell attacked Richards for the lead on the last lap, but Richards was not going to be denied his win, crossing the line 0.7 seconds ahead of Bell, with Angus Fogg in third.

Race Two
Scattered cloud meant the air and track temperatures were high on a dry track for the commencement of Sunday's racing. Neither Richards nor Riley got the best of starts off the front row of the grid and it was Kevin Bell in the second of the BMW 320is who challenged Richards for the lead as the cars streamed into the sweeper for the first time.

Bell ran out of real estate and withdrew from a potential car bending situation. "I got a great start and was making a real challenge for the lead. But in the end I had to back out or it would have all ended in tears" commented Bell.

As the cars reached the hairpin Angus Fogg overtook the Lexus of Barrie Thomlinson for fourth, with the Toyota Corona of Peter Scharmach rounding out the top six.

Once in clear air Richards began to stretch his legs, with Bell hard on his heals. There was then four car lengths back to Riley who seemed to be struggling to maintain the pace of the other cars. Fogg and Thomlinson snapped at Riley's heals but couldn't find a way around him.

Further down the feild drama was unfolding as contact between Peter Scharmach's Toyota and Jody Vincent's Nissan Sentra SSS lead to a chain reaction involving Adam Brook and Aaron Harris. Harris came off worst, carrering across the grass and damaging both the front and rear ends of the car to the extent that he had to make an unscheduled pit stop on lap four to remove the front bumper.

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By the fifth lap Riley started making progress, no longer under threat from Fogg and making time on Bell. "We had to rebuild the engine overnight so at the begining of the race the engine felt tight and was running hot. It took a few laps before it started loosening up and delivering some performance" said Riley. Richards mean time was setting his own pace out on his own at the front.

On the sixth and final lap Riley made a bid for second, chasing Bell down the back straight and drag racing him to the line. Bell managed to fight him off to finish second beating Riley by a nose, three seconds behind Richards.

Race Three
With suspension of the compulsory pit stop, reversing the grid and increasing the number of laps from six to ten, the final race was shaping up to be the best of the meeting. Defending Champion Jason Richards had maximised his points, making up for his disasterous Pukekohe meeting. Championship leader Brett Riley appeared to have stemed his run of bad luck and needed to continue his points grab. Kevin Bell and Angus Fogg were locked on 206 points a piece and who ever prevailed in this race would go to Timaru holding second place in the Championship.

Kevin Bell made another fantastic start to barrel off the fourth row of the grid and into the lead, chased by Fogg and Scharmach.

On the second lap Fogg in the Team Kiwi Nissan Primera claimed the lead from Bell with Richards and Riley passing Jody Vincent to put them in the middle of the field. On lap three Bell in the BMW 320i found himself sandwiched between the Team Kiwi Nissan Primeras. The pair made passing manouvers on both the inside and outside, literally sweezing Bell out the back and running one-two with Bell in third.

As the Team Kiwi cars fort for supremacy Riley overtook Scharmach and then Bell. By the halfway mark the quicker cars were through the traffic and a new race began.

Angus Fogg ran off the track, setting up a classic Richards/Riley battle for the lead, with Bell in third. While Riley set out in pursuit of Richards there was plenty of action further down the feild. As Fogg raced to recover his fourth position, the Toyota Corona of Peter Scharmach and Lexus 200IS of Barrie Thomlinson swopped positions for lap after lap.

By lap nine Riley had caught Richards, but the defending Champion was making his car extremely wide. The BMW had speed, but Richards consistently denied Riley a way past. As the last lap board came out Riley make a move up the outside at the sweeper. In a positon similar to the one Bell had found himself in Race 2, Riley couldn't capitalise on the move and discetion being the better part of valour, tucked back in behind Richards. "If I'd made contact with him [Richards] I'd have been in the wrong and the last thing I wanted to do was loose any more points this weekend" said a philosophical Riley.

His last chance to pass Richards came as the cars streamed off the bottom corner towards the line. But Richards was not to be denied and he crossed the line a second head of Riley. Kevin Bell finished third, ahead of Fogg, emough to move him into second position in the Championship. Although ahead of Fogg and Scharmach as he crossed the line, Barrie Thomlinson incurred a five second penalty for barging Aaron Harris early in the race and was relegated to sixth.

"It been a fantastic weekend. I got a perfect score and have the measure of the BMWs" said Richards. "I'm looking forward to Timaru".