 Chaz Mostert closed the gap to championship leader Nick Foster, by winning Race 1 during Round 3 of the Genuine Ford Parts Australian Formula Ford Championship at Winton Motor Raceway today.
The Spectrum pilot got the jump on Foster off the line and then pulled away, to finish the race three seconds clear of the battle for second.
Ash Walsh experienced a return to form by finishing in second position, after an early opportunistic move on Foster, but it will be Mostert that they will be trying to catch tomorrow.
“I think today everything fell my way and we got a little luck when Ash and Nick held each other up,” Mostert said.
“We need to work on the car overnight to make sure that it’s quick for the entire race distance tomorrow, because today we started to struggle as the laps wore on.
“It’s a great start to the weekend and gives us more valuable points towards the championship, which is positive.”
Walsh, who entered the weekend in ninth position in the championship, signaled that Winton would mark the start of his title challenge and he proved the point by finishing in second place.
“We had a great battle with Nick throughout the race, but unfortunately in let Chaz slip away in the lead,” Walsh said.
“I really needed to make the most of the opportunity to get past Nick and I’m relieved that it worked. We’ll work on the car overnight to make it more consistent and come out ready for another close race tomorrow.”
Despite taking another podium position in third, Foster was slightly disappointed after the race, adamant he could have gone at least one better.
“It’s a very difficult place to make a clean pass and I think that Ash was holding us up a little,” Foster said.
“The Steeline Mygale is running perfectly this weekend, it’s just a shame we couldn’t make the most of it today.”
Hog’s Breath Café Mygale driver Geoff Uhrhane was fourth, following a good battle with teammate Ryan Simpson, who finished fifth. Adam Graham was sixth for Evans Motorsport, just one place ahead of Matt Brabham, while Martin Short and Cameron Waters were eighth and ninth.
Ben Jurczak rounded out the top 10 after a great drive from 21st position, caused when he broke a drive shaft in qualifying.
Round 3 of the series continues with Races 2 and 3 tomorrow at Winton Motor Raceway.
Find the Genuine Ford Parts Australian Formula Ford Championship on twitter @ffordaustralia to keep up to date with Australia’s premier junior development category.
WINTON MOTOR RACEWAY, WINTON, VIC - RACE 1
1. Chaz Mostert, Spectrum 012
2. Ashley Walsh, Spectrum 012
3. Nick Foster, Mygale SJ10a
4. Geoff Uhrhane, Mygale SJ10a
5. Ryan Simpson, Mygale SJ10a
6. Adam Graham, Mygale SJ10a
7. Matthew Brabham, Spectrum 011d
8. Martin Short, Mygale SJ09a
9. Cameron Waters, Mygale SJ06a
10. Ben Jurczak, Spectrum 012
WINTON MOTOR RACEWAY, WINTON, VIC - QUALIFYING
1. Nick Foster, Mygale SJ10a, 1:25.5748
2. Chaz Mostert, Spectrum 012, 1:25.7766
3. Ashley Walsh, Spectrum 012, 1:25.7962
4. Tom Williamson, Mygale SJ09a, 1:25.8579
5. Geoff Uhrhane, Mygale SJ10a, 1:25.8585
6. Ryan Simpson, Mygale SJ10a, 1:25.9331
7. Adam Graham, Mygale SJ10a, 1:26.0131
8. Matthew Brabham, Spectrum 011d, 1:26.4038
9. Nathan Morcom, Spectrum 012, 1:26.4093
10. Cameron Waters, Mygale SJ06a, 1:26.4367
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