In a season that will be highlighted by the running of the Australian Speedcar Championship, the 2023/24 competition finally kicks off this Saturday at the Perth Motorplex.
In what will be the now annual Powerpalooza event (previously the Grand Opening Showdown), there is a solid field of fourteen nominations for the weekend, with a good mix of veteran drivers and youngsters making up the numbers.
Interestingly, there is only one driver in the field who has tasted success in the season opening event previously, that being Dan Golding who two seasons ago raced to his maiden feature victory after ten years of trying in what was a record time, one that still stands today.
Last season proved that his two-car outfit was potent each time it hit the track and with teammate Daniel Harding currently out of action, Golding will be racing hard to ensure he keeps the team up in lights on the top step of the podium.
He will be joined by Speedcar regulars in Glen Mears, Alfonso Guadagnino, Gary Mann and Cory Smith, while Keenan Fleming and Beau Doyle are also both back in the field, still only youngsters despite their years in the division.
Mears, Guadagnino and Fleming have all tasted feature success in the past and would love to draw first blood and repeat those efforts this weekend, with the others coming close on previous occasions and could quite possibly break through this Saturday night.
There are plenty of other youngsters also in the field this season, with names like Lee Austen, Aron Sharp and Nick Rowe back in the pack, along with the two car outfit of the Watson brothers Patrick and Joel, who have updated their cars for this season and certainly look the part.
They will be joined by two multi generation rookies, with Jake Robinson, the son of longtime Speedcar racer Paul Robinson and Cody Nash, son of Lee and grandson of Des both in the field. Nash had one run last season and impressed many aboard the Lee Redmond owned #52 machine, while Jake has been cutting some laps in the #8 machine at practice recently and shouldn’t take long to get on the pace.
It is sure to be a great way to kick off the new season, so why would you be anywhere else this Saturday?
Release by DTN Media.
Pics Courtesy JSP/DTN Media and Peter Roebuck.
Official Nominations – 14 3 Nick Rowe 8 Jake Robinson 9 Lee Austen 16 Alfonso Guadagnino 23 Glen Mears 26 Keenan Fleming 30 Aron Sharp 51 Beau Doyle 52 Cody Nash 71 Daniel Golding 75 Joel Watson 76 Patrick Watson 89 Cory Smith 97 Gary Mann
Speedcars Grand Opening Showdown/Powerpalooza History 2000-01 – Dean Beagley 2001-02 – Not Held 2002-03 – Dene McAllan 2003-04 – Tom Watson Snr 2004-05 – Scott Glazebrook 2005-06 – Scott Glazebrook 2006-07 – Scott Glazebrook 2007-08 – Rain Out 2008-09 – Scott Glazebrook 2009-10 – Neville Lance 2010-11 – Neville Lance 2011-12 – Dene McAllan 2012-13 – Dene McAllan 2013-14 – Adam Clarke (NSW) 2014-15 – Lee Redmond 2015-16 – Kaiden Manders 2016-17 – Kaiden Manders 2017-18 – Dayne Kingshott 2018-19 – Dayne Kingshott 2019-20 – Michael Pickens (NZ) 2020-21 – Tom Payet 2021-22 – Daniel Golding 2022-23 – Kaiden Manders
#52 Cody Nash
