The main contenders in the 2017 NSW Formula Ford Championship are preparing to battle with the national series runners at Sydney Motorsport Park, as Round 5 of the NSW Championship combines with Round 5 of the national series this weekend to present a blockbuster 31-car field.
In the last round of the NSW Formula Ford Championship at Wakefield Park, Lachlan Gibbons wrestled the lead away from James Burge with a clean sweep of victories.
Jake Donaldson made his return to Formula Ford competition and – benefiting from technical support from the Justin Cotter-owned Synergy Motorsport outfit – he was a contender all weekend, leading most of the final race.
Also driving for Synergy Motorsport, Jackson Burton has been steadily improving all season and scored a second-place finish in one of the races at Wakefield Park.
Gibbons, Burge, Burton and Donaldson will all be on the grid this weekend, along with Lachlan Mineeff. Gibbons says while it will be a good chance to measure himself against the national drivers, his focus is on beating his state series rivals.
“We’re confident our familiarity with Sydney Motorsport Park will allow us to be competitive against some of the national guys, but I’m also very mindful of not getting embroiled in any unnecessary battles – the main priority is to beat the other state championship competitors,” Gibbons said.
The Kent Class drivers will also be up against quality national opposition, as the event marks the final round of the national Kent series.
Keith Brennan currently leads the NSW Kent points ahead of Anglo Motorsport team-mate Josh Behn, and is planning to take the fight up to national Kent front-runner Mitch Maddren.
“We tested at Sydney Motorsport Park a couple of weeks ago, and made some significant gains with the rear end of our Spirit, so hopefully when we put new tyres on, it will translate to improved lap times,” Brennan said.
“In terms of pace, Mitch has been the benchmark this year so hopefully we can run with him, and obviously I need to finish ahead of Josh to preserve my state championship lead as well.”
Qualifying and Race 1 will be held on Saturday, with Races 2 and 3 on Sunday.
Duratec Points
- Lachlan Gibbons – 254
- James Burge – 221
- Jackson Burton – 207
- Jayden Ojeda – 136
- Lachlan Mineef – 113
Kent Points
- Keith Brennan – 338
- Josh Behn – 311
- Mitch Maddren – 183
- Daniel Holihan – 132
- Noel McDermott – 132
