Wright Dominates Lakeside TA2 Opener

Russell Wright has recorded a clean sweep of the opening round of the Queensland Trans-Am 2 Series at the Lakeside Tribute.

The Mustang driver lead an eight-car field including the Dodge Challenger in it’s first competitive outing in the hands of Hugh McAlister.

Wright set the bar in qualifying to secure pole position by over a second to series debutants Ryan Cochran and Anthony Tenkate.

He later converted pole into a Race 1 victory, leading a Mustang 1-2-3 ahead of Craig Harris and Ian McAlister, who fended off advances from a resurgent Tenkate for the ten lap encounter. The victory came after the race was restarted following an opening-lap incident involving Wright and Cochran.

Wright cantered away to win race two ahead of a tight contest between Ian McAlister, Harris and Tenkate. Hugh McAlister narrowly got the better of Cameron Sendall in a drag race to the chequered.

Sendall jumped to third in race three after contact between Harris and Ian McAlister at Hungry Corner turned McAlister around with Tenkate unable to avoid the stranded McAlister Motors-backed Ford Mustang.

Wright completed a clean-sweep in the final race of the weekend to kickstart his 2017 championship campaign in perfect fashion after a thrilling contest with a fast-finishing Harris and Tenkate.

“I had a moment out of the Carousel and Craig got through on me and we battled for a few laps. I pulled a power slide coming onto the straight which gave me some momentum and we went through the kink full-noise, side by side,” said Wright.

“It’s a good start for this year and that was the plan. I have done a lot of preparation work on the car and it ran faultlessly all weekend.

“I do know Lakeside fairly well so i’ve got a local track advantage in that sense. It’s one of the best tracks in Australia, but it can bite. You’re torn between risk and reward.”

The second round of the Queensland Trans-Am 2 Series will be at Queensland Raceway for the Ipswich Festival of Cars on May 6 and 7, while the New South Wales Trans-Am 2 Series begins at Wakefield Park on April 1/2 alongside the National Sports Sedan Series.