Tatnell Fourth at WWSS Speed Week Round 3

MT GAMBIER - Brooke Tatnell and the Krikke MotorSport Team have increased their series points lead with a fourth-place finish at Round 3 of Speed Week at Mt Gambier's Borderline Speedway on Saturday 29 December 2007.

The Krikke MotorSport driver qualified 10th with an 11.296-second lap. He was scheduled to start from seventh in Heat 1, but an accident on the opening lap saw the inside row move forward, allowing him to start from the second row. Tatnell moved into fifth at the start, and powered his Toyota Genuine Parts/Cool/Maxwill machine around the high line to take fourth in the opening laps. On the final lap, he again ran around the high line and made a passing move to finish third.

The three-time and current Australian Champion started Heat 2 from the outside of the third row and moved into fourth, before an early yellow light stoppage. He took over third after the restart, but was halted by another yellow light stoppage. At half-race distance, Tatnell made an outside move to take second. He was classified as third after a side-by-side finish.

The Toyota Genuine Parts/Cool/Maxwill driver started from pole in the A Dash and led the first lap before being passed for the lead. He finished second, to earn himself a second-row starting position for the A-Main.

Tatnell therefore started the 35-lap A-Main from the inside of the second row and moved into fourth off the start. The leaders were soon into lapped traffic, on a track with only one racing line, making passing difficult. A mid-race open red allowed the Krikke MotorSport Team to work on the car on the in-field before the race resumed.
Tatnell finished in fourth, earning valuable championship points and extending his series lead.

Tatnell summed up the night in saying, "I take my hat off to the first few rows. I mean we've gone from race tracks that have been laying rubber, then they dumped the water in it, trying to make it so that we didn't lay rubber, cause the drivers have been complaining, the crews have been complaining, and the car owners have been complaining, so they did the right thing. They consulted several of the drivers on whether they should grade the racetrack before the Feature race, and they needed to, because it was getting one-lane as it was. The cold weather just kept bringing the moisture up, so it was just a racetrack that was very, very hard to pass on. For us, the driver was too polite in the Dash and that basically cost us a top-two finish. Everything was from the Dash."

Team Owner Shane Krikke commented, "It's a satisfying fourth, to come home in front of Max [Dumesny] and Farry [Robbie Farr] and consolidate a few points and have a solid night, which obviously we haven't had so far since Speed Week commenced. Hopefully, we've got rid of our little gremlins and we're back on the path, and a win will be just around the corner, and hopefully at the end of that will be a Series win. So all up, a solid fourth, if there is such a thing."

Krikke MotorSport's next race will be Round 4 of Wanless World Series Sprintcars Speed Week at Avalon Raceway, Lara, on Sunday 30 December 2007.

Krikke Motorsport merchandise is now available on-line or direct from the Team Transporter at each venue.

Brooke and the Krikke Team again thank their valued sponsors: Bunbury Toyota, Toyota Genuine Parts, Terry Shields Toyota, PWR, Mega Motors, Maxwill Race Engines, Cool Chassis, Mercure Hotel Parramatta, A1 Sign Shop, A. Lucas Spraypainters, GT Aluminium, Revolution Racegear, BR Motorsports, Vortex Wings, Valvoline, Fortron, Eclipse & BCM Motorsports Marketing

29 December 2007 - Jane Alexander