Carl sees off challenge of ‘big guns’ to win UK Stock Rod championship

Over 100 drivers took to the track over the two days where the Euro Challenge Trophy and UK Championship for the Stock Rod class were the main events on the packed schedule of 30 races.

World Champion Chris Gordon, European Champion Chris Lattka, British Champion Gary Butler and Irish Champion Stevie McNiece were all in attendance over the weekend, but none of them had any answer to Kells based Carl Sloan. The local lad enjoyed a weekend to remember, leading both main events from start to finish in his Vauxhall Corsa.

It proved to be a successful weekend all round for the Raceway regulars, with McNiece and Ballymena’s Victor McAfee filling the podium places on Friday evening, before Craigywarren’s Micky McFall and McAfee once again completed the top three finishers in the UK final.

Heat One (Friday): 1st. Carl Sloan (Kells), 2nd. Chris Lattka (Falkirk), 3rd. Stevie McNiece (Newtownhamilton)

Heat Two (Friday): 1st. Micky McFall (Craigywarren), 2nd. Lattka, 3rd. Victor McAfee (Ballymena)

Euro Challenge: 1st. Sloan, 2nd. McNiece, 3rd. McAfee

Heat One (Saturday): 1st. McAfee, 2nd. Jonathan Lattka (Falkirk), 3rd. Sloan

Heat Two (Saturday): 1st. Sloan, 2nd. McFall, 3rd. McNiece

UK Championship: 1st. Sloan, 2nd. McFall, 3rd. McAfee

There was a full programme of support races over the weekend as well, which provided plenty of thrills and spills for the race fans. Portadown’s Andy Cochrane earned a handsome final victory in the National Hot Rods on Friday evening, while Irish Champion Dean McCrory did the business once again to clinch the Junior Rod Irish Masters crown in his Peugeot 106.

Ballymena’s Noel Hazlett snatched a last gasp victory in the Speed Stocks Grand National Championship, while Moneymore’s Mark Frew also left it late before clinching the silverware in the 1600 Lightning Rod formula. The Euro Stocks made their track debut on Saturday evening where Stephen Boyd recorded a heat and final double.

In the F2 Stock Car category Gavin Fegan swept the opposition aside to capture the Norman Cromie Memorial Trophy, while Ricky Shaw took victory in the Group Two Lightning Rod Irish Grand Prix after a faultless drive in his Peugeot 306. Saloon Stock Cars completed the schedule and after heat wins for Ryan Wright and Ross Houston their final, for the Supreme Championship, featured a spectacular crash on the opening lap. While both drivers involved, Antrim’s Thomas McCrory and Scottish visitor Stuart Drobinski, walked away unscathed unfortunately the same could not be said for the safety wall, where the resultant damage and time restraints forced the organisers to reluctantly cancel the race.

GP2 LIGHTNING RODS

Heat One: 1st. Liscinda Smyth (Portglenone), 2nd. Freddie Fleck (Broughshane), 3rd. Ricky Shaw (Antrim)

Heat Two: 1st. Samuel Montgomery (Castlerock), 2nd. Shaw, 3rd. Darrell Hanna (Limavady)

Irish Grand Prix: 1st. Shaw, 2nd. Smyth, 3rd. Nigel Doherty (Garvagh)

NATIONAL HOT RODS

Heat One: 1st. Gary O’Neill (Limavady), 2nd. Adam Maxwell (Crumlin), 3rd. Andrew Murray (Randalstown)

Heat Two: 1st. Andy Cochrane (Portadown), 2nd. John Christie (Ballinderry), 3rd. O’Neill

Final: 1st. Cochrane, 2nd. O’Neill, 3rd. Maxwell

FORMULA TWO STOCK CARS

Heat One: 1st. Sam McKay (Ballyclare), 2nd. Ryan McCrory (Antrim), 3rd. Conor Hughes (Antrim)

Heat Two: 1st. Christopher Kincaid (Antrim), 2nd. Gavin Fegan (Lisburn), 3rd. Craig McConnell (Bangor)

Norman Cromie Memorial Trophy: 1st. Fegan, 2nd. McConnell, 3rd. Hughes

JUNIOR RODS

Heat One: 1st. Aaron Moody (Ballymena), 2nd. Dean McCrory (Antrim), 3rd. Jaimie McCurdy (Aughafatten)

Heat Two: 1st. Dean McCrory, 2nd. McCurdy, 3rd. Liam Wilson (Castlerock)

Irish Masters: 1st. McCrory, 2nd. McCurdy, 3rd. Moody

1600 LIGHTNING RODS

Heat One: 1st. John Goligher, 2nd. Brian McMullan, 3rd. Jerome Doherty

Heat Two: 1st. Clifford Nevin, 2nd. McMullan, 3rd. Doherty

Final: 1st. Mark Frew, 2nd. Mark Dunlop, 3rd. Nevin

SALOON STOCK CARS

Heat One: 1st. Ryan Wright (Cullybackey), 2nd. Stuart Drobinski (East Lothian), 3rd. Tommy McCrory (Antrim)

Heat Two: 1st. Ross Houston (Waringstown), 2nd. Kieran McIvor (Coleraine), 3rd. Antony McIvor (Coleraine)

Supreme Championship: cancelled

SPEED STOCKS

Heat One: 1st. Samuel Purdy (Ballymoney), 2nd. Noel Hazlett (Ballymena), 3rd. James Goldie (Ballymena)

Heat Two: 1st. Purdy, 2nd.Goldie, 3rd. Hazlett

Grand National Championship: 1st. Hazlett, 2nd. Curtis Greer (Cullybackey), 3rd. Goldie

EURO STOCKS

Heat One: 1st. William McFaul Jnr, 2nd. Philip Doherty, 3rd. Lester McCloy

Heat Two: 1st. Stephen Boyd, 2nd. Doherty, 3rd. McCloy

Final: 1st. Boyd, 2nd. Doherty, 3rd. McFaul

MEETING SPONSORS

The Raceway action was kindly supported by Curtis Cars of Ballymena, in association with William Moody & Son Car Sales of Ballymena and Ross Hyndman Motors, Londonderry.

THIS WEEKEND

The UK’s top National Hot Rod racers descend on Ballymena Raceway this Saturday (August 31) to contest the Irish Open Championship.

The local challenge is headed by current World and National Champion John Christie in his 230bhp Vauxhall Tigra. Reigning Irish Open Champion Glenn Bell from Portadown is aiming for a record breaking third Irish Open victory in a row, while former British Champions Keith Martin and Stewart Doak are also expected to figure strongly. Adam Maxwell from Crumlin, Portadown’s Mark Heatrick and Randalstown based Andrew Murray are just three of the other star names in the strong line-up from the province.

World number two Jason Kew makes the journey over from his Oxfordshire base for the event and the Englishman will be desperate to claim his first major title after finishing runner-up to Christie in both the World and National finals. Scottish Champion Billy Bonnar and Lincolnshire’s Dick Hillard will also be in the thick of the battle along with Waterford’s Tom Casey, who won the British title at Raceway twelve months ago in his potent Mercedes SLK.

There’s a full programme of support races at Raceway too, with the first event blasting off the starting grid in the Ballymena Showgrounds at 6:30pm.