Every year, Boxing Night (December 26) is one of the most anticipated evenings of the Archerfield Speedway season and 2022 is certainly no exception, with a feast of motorsport entertainment scheduled for the special Monday night fixture. In addition to the latest round of the East Coast Logistics Sprintcar Track Championship and racing action from Midgets and Modlites, the night will also feature several appearances from the mighty Monster Trucks and a Fireworks extravaganza befitting such an occasion.
Looking to join countryman Carson Macedo as a feature race winner at Archerfield this season, California’s Justin Sanders heads the Sprintcar entry list for round four of the ECL Track Championship. Fresh from a successful season at home that included wins in the Dave Bradway Memorial, the Howard Kaeding Classic and the Tribute to Gary Patterson on his way to finishing sixth overall in the NARC Fujitsu Sprintcar Series, Sanders will join forces with team owner John Weatherall for his Australian campaign, which will include five nights of racing at Archerfield in addition to selected interstate events. Following his Archerfield debut on Monday, Sanders will be back in action at Archerfield on Wednesday evening (December 28) and then again for the opening round of the Speedway Australia States Series on January 11 before wrapping up his Brisbane campaign at the 25th Anniversary Australian Sprintcar Open on January 13 and 14.
So far this season, Luke Oldfield has been the dominant force within the local Sprintcar ranks, winning the opening two rounds of the ECL Track Championship and then scoring a narrow runner-up result behind Macedo in round three. Whilst he is no doubt disappointed that he wasn’t able to topple Macedo, the fact that Oldfield is yet to be beaten by any of his track championship rivals in a feature race should be as satisfying for him as it is frustrating for the other 20+ competitors who turn up each week but are yet to stumble upon a formula for success. Of those nominated for Monday night, Jy Corbet, Taylor Prosser, Ryan Newton and Randy Morgan have proven Oldfield’s biggest threats, with Prosser, and Corbet (twice) having landed on the podium, while Morgan qualified on pole position for the previous round and led early, only to fall away through the latter stages. Newton meanwhile, has featured inside the top five on two occasions and comes into this event fresh from a podium result in Sydney last weekend.
After a slow start to their 2022/2023 campaign, the Midgets have secured their best field of the season thus far, in both quality and quantity, with 17 cars confirmed. In addition to the return of established race winners such as Rusty Whittaker, Brock Dean and Charlie Brown, who might just be the most exciting racer across all divisions, the inclusion of Kiwi gun Kaleb Currie in the field should have Midget fans bristling with anticipation at what might transpire when these guys hit the track. If Darren Vine has rectified the engine gremlins that plagued him at the last meeting, there is no doubt he will also be in the mix, with Brad Dawson, Casey O’Connell and Brodie Tulloch also expected to challenge, the latter having secured a career-best result with a runner-up finish at the last meeting.
Making their first Archerfield appearance for the season, the Modlites have certainly delivered with a sizeable field that includes American gun Blake Wilson. Hailing from Arkansas, Wilson has accumulated an extensive record of success at home and will be making his first appearance in Australia. The prospect of Wilson taking on category top guns Terry Leerentveld and Klinton Hancey is exciting enough, but with another 25 drivers also determined to upstage the overseas ace, there will be desperation, drama and action aplenty.
Pit gates open at 2.00pm, with spectator entry for online ticketholders from 3.00pm. General admission tickets will be on sale from 4.00pm, with early racing from 5.00pm. The main program, which also includes Monster Trucks and Fireworks, is scheduled for a 6.00pm start.
East Coast Logistics Sprintcar Track Championship round four nominations: Allan Woods, Andrew Baumber, Brent Kratzmann, Carlo Moiola, Daniel Helmore, Dan Murray, Harry Stewart, Jack Bell, James Matthews, Jeremy Gaudry, Justin Sanders, Jy Corbet, Karl Hoffmans, Kye Jensen, Libby Ellis, Luke Manttan, Luke Oldfield, Mark Pholi, Mitch Gowland, Nathan Pronger, Peter Campbell, Randy Morgan, Ryan Newton, Steve Namit, Tarhlea Apelt, Taylor Prosser, Trent Vardy
Midget nominations: Brad Dawson, Brock Dean, Brodie Tulloch, Casey O’Connell, Charlie Brown, Chris Moor, Daniel Griffiths, Darren Dillon, Darren Vine, Drew Fenton, Jesse Harris, Kaleb Currie, Kody Stothard, Rusty Whittaker, Scott Doyle, Tim Devine, Ty Horn
Modlite nominations: Abi Meehan, Alan Saunders, Beau Laverty, Blake Wilson, Callum Beerling, Chae O’Brien, Chris Fing, Dan Lewis, Donika Gower, Jake Hawkins, Jake McRae, Josh Herne, Josh Leerentveld, Joshua Smith, Klinton Hancey, Kristian Walker, Leroy Martin, Luke Harrison, Mark Troth, Matt Cochrane, Russell Martin, Sean Rose, Steve Collins, Terry Leerentveld, Tim Jackson, Trent McLean, Tyson Snow, Warren Hooper
For further information and event updates, please stay tuned to Facebook or the track website at www.brisbanespeedway.com.au
