HEPBURN SUFFERS DEJA VU
The second round of the BNT V8s Championship at Powerbuilt Tools Raceway at Ruapuna in Christchurch this weekend was almost a case of deja vu for Timaru driver John Hepburn.
As at the opening round of the championship at Pukekohe earlier in the month Hepburn demonstrated the gains the team has made but ultimately the opportunity for a good overall result was ripped from his grasp.
However proof of the pace Johnny and the John Hepburn Racing Commodore now possess was evident in the first race of the round. Hepburn produced an excellent drive to 10th place from 15th on the grid. It was an impressive performance and the South Canterbury driver was on target to back it up with another similar result in the second race. However, while running in 10th place, the Commodore was turned around following a nudge from behind dropping John well down the order and leaving him languishing in 18th place when the chequered flag appeared.
The legacy of the hit was a bent chassis in the fuel tank area and when the third and final race got underway the Commodore was affected by fuel pressure problems, probably as a result of the damage. The race was held in diabolical conditions and Hepburn nursed the Commodore home three laps down after calling at the pits a couple of times.
"Disappointed, but happy" was how Hepburn summed up his weekend. "We had a good car at Pukekohe and we've got a good car here. We are where we should be. The boys worked really hard but we lost a good result through no fault of our own again."
Saturday's mixed weather conditions had caused its own problems for the team. Testing was held in wet conditions and John admitted "we missed our wet set-up but we learnt a lot." The track was dry when qualifying commenced and John started to show his speed, sitting ninth with just minutes to go. He was baulked on his last lap - "who knows maybe we would have made the ten," he said after the session. He would start fifteenth in the first race and it was from there that he drove to tenth in Sunday morning's race. After that luck would desert him again.
The championship will continue after Christmas at Teretonga Park in Invercargill over the weekend of 16/17 January.
John Hepburn's campaign in the BNT V8s Championship is supported by Timaru Metal Recyclers, Timaru Signs & Graphix, Paul Smith Earthmoving, Petrie Mayman Clark, Robinsons Auto Dismantlers, Blastcraft, Auto Gas, Scarlett Hydraulics, Pit Stop Otahuhu, Barchetta Pleasurecraft, Ashley Electronics, The Front Store, Pope Print, Shaun Breen Plumbing and Power Farming.
Lindsay Beer
on behalf of Johnny Hepburn Racing
021 351 499
To contact John Hepburn - phone 0274 326 934
Posted: Mon 30 Nov 2009
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