Reigning Motorsport Australia Motorkhana Champion Aaron Wuillemin has added another grassroots victory to his season tally as he continues his preparation for a national title defence.
Competing as a late entry in the Westlakes Automobile Club’s May Motorkhana, Wuillemin was the best of the 26 competitors as his overall accumulated time was the lowest of the competition at the end of nine tests.
It didn’t come easy for the 42-year-old though - engine issues early on in the event preventing him from pushing the car to its maximum capacity.
Instead Wuillemin relied on the same raw talent that helped him become the national champion in 2019 as he went fastest in six of the nine tests, including a four-test winning streak in the middle of the event.
Although he was dominant, Wuillemin’s engine issues saw him finish only four seconds ahead of the second placed David Wykes, who picked up two test wins for himself and was highly consistent for much of the day.
Snatching third spot thanks to a thrilling final test was Daryl Elliott – the Suzuki Swift driver finishing just half a second faster than Warwick Butt, who was the only other driver to win a test on the day.
With Wuillemin’s original plan of heading down south for the Motorsport Australia Victorian Motorkhana Championship round in Deniliquin cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions, the Victorian native decided to run in the Westlakes event alongside his son Hamish.
Wuillemin has been in good form heading into the event, winning a host of local events and finishing second in all three rounds of the 2021 Motorsport Australia NSW Motorkhana Championship Season.
And despite winning yet another round, the 2019 national champion believes he hasn’t been at his best since moving to the Central Coast but remained confident of hitting his straps when the Motorsport Australia Motorkhana Championship takes place in October.
“It's always a good feeling to win an event, especially coming in at such late notice after the Vic state round was cancelled,” Wuillemin said.
“Since moving to Central Coast, I haven't done too great by my standards. I finished second in New South Wales last year, nabbed a few second places in NSW this year but have still won many grassroots events too which is good.
“Wins like these are always good because they are a little confidence booster and it’s always better to be doing something rather than nothing.
“We were okay on the first run but were down to three cylinders on the second onwards, so it was a really tough day, but a good one as we enjoyed a fun battle with David.
“I know I haven’t been in great form this year but having won the Queensland state championship last year and still getting decent results in NSW, I am pretty confident that I’ll be in the mix come October.”
The Motorsport Australia Motorkhana Championship will be hosted by the Raceway Holden Sporting Car Club of Queensland at Willowbank on 17 October.