This weekend will prove a busy one for the Australian motorkhana community as both Tasmania and Western Australia hold state championship rounds.
With each state holding the third round of their 2021 seasons, there is plenty of hype surrounding each competition.
The big news to come out of Wanneroo Raceway ahead of the Motorsport Australia Western Australia Motorkhana Championship is the withdrawal of champion Scott Bennett.
Having been the dominant force of the championship in recent times and the winner of many state titles, Bennett’s absence from the round will open the door to many other title contenders.
Amongst the 35 competitors taking part in the 12-test round, championship veteran Jim Newell will step up as the driver to beat, while Bennett’s son William also enters as a hot favourite to take out his first win of the season.
Ahead of the round, championship organiser David Elliot was looking forward to seeing the battle unfold.
“Not having Scott attend the round is disappointing, however it allows someone else to stake a claim for some round honours,” Elliot said.
“Entries have been a bit down this year, however it’s been highly consistent and this round is one that usually has a low attendance rate, but we have more people for than usual for this round, which is good.
“Wanneroo is also a great place for us to compete as it gives our spectators a real birds-eye view of the action. A lot of competitors also enjoy competing there.”
In Tasmania, it will be a similar story of two top seeded individuals leading the way, however in Tasmania, the state’s number one driver has confirmed his entry,
Coming off the back of his first win for the year, Stephen Turner will be the clear favourite out of the 25 competitors confirmed to run at the Latrobe based event.
Run by the MG Car Club of Tasmania, competitors will be taking on between four and six tests with many hopeful of producing some moments of magic throughout the day.
Photo: Craig Large
One in particular and arguably Turner’s biggest rival is Lyndon Kettle, who enters the event with one round win of his own.
Although he steered his WRX to the round win earlier this year, the 48-year-old himself was surprised to be in the position he is and believed it would take something special to beat Turner for the rest of the year.
“Stephen is always hard to beat. He is a multiple state champion, and I was very lucky to beat him as it was on grass, which favoured my car,” Kettle said.
“I think winning will come down to what the weather on the day will be. He is a very good driver and has a good car, so I will be praying for rain.
“My focus will be purely to get the best out of the car. I have made some changes to give myself a bit of advantage like suspensions, so we will see if that helps, but we won’t know where we sit until the first test.
“I will try and take it up to him. Stephen and I are quite good mates, but I think he definitely has the edge. There are of course others like Nathan Russell and Nick Yaxley, but it’s Stephen’s to lose so I am just going to do the best I can.”
Both events take place on Sunday with the Motorsport Australia Tasmanian Motorkhana championship to run at Latrobe Speedway, while the Motorsport Australia West Australian Motorkhana Championship takes place at Wanneroo Raceway.