Formula 4000 News Drivers Teams The Cars Calendar Tech Competitor Info Classifieds Photo Gallery Links Media Info

24/4/06 | Hanger plays it safe at the park

 

2006 Yokohama Australian Formula 4000 Drivers Championship

Round 2 – Wakefield Park, New South Wales

 

HANGER PLAYS IT SAFE AT THE PARK

Gosford driver Ty Hanger has put behind a disappointing start to the 2006 Yokohama Australian Formula 4000 Drivers Championship to win the latest round at Goulburn’s Wakefield Park. today (Sunday).

 

Despite being shadowed in terms of outright speed throughout the weekend by championship leader Derek Pingel, Hanger drove judiciously to record a 3rd place finish in the opening race before taking a well-deserved win in Race 2 following a first corner altercation involving Mark West, Pingel and Les Crampton.

 

After a day of close and at times eventful racing, Hanger collected the round win from a consistent West and Pingel, who leaves Wakefield Park at the top of the overall championship standings on 66 points from West (57 points) and an ascendant Hanger (47 points).

 

QUALIFYING (20 minutes): 

Qualifying for the second round of the 2006 Yokohama Australian Formula 4000 Drivers Championship at Wakefield Park commenced in fine conditions at approximately 1:05pm on Saturday afternoon with a 20-minute session to determine the starting grid for Sunday’s opening 14-lap race on the tight and twisty 2.20km circuit located 10 minutes out of the cathedral town of Goulburn.

 

Picking up from where he left off at Melbourne’s Calder Park in March, Derek Pingel took a well-earned pole position from the man most likely to challenge the Queenslander for the championship, Ty Hanger.  The Hanger Racing team managed to rectify a mechanical problem caused by a bung which had been missing from the engine block which caused oil to travel to the sump instead of the engine.

 

Qualifying a promising 3rd was F4000 debutant Alan Price in his first drive with the new Team Sydney outfit, a welcome addition to the championship sporting a businesslike new colour scheme on the ex-Ralt Australia Reynard 96D with sponsorship from imaging and optical company, Canon.

 

Price headed up Hocking Motorsport driver Les Crampton and the two Mumbo Racing entries of Sam Dale and Matthew Fox, the former having to contend with a deflating Yokohama tyre during the session.

 

The final row of the grid would see another series debutant Justin Wade line up in the second Hanger Racing entry alongside Mark West who failed to register a qualifying time following a clutch failure in Saturday morning’s earlier practice session. Later in the afternoon however, West Racing diligently travelled to Sydney to acquire a new clutch which would enable West to take the start of Sunday’s opening race from the rear of the grid.

 

Qualifying Results

1. Derek Pingel - #8 Australian Lifestyle Management Group Reynard 95D (55.9915s)

2. Ty Hanger - #48 Pluim Interiors Reynard 95D (56.2607s)

3. Alan Price - #95 Team Sydney Reynard 95D (59.5356s)

4. Les Crampton - #74 Hocking Motorsport Reynard 97D (59.7213s)

5. Sam Dale - #12 Mumbo Racing Reynard 94D (59.7906s)

6. Matthew Fox - #24 Information Assurance Solutions Reynard 91D (1:01.5104s)

7. Justin Wade - #44 Pluim Interiors/Powergard Mouthguards Reynard 92D (1:02.6398)

8. Mark West - #50 Just Parts Magazine Reynard 97D (No Time)

 

 

RACE 1 (14 laps):

As is now customary in F4000, Sunday morning’s opening 14-lap commenced with a rolling start which saw Pingel assume the lead into the first corner from Hanger and a fast-starting Les Crampton.

 

Approaching Turn 3 on the opening lap, Hanger’s pursuit of Pingel was curtailed with a cold tyre-induced spin sending the 34-year old to the back of the pack while Pingel skipped away from Crampton, now enjoying the highest ever position in his F4000 career, Dale and Price.

 

Price’s first F4000 race ended early however on lap 3 when the youngster looped the car at the notorious ‘Fishhook’ at Turn 7 and eventually beached the car on an outside ripple strip. With race officials deeming that Price’s car was in a precarious position for the rest of the field, the Safety Car was deployed much to the delight of Hanger whose massive gap to the next car in the field (Matthew Fox) was now abated.

While the Safety Car peeled back into the pits at the end of lap 5, Pingel made the most of the restart to establish a safe margin over Crampton and Dale who were now coming under attack from a very racy West and a looming Hanger who had just disposed of Fox at the beginning of the lap.

 

By lap 8, both Crampton and Dale had succumbed to the advances of West and Hanger but the traffic that each of the positional changes that all of these drivers had to contend with only allowed Pingel to pull away further and record his third win from three starts thus far as well as fastest lap while West and Hanger completed the top three placings some eight seconds in arrears of the Queenslander.

 

Race 1 Results;

1. Derek Pingel - #8 Australian Lifestyle Management Group Reynard 95D

2. Mark West - #50 Just Parts Magazine Reynard 97D

3. Ty Hanger - #48 Pluim Interiors Reynard 95D

4. Sam Dale - #12 Mumbo Racing Reynard 94D

5. Les Crampton - #74 Hocking Motorsport Reynard 97D

6. Justin Wade - #44 Pluim Interiors/Powergard Mouthguards Reynard 92D

DNF. Matthew Fox - #24 Information Assurance Solutions Reynard 91D

DNF. Alan Price - #95 Team Sydney Reynard 95D

 

RACE 2 (20 laps):

When the lights went green for the start of Sunday’s second race, both Pingel and West took off from the front row suffering from wheelspin which allowed Hanger to nip around the outside of both drivers to take the lead into the first corner.

 

As the field arrived at Turn 1, Pingel had opted not to challenge Hanger and intended to settle in behind the Pluim Interiors car, but a hard-charging West had different ideas and proceeded to feint up the inside of Pingel only for his left front wheel to make contact with the right rear of Pingel’s car, pitching the Queenslander into a spin before Les Crampton drove into the front of the WISC Racing machine and obliterated its nosecone.

 

Both West and Crampton continued unscathed despite the former now having to battle with steering alignment issues as a result of the contact with Pingel, while for the second time in as many races the Safety Car again took to the track as marshals set about removing the debris at Turn 1 after the accident.

 

After deducing that the car was still driveable, Pingel toured back to the pits for repairs and much to the Queenslander’s delight a spare nosecone was fitted to his car in a very sporting gesture from Hocking Motorsport who attached the nosecone to the car with only one bolt and a ream of “200mph” tape, enabling Pingel to continue the race albeit six laps down.

 

Out in front however, Hanger drove an easy race to take his first win of the season by 14 seconds from West who was apologetic to Pingel after the race and made up for the first corner indiscretion by purchasing a collection of photographs of Pingel’s car from over the weekend and presenting it to Pingel afterwards.

 

Les Crampton made it through for 3rd while Sam Dale slipped back to 4th after an off-track excursion late in the race caused by a dirty helmet visor. Rounding out the six finishers were debutant Price who brought the Team Sydney car home on the lead lap and Pingel who managed to come back from the first corner incident to record the fastest lap of the race on the penultimate lap.

 

Race 2 Results;

1. Ty Hanger - #48 Pluim Interiors Reynard 95D

2. Mark West - #50 Just Parts Magazine Reynard 97D

3. Les Crampton - #74 Hocking Motorsport Reynard 97D

4. Sam Dale - #12 Mumbo Racing Reynard 94D

5. Alan Price - #95 Team Sydney Reynard 95D

6. Derek Pingel - #8 Australian Lifestyle Management Group Reynard 95D

DNF. Justin Wade - #44 Pluim Interiors/Powergard Mouthguards Reynard 92D

DNS. Matthew Fox - #24 Information Assurance Solutions Reynard 91D