Race carnage cuts Baird’s winning streak

Media release: Triple X Motorsport
For immediate release: Sunday 23 January 2011.
Round four review: 2010/2011 NZ Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge – The Juiced Up 200 – Levels Raceway,
Timaru 21 - 23 January 2011.
Triple X driver Gaunt continues Porsche championship lead

Race carnage cuts Baird’s winning streak

Despite Craig Baird in the ZM Mad Butcher Porsche 997 winning two from two races in this weekend’s fourth round of the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge, it was team-mate Scott Harrison in the Mad Butcher Carpet One Porsche 997 who won overall at Timaru this weekend.

Seeming to continue the race carnage theme from other classes, the weekend’s final top-six reverse grid race was almost over at the start with Baird and Triple X Motorsport team principal Shane McKillen in the VnC Cocktails Porsche 997 taken out of the race in the first series of turns.

Battle scarred in the three-way altercation between his team-mates; Gaunt’s MPD VnC Cocktails Porsche 997 was later scratched from the final race results after finishing seventh.

“Yes,” said a moderated Gaunt. “You never want to see that sort of thing happen, especially when they’re your team-mates, but it was a case of three cars going in where there was only room for two. If there was anything positive to come from it Scott was able to take the round win for the team.”

Similar did-not-finishes by his Gaunt’s rivals have slightly narrowed his lead in the standings to 95 points, from a total of 734.

Whangarei’s Scott Harrison stormed from a third position to lead for most of the final race, succumbing on the last lap to a move by Jonny Reid to finish behind the former A1GP driver at the chequered flag. One of few to finish all three races around the 2.4 kilometre circuit, he moved to fourth overall in the standings.

Fourth for the final race, Christchurch’s Paul Kelly repeated his earlier season best result in the Paul Kelly Motor Company Porsche 997 with the Outlaws Bar Porsche 997 finishing fifth – a best result for driver Michael Morton.

Joining Harrison on the weekend podium, Baird’s comfortable win in the morning race placed him ahead of his rivals, with Simon McLennan’s Porsche 996 third.

Concluding the South Island leg of the 2010/2011 championship season, the Triple X Motorsport team return to Auckland to prepare the cars ahead of the penultimate round in three weeks time. Manfeild near Feilding is a drivers’ circuit with large cambered corners, giving prime views at all spectator points.

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Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge points after round four (of six) – provisional
Pos Name Hometown Total
1,3,Daniel Gaunt, Triple X Motorsport,Auckland, 734
2,2,Jonny Reid,Auckland,639
3,1,Craig Baird, Triple X Motorsport, Queensland,616
4,5,Scott Harrison,Triple X Motorsport,Whangarei,593
5,32,Mitchell Cunningham,Auckland,530
6,4,Shane McKillen, Triple X Motorsport,Auckland,498
New Zealand Porsche Cup Challenge calendar 2010/2011
Round Date Venue Inviting Club
1 5-7 November 2010 Pukekohe NZIGP Inc
2 26-28 November 2010 Ruapuna Canterbury Car Club Inc
3 14-16 January 2011 Teretonga Southland Sports Car Club Inc
4 20-23 January 2011 Timaru South Canterbury Car Club Inc
5 11-13 February 2011 Manfeild Manawatu Car Club Inc
6 11-13 March 2011 Taupo Taupo Car Club Inc

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