J.A. Russell Ltd-backed International Motorsport driver Ant Pedersen was again the stand-out New Zealand resident driver at the latest round of the BNT V8 SuperTourer NZ Series at Pukekohe Park Raceway on Sunday.
After setting the fifth quickest qualifying time on a streaming wet track on Saturday the now 25-year-old from Hamilton finished fourth in the incident-marred first race, third in the eventful second and fourth again in the feature 32-lap final to cement second place in the series points standings behind Greg Murphy.
In each race Pedersen was not only the only resident Kiwi driver able to foot it with Murphy, eventual round winner Shane van Gisbergen and defending series title holder Scott McLaughlin, he was by far the best of the non-professionals in the field.
“And in thinking about it, that’s probably the single most impressive part of Ant’s performance on Sunday,” team manager Nick Williamson said on Monday morning.
“Obviously from our point of view it’s great to come away from a weekend like the one we’ve just had with another solid bag of points but for a young guy like Ant, who hasn’t been in the car since the last round and who isn’t full-time like Murph, Shane and Scott, to do what he did, particularly with the way the weather and track conditions were always changing, is pretty special.”
It certainly wasn’t easy out on the track with water still streaming across the start/finish straight and damp patches coming and going with the odd passing shower throughout the day.
Each race had its dramas, with Scott McLaughlin spinning on the warm-up lap and the first race red-flagged before a lap had been completed after Angus Fogg and Ash Walsh collided and slid into the barriers as the field was still bunched up for the rolling start.
The Saftey Car then had to be deployed once the race was eventually re-started so that track workers could move Mitch Cunningham’s stranded car at Castrol.
The second race started in a similar way – the red flag coming out after a multi-car pile-up at Castrol. Though once it was re-started race one winner Shane van Gisbergen eased away again from Greg Murphy with Scott McLaughlin third until he was caught and passed by Ant Pedersen in the J.A.Russell Ltd Falcon.
After playing second fiddle to Shane van Gisbergen in the first two races it was Greg Murphy who then won the 30-lap feature final, this time from van Gisbergen with McLaughlin third and Pedersen fourth.
Of the three races Pedersen rated the second his best.
“Race 1 we didn’t quite have the pace in the tyres and the set up so fourth was a good result. In the second race I felt I had car pace over Murphy and I would have had a go at him if the Safety Car hadn’t come out and equalised everything.
“It was good though, it was very slippery and Greg, Shane, Scott and I were all playing pioneer at some stage trying to find grip limits.
“The last race was OK. Towards the end I could see that Scott (McLaughlin) didn’t quite have the car pace I did but in saying that I struggled a bit during the middle phase. If I could have stayed with him I might have been able to catch him but all things considered fourth still was a good finish in the circumstances.”
Points-wise Greg Murphy has strengthened his lead in the overall series standings over Pedersen – the gap is now 208 points – and the J.A.Russell Ltd Falcon but Pedersen now has a 238 point buffer over the third placed driver, Pukekohe round winner Shane van Gisbergen.
As well as contesting the three races on Sunday Pedersen also took some VIPS for Hot Laps on Sunday. Included on the roster were reigning world and Olympic double sculls rowing champions Nathan Cohen and Joseph Sullivan, and former New Zealand cricketer and now TV host Mark Richardson.
Nationwide electrical wholesaler J.A.Russell Ltd remains the team’s main sponsor with support from the New Zealand Herald newspaper’s motoring supplement, Driven, Gull, Tissot, Burgerfuel and the chartered accountancy practice Ant Pedersen works for, Staples Rodway.
The Brother 350 event was the third of seven this year with the next, the Fathers’ Day 400 at Ricoh Motorsport Park, Taupo, set to be held over the August 31/September 01 weekend.
Subsequent rounds will then be held at Hampton Downs in October, and a South Island circuit yet to be named in early November, before a return to Pukekohe Park Raceway for a grand final meeting over the November 30/December 01 weekend.
