SATURDAY night saw four formula take to the track at Lochgelly Raceway with the U Pull It 1300 Stock Cars, National Hot Rods, ProStocks and 2.0 Hot Rods all featured in a fast paced night of racing, writes our Raceway reporter, Kevin McQueen.
The ProStock formula has arguably been one of the most entertaining of the season to date, with some great racing, entertaining battles and tit for tat challenges, and Saturday was no different.
The nudge and spin class had just under 20 cars take to the track, with Lewis Gilchrist missing out in the opening heat. Chris Mack has had a slow start to the campaign, struggling for pace, although he looked back to his best on Saturday night as he cruised to victory in the opening heat of the night, before finishing 2nd in heat 2.
Mack crossed the line in 3rd in the meeting final, but having started in the wrong grid slot following on from a previous race win, he was demoted a number of places. Mack though, will be happy to be back on the pace and will be looking to continue the progress in the coming weeks.
Paul Barron has been a consistent front runner this year, but has also found himself caught up in a few coming-togethers.
In heat 1, the current track points leader finished in 2nd place, with a DNF recorded in heat 2, having incurred some damage whilst passing a couple of cars that had crashed just in front of him.
The meeting final saw Barron struggle somewhat, though, he did come away with a 5th position for his efforts.
2023 World Cup winner, Dougie Kidd, has shown some great pace this year – being one of the quickest drivers on track at every meeting so far. A consistent night for the 145 car saw the driver come away with a race win in heat 2, with two further 3rd position finishes.
There were further good performances around the field, with Gregor Whyte picking up a few good results, whilst Lewis Gilchrist took victory in the meeting final.
The National Hot Rods had their final World Qualifying Round of the campaign take place, with only a few positions to be decided. Gordon Alexander had already claimed the top spot in the series and was looking to make sure his car was in a good place ahead of the World Final, at Ipswich, at the beginning of July.
Marc Spence returned to action last time out, and was in great form, but didn’t quite come away with the results he perhaps deserved. This time though, Spence continued that great form as he raced to wins in each of the two heats, before retiring in the meeting final.
Ethan Doull ran into some problems in the opening race, forcing him out of contention for the remainder of the night. The youngster will be looking to resolve the issues ahead of the Ipswich Speed Weekend, where we anticipate, he’ll be trying to secure a wildcard entry into the World Final.
James Robertson is another driver looking to claim a place in the ‘World’ through the Wildcard race at Ipswich and he had a steady night on Saturday with three third place finishes for his efforts in his first year of racing in National Hot Rods.
Darren Scott has looked impressive of late, and will certainly be one to watch out for in the new campaign after the World Championship as he came away with another 2nd place finish in the meeting final, only beaten by Gordon Alexander.
The U Pull It 1300 Stock Cars always provide great on-track action, and Saturday was once more an entertaining night came from the class. A few big hits, spins, and drivers racing four abreast into corners – there were certainly a few hold your breath moments!
Steven Gold will be cursing his luck – a new engine in the car on Saturday night, and he found issues with it in the opening race resulting in the engine letting go and ending his night before it really started.
Kenneth Scollon was quick throughout the night, making steady progress in each passing race, and coming away with a good haul of points for his efforts as he looks to make the cut for the U Pull It World Final later in the season.
David Farrell hasn’t made as many meetings as he would have hoped this year, due to clashing commitments, but he gives it his all every time he is on track. Two third place finishes on Saturday will see him leave satisfied with his efforts, and he’ll be hoping to push on in the coming weeks.
Kai McNulty took the win in the opening heat – a driver that is never far away from the action. McNulty was on the receiving end on Saturday though, as Jamie Stewart took his chance on the last lap and launched McNulty hard into the wall on turns 3 and 4, though McNulty managed to hold on to take the win, despite some damage to the car that would put him out for the remainder of the evening.
Jamie Stewart was in great form thereafter though, as he went onto take a heat and final double. Michael Lithgow made an impressive debut in the formula, growing in confidence throughout each race, accumulating with a fantastic 2nd place finish in the meeting final.
In the 2.0 Hot Rods, Keith Brown took victory in all three races.
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