Jock Goodyer in victory lane at Archerfield Speedway. (Photo by Goodyer Racing)
Tasmanian Jock Goodyer has claimed the $20,000 winner’s check as the winner of the 25th National Sprint Car Open at Brisbane’s Archerfield Speedway on January 14.
Driving the No. 22 Platinum Prints, Goodyer was the beneficiary of a clash between local hero Lachlan McHugh (Leigh Smith Yachts/Western Trucking Group) and visiting Californian Carson Macedo (Dyson Motorsports) as they dueled for the lead with two laps remaining in the 50-lap feature.
McHugh rallied to chase him down, finishing 0.187sec behind the winner.
Cole Macedo (Mozzie Motorsport/Reston Enterprises) secured the family representation on the podium, moving from ninth on the grid to third, ahead of Matt Dumesny (Valvoline) and young Texan Chase Randall (EZ Print/Ultra Shields). , who at one point had reached the fourth position.
Carson Macedo had continued to rack up the lead points over the two nights, but a shootout on pole saw McHugh and Goodyer start on the front row, ahead of him and Oldfield (Advanced Mobility/BK Trading).
McHugh led Goodyer from the flag in the final until Macedo initially moved on to the Tasmanian and then Queenslander with eight circuits remaining. Randall was moving through the field, as was Cole Macedo in the last few messy laps.
With three laps to go, McHugh reclaimed the lead. In turn one on lap 49, Macedo attempted an inside pass but slid down the track, pushing McHugh into the wall. Macedo was relegated to the back on the restart, and McHugh nearly missed Goodyer in the final frantic run to the finish.
The Australian Sprintcar Open was the second event in the New South Wales – Queensland series following the cancellation of the early rounds scheduled for Sydney’s Eastern Creek Speedway due to rain.
Reigning national champion, Marcus Dumesny, driving the estate Valvoline Australia no. 1 car survived an incident-prone feature to claim the $5,000 winner’s check at the pre-event on January 11. It was at Archerfield that Dumesny won the Australian title in 2022.
Dumesny brought home Brock Hallett (GW Racing) ahead of the first American to finish Justin Sanders (Motorguard Motorsports). The only other drivers to finish the messy feature were Ryan Newton, Brooke Tatnell, Steven Lines, Luke McHugh, Matthew Dumesny, Carson Macedo and Michael Saller.
Polesitter Jamie Veal and fastest qualifier Jock Goodyer were among the many casualties, with Carson Macedo sent to the back of the field for sending Veal into the wall.
Macedo heads preliminary night
The American returned to the Brisbane oval two nights later, on January 13, for a dazzling display of single-seater driving on the preliminary night of the National Sprint Car Open meeting.
Unlike the complicated and frustrating qualifying system used in the inaugural meet two nights earlier, the traditional reverse grid format produced a night of competitive and voluntary racing.
After the eight heats, Carson Macedo and Luke Oldfield filled the front row of the grid for the 25-lap finale. Showing superior pace, the two pulled away from the rest of the field, led by Lachlan McHugh and Matt Dumesny.
Back on the field, Matt’s brother Marcus was making a spirited charge across the field, surrounding Jamie Veal, Steven Lines, Justin Sanders and Jock Goodyer.
Only Sanders and Cole Macedo standing still in the first turn on lap 21 stopped an otherwise uninterrupted race. Carson Macedo ran clear on the restart to claim the evening’s preliminary, his second at Archerfield this summer.