Last night at AusDeck Patios Archerfield Speedway, thirty-four Sprintcars contested Round 10 of the SuperCheap Auto Sprintcar Track Championship, which also doubled as the Construction Solutions Piston Cup. Americans Donny Schatz and Brad Sweet, as well as Kerry Madsen, Ian Madsen, Brooke Tatnell, Steven Lines, James McFadden, David Murcott, Andrew Wright and Ryan Jones joined Brisbane regulars in a star-studded field set to put on a great show for the Wednesday night race fans. Brooke Tatnell and Andrew Scheuerle shared the front row for the start of the A-Main affair, with Donny Schatz back in fourteenth and a very tough field in between. Scheuerle quickly secured the lead and while Tatnell held a comfortable second, occasionally challenging Scheuerle for the lead, Scheuerle looked in remarkable form and seemed to have a firm grasp on the lead. The last four laps of the race were truly something special as Andrew Scheuerle, Brooke Tatnell and Kerry Madsen fought for the race lead. Scheuerle ran a fraction wide in turn two on lap 32 (of 35), with Tatnell and Madsen, who had already been running two abreast for half a lap as Madsen attempted to steal second, dove underneath the Q25 racer. The trio went three wide through turn two, with Scheuerle managing to hang on to the race lead, but with Madsen now up to second and just three and a half laps left to run. Madsen took to the high line and while Scheuerle was able to hang on to the lead for almost a lap and a half, Madsen raced around the outside to steal the lead just a couple of laps from home. While Scheuerle tried to fight back in the remaining couple of laps, Kerry Madsen went on to take the win, with Andrew Scheuerle forced to settle for second with Brooke Tatnell rounding out the podium. Donny Schatz managed to work his way to an impressive fourth, with Steven Lines completing the top five.

Time trials got underway with Brisbane racer Luke Oldfield securing quick time in the Titman Garages Q36 racer. Oldfield stopped the clock at 12.170 seconds, narrowly beating current Australian Champion David Murcott, who went second quick with a 12.202 second lap. Kerry Madsen set himself up for a great night, officially third quickest in qualifying with a 12.269 second lap, while Brisbane-based young-gun Lachlan McHugh put in a couple of impressive laps to secure the fourth fastest qualifying time. Brad Sweet rounded out the fastest five, while the top twenty-four cars were separated by less than one second. Steven Lines beat Donny Schatz by just one thousandth of a second, while Andrew Scheuerle beat James McFadden by the same tiny margin. Unfortunately for Steven Johnson and Brent Kratzmann qualifying didn’t quite go to plan. For Johnson, a large rut in turn three unsettled the Q27 racer before the car flipped into the fence coming out of turn three. Kratzmann also had problems in turn thee, clipping the wall as he tried to avoid the rut before inverting the Q4 racer. Both drivers were able to walk away from the wrecks and while Kratzmann returned trackside for his heats, Johnson was out for the remainder of the night.

Heat one started with Dave Fanning and Allan Woods from the front row, with Fanning getting a brilliant start and quickly securing the race lead. Darren Jensen and Brooke Tatnell had shared the second row, with both quick to dive underneath Woods to steal second and third respectively before they hit the first corner. Donny Schatz raced around Bryan Mann before slipping under Woods in turn two, with Woods tagging the wall as the field raced down the back straight for the first time. Tatnell challenged Jensen for second, the pair side-by-side as they raced into turn three, but Jensen remained solid on the low side and held on to second. Luke Oldfield and Kevin Titman began trying to make their way to the front, but all eyes were on Tatnell and Jensen and the former searched high and low for a way past the local Q75 racer. Within a few laps Jensen had pulled slightly ahead of Tatnell, and was rapidly closing in on Fanning, while Tatnell found himself defending his position from Schatz. Able to put the USA15 racer anywhere he liked, Schatz searched for a way past and effortlessly switched from the high side to the bottom to slip under Tatnell as they raced down the back straight. Meanwhile, Jensen was all over the back of Fanning, eventually capitalising on a small mistake by Fanning in turn two, with Jensen taking advantage of the opening on the low side to steal the lead. Schatz slipped underneath Fanning half a lap later with just one lap left to run. Tatnell soon followed but there was no stopping Darren Jensen who went on to take the win. Controversy unfolded when Donny Schatz uncharacteristically spun the USA15 racer on the final corner, stopping a quarter of a lap short of the chequered flag. As Jensen had already taken the chequered flag the race was officially over, with final positions declared as they stood for the last recorded lap. Dave Fanning was credited with second ahead of Brooke Tatnell and Steven Lines. Bryan Mann was officially fifth with Luke Oldfield, Kevin Titman, Allan Woods, Anthony Vanderreyden and Dale Shilleto rounding out the finishers. Donny Schatz did not finish the event.

Paul Morris and Darren Silcock shared the front row for the start of heat two, with Morris having been elevated to pole position in the absence of Clem Hoffmans. Morris and Silcock raced side-by-side into the first corner, with Silcock getting a little extra drive on the high side to secure the race lead. Morris momentarily held second, but Mark Pholi and Andrew Wright, who had shared the second row of the starting grid, were quick to pounce, racing either side of Morris as they negotiated turn two. Pholi held second, with Wright right on his tail, as Brad Sweet, Ian Madsen and David Murcott battled towards the rear of the field. The race was soon brought under caution for Kristy Bonsey who had come to a stop in turn four, the leaders having barely completed a lap. Silcock led the restart from Pholi and Wright, with Brad Sweet quickly making his way past Paul Morris. Ian Madsen and David Murcott raced two wide while looking for a way past Morris, but contact between the pair on the main straight, with the right rear of the ACT18 racer of Madsen climbing over the top of the left front of the A1, saw Murcott spin the A1 racer onto the bottom edge of the track. He was unfortunately unable to restart the event, having completed just three laps. Silcock again led the restart from Pholi and Wright, with Madsen resuming his efforts to get past Morris. Silcock had Pholi all over his tail, who in turn was trying to defend his position from Wright, while Sweet closed in. Wright boldly ran around the outside of Pholi, before stealing the lead from Silcock a lap later. Sweet put the challenge to Pholi, but Pholi fought back hard and managed to regain his position. By this stage Ian Madsen was right on their tail, racing underneath Sweet in the final corner. Andrew Wright went on to take the win with Darren Silcock in second and Mark Pholi third after an impressive drive. Ian Madsen crossed the line in fourth ahead of Brad Sweet, Paul Morris, Jayden Peacock and Brad Ayers. David Murcott and Kristy Bonsey both failed to finish the event.

Heat three got underway with Brandon Rawlings and Bruce Marshall from the front row, and a tough field behind. The leading pair raced side-by-side through the opening corners, neither willing to forfeit the lead, but contact between Ryan Jones and Callum Walker, who had shared the second row on the grid, saw Walker spin the Q33 racer high on the track in turn two. As the rest of the field took evasive action, Kerry Madsen came together with a fellow competitor, shooting up track and coming to a stop with Walker. All drivers restarted the event, with Rawlings and Marshall to again led the field to the green. Once again Rawlings and Marshall again raced wheel-to-wheel through the first two corners, with Rawlings soon emerging in front to secure the lead, while Marshall held down second with Andrew Scheuerle now right on his tail. With barely a lap completed the race was again brought under caution, this time for Scott Doyle who had spun in turn four. Rawlings led the restart from Scheuerle and Marshall, with Scheuerle racing around the outside of Rawlings just a couple of laps into the restart. James McFadden raced his way around Marshall, as Kerry Madsen and young Lachlan McHugh argued over positions mid-field, with McHugh then putting pressure on Ryan Jones whilst keeping Madsen at bay. Unfortunately the race was brought to another stop, with James McFadden stopped on the exit of turn three. Front end damage to the NQ25 racer of McFadden would see him unable to restart the race. Scheuerle led the restart from Rawlings, Marshall, Jones and McHugh with five laps left to run. Marshall made a small error in turn two, allowing Jones, McHugh and Madsen through, but no one had anything for Andrew Scheuerle at the front of the field. Scheuerle went on to take the win ahead of Brandon Rawlings, Ryan Jones, Lachlan McHugh and Kerry Madsen. Callum Walker had a great drive from the rear of the field, running the high line around Brent Kratzmann and Bruce Marshall in spectacular fashion, to cross the line in sixth, leading Bruce Marshall, Brent Kratzmann, Andrew Liebke, and Scott Doyle across the line. James McFadden did not finish the event.

Brisbane locals Darren Silcock and Dave Fanning lined up alongside each other on the front row for the start of heat four, with Andrew Wright and Darren Jensen right behind them. Fanning got a brilliant start and quickly settled into the race lead, with Jensen in a very strong second. Further back in the field Ian Madsen, Steven Lines and David Murcott argued over the minor places, but it was hard not to watch as Darren Jensen attempted a big inside passing move on Fanning for the race lead. As they rounded turn one just a few laps into the race Jensen made his move, but Fanning fought back hard and managed to maintain his lead, with Jensen then switching to the highline to try and get the job done. Ian Madsen had pulled ahead of Lines and Murcott and was searching for a way past Wright, working the bottom as the pair closed in on Bryan Mann. Back at the front Jensen was relentless, always ready to move should Fanning make a mistake. Jensen eventually took to the high line once more, racing around the outside of Fanning in turn four to steal the lead a few laps from home. Bryan Mann made his way past Fanning, while Ian Madsen soon found his way around the outside of Wright and onto the tail of Fanning. Fanning held him off for a lap but the pair crossed the line side-by-side, with Madsen crossing the line 0.117 second in front. Darren Jensen took the win with Bryan Mann in second and Ian Madsen third. Dave Fanning finished fourth after a strong drive, and led David Murcott, Andrew Wright, Steven Lines, Kevin Titman, Dale Shilleto and Darren Silcock across the line.

Heat five started with Allan Woods from pole position with Brandon Rawlings alongside. Woods got the jump on the start, with Rawlings coming back hard on the high side as they entered turn one, but it was Woods who led them out of the second corner. Brooke Tatnell settled into third but instantly started challenging Rawlings for second. Tatnell on the low line got the job done coming out of turn four on the first lap, with Tatnell setting his sights on Woods and the race lead. Mid-field Donny Schatz and James McFadden were trying to find a way past Ryan Jones, with Schatz slipping underneath the W49 racer in turn four, and McFadden less than half a lap later. Within a lap Schatz and McFadden were on the tail Rawlings, making their way past over the next couple of laps. Luke Oldfield was having a great run on the high line in the Titan Garages #36 racer trying to make his way around Ryan Jones, while Schatz closed the gap to, and swiftly slipped underneath, Woods. Brooke Tatnell went on to take the win with Donny Schatz in second and James McFadden third. Early leader Allan Woods finished fourth and led Luke Oldfield, Ryan Jones, Brandon Rawlings, Lachlan McHugh, Andrew Liebke and Anthony Vanderreyden past the chequered flag.

The sixth and final heat of the night saw Bruce Marshall start from pole position, with Paul Morris again elevated to the front row in the absence of Clem Hoffmans, who had elected to start rear of the field. Marshall and Morris raced side-by-side into the first corner, with Marshall securing the lead and Morris settling into second ahead of Callum Walker. Brad Sweet slipped underneath Mark Pholi and began challenging Andrew Scheuerle for position, while Walker ran the high line trying to get past Morris. Walker showed great pace on the high side, with a race craft impressive for a teenager in only his second season in the division. Once Walker secured second he set his sights on Marshall in the race lead. Scheuerle and Sweet ran around the outside of Morris through turns three and four, at one stage going three wide as Sweet tried to run under Scheuerle and around Morris at the same time. Morris was left to defend his position from Mark Pholi and Kerry Madsen while Scheuerle and Sweet sought to relegate Marshall a couple of positions further back in the field. Callum Walker went on to take a very impressive win, leading Andrew Scheuerle, Brad Sweet and Kerry Madsen across the line. Bruce Marshall managed to hang on to finish fifth ahead of Mark Pholi, Brad Ayers, Brent Kratzmann, Paul Morris, Jayden Peacock and Scott Doyle. Clem Hoffmans did not finish the event.

The top eight qualifiers took to the track for a series of shoot out events. First up was the Bronze Shootout, with qualifiers three to eight taking to the track for two qualifying laps. The fastest four cars would transfer to the Silver Shoot Out, the slowest two cars being eliminated from the shootout event. Unfortunately for Ian Madsen the Bronze Shootout didn't quite go to plan, the rut in turn three, the same one that caused problems for Steven Johnson and Brent Kratzmann in qualifying, catching the ACT18 and launching Madsen high in the air. It was a spectacular crash, and while Madsen was unable to continue in the Shootout event, he walked away from the wreck and would start the A-Main event from position eight. Steven Lines won the Bronze Shootout, with Kerry Madsen, Brooke Tatnell and Lachlan McHugh all scoring transfers to the Silver Shoot Out, while Brad Sweet was eliminated from the Shoot Out events, just six thousandths of a second slower than Lachlan McHugh.

Andrew Scheuerle and Luke Oldfield joined Steven Lines, Kerry Madsen, Brooke Tatnell and Lachlan McHugh on track for the Silver Shoot Out. Steven Lines again dominated the leader board, his 12.266 second lap enough to see him win the Silver Shoot Out. Kerry Madsen was second across the line with Brooke Tatnell and Andrew Scheuerle also transferring to the Gold Shoot Out. Lachlan McHugh and Luke Oldfield were eliminated from the event and would start the A-Main from positions five and six respectively.

Andrew Scheuerle and Brooke Tatnell shared the front row for the start of the Gold Shootout, with Kerry Madsen and Steven Lines right behind. Tatnell got the jump on the start and quickly settled into the race lead, while Madsen and Lines argued over the minor places. Brooke Tatnell went on to win the five-lap race, earning pole position for the A-Main, with Andrew Scheuerle in second. Kerry Madsen held off Steven Lines to finish third with Lines rounding out the four-car field.

A big field of eighteen cars rolled out for the start of the 20-lap B-Main event, with Callum Walker and Ryan Jones from the front row and James McFadden and Dave Fanning right behind. Jones quickly secured the lead when the lights went green, with Walker settling into second. Mid-field Darren Silcock, Andrew Liebke, Anthony Vanderreyden and Bruce Marshall were embroiled in a close battle, while James McFadden put all kinds of pressure on Dave Fanning as they raced for third. Kevin Titman chased Brandon Rawlings, with the race leaders entering lapped traffic within five laps. Unfortunately the race was just five laps old when Bruce Marshall and Anthony Vanderreyden came together in turn two. Both cars ended up-side-down and while both Bruce and Anthony were able to walk away from the wreck, neither took part in the restart. Ryan Jones led the restart from Callum Walker, Dave Fanning and James McFadden, with Allan Woods and Brandon Rawlings holding the final two transfer positions and Kevin Titman keen to make it into the top six. Andrew Liebke ran around the outside of Darren Silcock to edge closer to a transfer position, and even managed to challenge Titman for seventh for a moment before the race was brought under caution for the spun car of Dale Shilleto in turn four. Jones, Walker, Fanning and McFadden again led the restart, with fourteen laps still to run. Walker put the challenge to Jones for the first lap, before settling into second, while McFadden resumed his battle with Fanning, the pair putting on a spectacular show for race fans as they negotiated over third place. Chaos and confusion unfolded in turn four, and while no one actually stopped, the race was brought under caution for the spinning car of Brad Ayers. Ayers took to the restart from the rear of the field as Jones, Walker and McFadden led the field to the green. Allan Woods had the sixth and final transfer position, but with both Rawlings and Liebke on his tail and keen to take it for themselves. When the race resumed Rawlings had a big look on the inside of Woods, with Liebke ready to strike, but Woods held on to the position and soon began trying to make his way past Kevin Titman. Ryan Jones went on to take the win, with James McFadden eventually getting the better of Callum Walker to secure second. Walker crossed the line a very impressive third, with Dave Fanning, Kevin Titman and Allan Woods all transferring to the A-Main event. Brandon Rawlings finished in seventh and led Andrew Liebke, Darren Silcock, Scott Doyle, Brad Ayers, Paul Morris, Brent Kratzmann, Jayden Peacock and Dale Shilleto across the line. Clem Hoffmans, Bruce Marshall and Anthony Vanderreyden all failed to finish the event.

A world-class field of twenty cars rolled onto the track for the 35-lap A-main event, with Brooke Tatnell and Andrew Scheuerle to lead them away with field full of some of the best drivers in Queensland, Australia and, indeed, the world. As the field took the green, no one knew just how gruelling the 35-lap non-stop affair would be, but local gun Andrew Scheuerle quickly secured the lead with Tatnell settling into second and Steven Lines in third. Luke Oldfield held down fourth while Lachlan McHugh and Kerry Madsen argued over fifth and sixth. Bryan Mann and Donny Schatz, from deep in the field, took to the high line, with Schatz able to slide under Mann in turn two as he started setting himself up to get past Brad Sweet. Schatz slipped underneath Sweet a lap later and found himself on the tail of Ian Madsen. The battle with the ACT18 racer of Madsen was a tough one, with Schatz searching high and low for a way past, and Madsen able to hold him off for an impressive eleven laps. While Schatz tried to find a way past Ian Madsen, Kerry Madsen was trying to regain his position from Lachlan McHugh. Madsen raced around the outside of McHugh before setting his sights on Luke Oldfield, as James McFadden tried to find a way past Bryan Mann and Donny Schatz continued to look for a way past Ian Madsen. Once Schatz made it past Ian Madsen he took off after his next target, leaving Madsen to battle with Brad Sweet and David Murcott. Before long Kerry Madsen was challenging Steven Lines for third, first looking at the high line before ducking underneath the W3 racer in lapped traffic, and quickly closing in on Tatnell. Donny Schatz was soon fighting Luke Oldfield for a top five finish, with the laps quickly starting to run out and Schatz in need of a stoppage, if he were going to catch the leaders, which never came. Schatz used his expertise in lapped traffic to slip under Oldfield and set out after Lines, but ultimately ran out of laps. Yet as the race started to draw to a close, and just as Scheuerle looked like he may just be the one to break the incredible winning streak by Schatz and pocket the $10,000 winners cheque for his AusDeck Patios and Roofing team, both Brooke Tatnell and Kerry Madsen stepped up the pressure less than five laps from the chequered flag. Madsen tried to run underneath Tatnell through turn two, but couldn’t quite get the job done, but just one lap later both Tatnell and Madsen tried to run underneath Scheuerle as they rounded turn two. It was a truly breath-taking spectacle as the trio raced three wide through the corner, fighting for the lead, just a few laps from home. Scheuerle managed to hang on to the lead, with Madsen edging out Tatnell for second. But Madsen wasn’t done yet, his sights firmly on the Q25 racer of Scheuerle and the lead of the race. For a lap and half Madsen chased Scheuerle, working the high line before finally pulling just enough in front to secure the lead with two laps left to run. The crowd loved it and while Scheuerle valiantly fought back and made sure Madsen worked hard to main the lead, Scheuerle was ultimately unable to find his way back into the lead. Kerry Madsen went on to take a very popular win, with Andrew Scheuerle a solid second and Brooke Tatnell in third. Donny Schatz, who had won his previous fourteen appearances at the Brisbane venue, finished an impressive fourth, having come from position fourteen on the starting grid. Steven Lines rounded out the top five with Luke Oldfield, David Murcott, Brad Sweet, Lachlan McHugh, Ian Madsen, James McFadden, Bryan Mann, Mark Pholi, Darren Jensen, Ryan Jones, Callum Walker, Kevin Titman, Dave Fanning, Andrew Wright and Allan Woods all making it to the chequered flag.

Thirty-Five non-stop laps, with all twenty starters finishing the journey made for not only a brilliant and entertaining race, but has really set the bar high for this weekends World Series Sprintcars round to be held at AusDeck Patios Archerfield Speedway this Friday and Saturday nights. Sprintcars Queensland will tomorrow night once again be joined by Donny Schatz and Brad Sweet, as well as the likes of Brooke Tatnell, Kerry Madsen, Ian Madsen, James McFadden, Steven Lines and David Murcott, not to mention the rest of the World Series Sprintcars cohort. Get yourself trackside at AusDeck Patios Archerfield Speedway tomorrow night (and Saturday night!) and see all the action for yourself!