Last night twenty-nine Sprintcars returned to Hi-Tech Oils Toowoomba Speedway for the third and final night of the 2016 Clay Per View Easter Triple Challenge. While Saturday nights' Archerfield Speedway got abandoned before the feature events due to rain at venue, and the weather in Toowoomba looked a little dubious yesterday morning, the team at Hi-Tech Oils Toowoomba Speedway were determined to put on a show. With light drizzle easing as the day progressed and blue skies appeared over the circuit, we were set for a thrilling night of speedway racing action. The 50-lap feature was a sight to behold, with Robbie Farr leading the early stages until David Murcott swept underneath and stole the lead in the last half of the race. Murcott went on to take the win ahead of Robbie Farr, with Andrew Wright from NSW having a brilliant run to finish third. Brent Kratzmann finally managed to have a little luck on his side, and after an impressive night of racing, and a strong A-Main race that saw him exchange positions with Wright several times over the course of the race, he finished a very impressive fourth to be the first of the regular Sprintcars Queensland competitors home. Darren Jensen rounded out the top five in last nights' A-Main event, but it was Robbie Farr who won the Clay Per View weekend points battle, with David Murcott second and Luke Oldfield officially third.

When qualifying got under way it was Robbie Farr who topped the leader board, stopping the clock at a blistering 11.305 seconds, with Toowoomba local Andrew Scheuerle second quickest with a 11.402 second lap. Andrew Wright, Bryan Mann and Kevin Titman completed the fastest five. The top sixteen cars were all in the 11-second bracket, while the top twenty-four were separated by less than one second. 1.225 seconds was the difference between the fastest and slowest qualifiers, showing again just how tight the competition is and showing how even the tiniest fraction of a second can significantly impact proceedings for each driver.

Heat one started with Robbie Farr and Peter Lack from the front row, but the first start was aborted when officials deemed Farr to have jumped the start. Farr was relegated to the second row for the second attempted start, gifting pole position to Luke Oldfield. It was a great race up front with Lack settling into the race lead while Oldfield held down second, leaving Farr to battle with young Lachlan McHugh. McHugh was brilliant in the NQ23 racer, really putting the challenge to his vastly more experienced rival but was unable to get the job done. Peter Lack went on to take the win with a small but comfortable margin over Luke Oldfield in second. Robbie Farr finished third and led Lachlan McHugh, Darren Jensen, Toby Bell-Bowen, Daniel Needham, Adam Wary and Brendan Scorgie across the line.

Heat two started with Andrew Scheuerle and Kevin Titman from the front row, with Scheuerle able to secure the lead when the lights went green. David Murcott had a great run from fourth to get past Titman and steal second while further back in the field Mark Pholi chased Scott Doyle. Murcott began closing in on Scheuerle but ultimately ran out of laps, with Andrew Scheuerle going on to take the win ahead of David Murcott, Kevin Titman, Brandon Rawlings, David Whell, Scott Doyle, Mark Pholi, Garry Jacobson and Anthony Lambert. Dale Shilleto did not finish the race, his throttle linkage broke during the first lap and relegated him to the infield.

Andrew Wright started from pole position in heat three, with Bryan Mann alongside and hard chargers Brent Kratzmann and Mitchell Gee right behind. Mann easily secured the race lead with Wright in second, but the real focus of the race was the battle between Kratzmann and Gee. Both drivers really stepped up their game last night and the fight for the minor places was breath-taking as the pair exchanged slide job after slide job after slide job. It was clean, exciting, edge-of-your-seat racing that captivated the crowd, with Kratzmann eventually managing to hang on to the advantage and set out after Wright. Bryan Mann went on to take the win ahead of Andrew Wright, Brent Kratzmann, Mitchell Gee, Jake Tranter, Michael Saller, Dean Thomas, Scott Genrich, Steve Greer and Luca Cox.

Heat four started with Brendan Scorgie and Adam Wray from the front row, and while Wray led the start he soon had Toby Bell-Bowen right on his tail. Luke Oldfield and Lachlan McHugh had a breath-taking race towards the rear of the field, both trying edge their way forward, while Robbie Farr gradually made his way closer to the front of the field. Darren Jensen slid beautifully underneath Peter Lack, but Brendan Scorgie had a spin entering turn four, and while Lack spun his Q5 racer to skilfully avoid Scorgie, Lack backed his own car hard into the turn four wall. Unfortunately for Lack that was his race over, his crew with a lot of work to do to get the car ready for his next event. Toby Bell-Bowen went on to take the win ahead of a hard-charging Darren Jensen, with Robbie Farr in third and leading Lachlan McHugh, Adam Wray and Luke Oldfield home. Peter Lack and Brendan Scorgie both failed to finish the race.

Dale Shilleto started from pole position for heat five and while Garry Jacobson was scheduled the share the front row he did not make it to the start, handing the front row starting position to Mark Pholi. Pholi quickly settled into the race lead with Shilleto in second, while David Murcott spent only a couple of laps making his way into third. Shilleto ran a strong race, holding off Murcott for most of the event, until he made contact with the wall only a couple of laps from the chequered flag. Murcott had all the invitation he needed to slip through and steal second while Shilleto was able to hang on to third ahead of Brandon Rawlings. Kevin Titman, Andrew Scheuerle and Dave Whell had a great battle mid-field, but there was simply no stopping Mark Pholi out in front as he went on to take the win. David Murcott secured second with Dale Shilleto officially third. Brandon Rawlings crossed the line in fourth and led Andrew Scheuerle, Dave Whell, Kevin Titman, Anthony Lambert and Scott Doyle past the chequered flag. Garry Jacobson did not start the event.

Heat six saw Luca Cox and Dean Thomas lead the start, with Thomas getting the best start and leading from green to chequer. Cox settled into second but soon came under fire from Jake Tranter, while Mitchell Gee and Brent Kratzmann resumed their battle from the earlier heat, only with Gee getting the advantage this time around, the pair right on the tail of Luca Cox as they searched for a way forward. Bryan Mann put all kinds of pressure on Andrew Wright, but it was Dean Thomas who took the win. Jake Tranter finished second while Luca Cox managed to hang on to finish third ahead of Mitchell Gee, Brent Kratzmann, Andrew Wright, Bryan Mann, Michael Saller, Scott Genrich and Steve Greer.

The B-Dash was an action packed affair with qualifiers nine through to sixteen taking to the track for eight gruelling laps that would determine their starting positions for the A-Main event. Peter Lack led the start and was looking very comfortable out in front until the Q5 jumped out of gear and slowed to a stop bringing the race under caution. Lack restarted at the rear of the field but soon pulled out of the event. Mitchell Gee and Toby Bell-Bowen led the restart but the pair came together in turn one with Gee on the inside of Bell-Bowen. Both Gee and Bell-Bowen nearly went over but spun to a stop in turn one. Both restarted at the rear of the field, while Brandon Rawlings was out with front end damage. Lachlan McHugh inherited the race lead with four laps left to run and Darren Jensen right on his tail. McHugh went on to take the win ahead of Darren Jensen, Scott Doyle, Toby Bell-Bowen, Mitchell Gee and David Whell. Brandon Rawlings and Peter Lack did not finish the event.

The A-Dash saw Robbie Farr and Andrew Scheuerle lead a strong field to the green, with Farr quickly securing the race lead ahead of Scheuerle and Andrew Wright. Kevin Titman had a great run to get past Wright and steal third in the very early stages of the race and while Wright tried to fight back there was no stopping Titman. Luke Oldfield and David Murcott had a brilliant battle deep in the pack, but there was little either could do to advance further through the field. Farr was completely unstoppable out in front with incredible car speed, even recording a 10.821 second lap on the third lap of the race. Robbie Farr went on to take the win with Andrew Scheuerle a solid second and Kevin Titman an impressive third. Andrew Wright was fourth across the line and led Bryan Mann, David Murcott, Luke Oldfield and Brent Kratzmann past the chequered flag.

Mark Pholi led a field of ten cars for the entire duration of the 15-lap B-Main event. Pholi was quick off the start to secure the lead and from there he worked on creating a small but comfortable margin over his rivals. Pholi was untouchable in the race lead and went on to take the win ahead of Dean Thomas, with Jake Tranter and Dale Shilleto also securing transfers to the A-Main event. Anthony Lambert finished fifth after a great drive to challenge for a transfer, falling just short of the top four places he needed to make the cut. Scott Genrich finished sixth ahead of Garry Jacobson and Steve Greer, while Adam Wray and Luca Cox both failed to finish the event.

Robbie Farr and Andrew Scheuerle shared the front row for the start of the 50-lap A-Main event, with Kevin Titman and Andrew Wright from the second row. Farr quickly settled into the race lead and seemed untouchable out in front, while Scheuerle settled into an equally comfortable second, leaving Wright and Titman to argue over third and fourth, while David Murcott and Brent Kratzmann began working their way closer to the front of the field. Within a few laps Wright had made his way in front of Titman, leaving Titman to try and defend his position from a hard charging Murcott. Murcott eventually made his way through, while Titman faded a little as they edged closer to the half-way mark. Murcott was on the move and after another half dozen laps he made his way in front of Wright and set his sights on Scheuerle. The race was however brought to a stop when Dale Shilleto had a huge crash entering turn four, leaving a hole in the catch fence. Dale emerged from the wreck somewhat winded but otherwise okay. An open red while the Shilleto car was removed from the track and some fence maintenance was carried out allowed crews the chance to assess tyre wear and adjust strategy. David Murcott in third seemed to have the best tyres of the top three, while Peter Lack, who had been running in ninth before the stoppage, elected to change the right rear of the Q5 racer and go rear of the field with just 22 laps left to run. Farr led the restart from Scheuerle and Murcott, while Bryan Mann struggled with a flat left rear tyre. Before long the red lights were out again, this time for Mark Pholi who had inverted the Q14 racer in turn four. Pholi walked away unscathed but unable to continue the event, while Mann also failed to take to restart.

Robbie Farr again led the restart from Andrew Scheuerle and David Murcott, but the battle for second was only just starting to heat up. Unfortunately contact between Scheuerle and Murcott, as Murcott tried to race under Scheuerle coming out of turn four, saw Murcott’s right rear climb over the front end of Scheuerle and put him out of the race. Once the race resumed Murcott wasted no time finding his way under Farr to steal the race lead, with Farr seemingly starting to struggle with worn tyres, trying to save them for the final few laps of the race. Brent Kratzmann was all over the back of Andrew Wright, putting on a truly spectacular show, while mid field Kevin Titman and Mitchell Gee had a great battle, and Toby-Bell-Bowen, Scott Doyle and Jake Tranter kept things interesting further back. Another yellow with ten laps left to run, after Peter Lack caught the right rear of Kevin Titman, having worked his way up to about sixth after a spectacular drive from the rear of the field. Lack was very luck not to roll and while he did restart at the rear of the field, again, he pulled out of the race a few laps into the restart.

David Murcott led the restart and went on to take the win ahead of Robbie Farr, despite a last lap dash from Farr that was almost enough to steal the win. Andrew Wright had a great drive to secure the third and final podium while Brent Kratzmann was very impressive in fourth. Darren Jensen rounded out the top five and led Kevin Titman, Mitchell Gee, Luke Oldfield, Toby-Bell-Bowen, Scott Doyle, Jake Tranter, Lachlan McHugh and Dave Whell across the line. Peter Lack, Brandon Rawlings, Andrew Scheuerle, Bryan Mann, Mark Pholi, Dale Shilleto and Dean Thomas all failed to finish the event.

Robbie Farr officially won the Clay Per View Easter Triple Challenge from David Murcott and Luke Oldfield, with Andrew Scheuerle and Bryan Mann rounding out the top five. Darren Jensen, Peter Lack, Mitchell Gee, Lachlan McHugh, Kevin Titman, Toby Bell-Bowen, Jake Tranter, Brandon Rawlings Andrew Wright, Mark Pholi, Brent Kratzmann, Scott Doyle, Dave Whell, Dale Shilleto, Michael Saller, Anthony Lambert, Garry Jacobson, Luca Cox and Brendan Scorgie rounded out the weekend points chase. (Points only included those drivers who competed in all three events across the Clay per View Easter Triple Challenge weekend).

Sprintcars Queensland will return to Hi-Tech Oils Toowoomba Speedway next Saturday night, 02 April 2016, for the final USC Championship round. Get yourself trackside next Saturday night for another thrilling night of speedway racing action and see it all for yourself.