Young Kiwi racer Ayrton Hodson navigated a weekend of collisions and car damage to complete Super2’s final races of the season.
Qualifying
Super2 qualifying was split into two sessions: the first set the grid for Race 11 in the morning, and the second was meant to determine the Race 12 lineup in the afternoon.
In session one, series leader Rylan Gray secured pole for Saturday’s race with a lap of 1:19.811, keeping him on track for the championship. Ayrton Hodson posted a best time of 1:21.364, putting him 21st on the grid—just over a second and a half behind Gray.
Heavy rain hit ahead of Race 12 qualifying, forcing the session to be cancelled as water pooled on the track. Starting positions were instead based on drivers’ best average times from Practice 1 and 2, which handed pole to Lochie Dalton, while Hodson lined up 20th.
Race 1:
Hodson got a strong start and briefly took the lead from Jesse Love off the line, but Love regained the position at the first corner. Hodson stayed patient and reclaimed the spot down the back straight.
Lap one saw drama as Max Geoghegan hit the wall, damaging his car and forcing an early pit stop. Unfortunately, repairs couldn’t be completed, and he retired from the race.
Love, running close behind Hodson, suffered a shock absorber failure on lap two. He pitted for repairs but had to retire shortly afterward, ending his race prematurely.
Hodson continued his charge through the field, passing Bradi Owen after he ran wide to move into 18th. But the race remained eventful: Cody Gillis went wide at Turn 8 and slammed into the wall, destroying the left side of his car. His crash brought out the safety car as the track was cleared.
During the safety car period, Cameron McLeod pitted with a shock failure after pushing hard over the chicanes just before the yellow flags. Soon after the restart, Cody Burcher encountered a power steering issue and retired, becoming the fourth DNF of the race.
With ten minutes remaining, Hodson and Owen battled again, with Owen eventually getting ahead and continuing his charge up the field.
Elliott Cleary spun out into the runoff with just a few minutes left, dropping him to the back of the field by the time he could rejoin the track.
On the final lap, Hodson gained one more position by overtaking Bailey Sweeny, getting up eight spots during the race to earn 13th place.
After holding onto the lead from the start, Gray took the race win and secured the championship title with a race to spare.
Race 2:
During the outlap of Race 12, Cody Burcher suffered another power steering failure and was forced into the pits immediately. He eventually rejoined after the start but was well behind the rest of the field.
Hodson held his position off the line initially, but Jesse Love got past him in the opening corners. Hodson soon regained the spot as both drivers overtook Ryan Tomsett.
Zach Bates, running third, ran wide and ended up facing the wall in a runoff. With the field tightly packed, he had to wait for all the cars to pass before rejoining. Despite being five seconds behind Tomsett, Bates quickly closed the gap, passing him and then overtaking Hodson shortly afterward.
Nearly halfway through the race, Max Geoghegan hit a tyre bundle, worsening damage from the previous race. He pitted for repairs but was forced to retire again.
Reuben Goodall then ran wide at Turn 8, hitting the outside wall before rebounding across the track and slamming into the inside wall. His car was too badly damaged to continue, bringing out the safety car.
At the restart, Hodson defended well, holding position ahead of Tomsett and building a small gap. Bates, meanwhile, hit the fence hard while battling for position and was forced to retire with just four minutes remaining.
In the closing stages, Hodson tried to make further gains but couldn’t find a clear overtaking opportunity, eventually losing a spot back to Tomsett.
Despite the chaos, Hodson avoided any damage and finished the final race of the season in 17th place, completing a turbulent Super2 weekend.
Header Image: Ayrton Hodson Motorsport
