The 2022 South Island Endurance Series wraps up this weekend at Levels Raceway in Timaru with the overall title for all three events still up for grabs.
The event, which takes place on Saturday, begins with qualifying at 9am with the first race on track being the Class 4 & 5 One Hour at 10.20am.
Scott O’Donnell leads that championship, in a Hyundai TCR, by just 13 points over the VW Golf TCR of Mike Hall. Victory in Round 1 at Ruapuna and second place last round at Teretonga have put him in prime position to take the title.
A DNF in Round 1 for James Penrose has hurt his chances of claiming the title, however he will be among the favourites at Levels after claiming victory last time out. Warren Black was the first to cross the line in that race, however a post-race penalty promoted Penrose to the victory.
The Class 2 & 3 One Hour will follow, getting underway at 11.40am. Sam Collins has been uncatchable up front in his Ford Marc Mustang, however Ronan Murphy and Heremana Malmezac remain in contention, equal on points after sharing second and third between themselves over the previous two rounds.
Collins won both at Ruapuna, and Teretonga last month to head into this weekend with a 14 point lead.
Finally, the Three Hour will see Sam Fillmore and Jonny Reid aiming to make it three in a row in an Audi R8 LMS GT3, the pair winning dramatically at Teretonga after taking the lead off the McLaren 720S GT3 of Andy Fawcett and Daniel Gaunt with just two minutes remaining.
Gaunt and Fawcett held on to finish second, the same result from the previous round at Ruapuna. They trail Fillmore and Reid by just 10 points in the standings.
The two cars have built a slight advantage over the pack, equal third-placed cars of Smith/DeVeth and Knighton/Lawson some 42 points off top spot.
The Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 of Lance Hughes and Chris van der Drift will be one to watch. They finished third at Teretonga after leading early proceedings and were among the contenders at Ruapuna until late difficulties brought about retirement.
The Three Hour begins at 1.30pm.
All races will be streamed live on the South Island Endurance Series Facebook page, as well as The Pits Media. If you were planning on attending, tickets are just $20 at the gate.
Header Image: Neville Bailey
