| Race Report by How Jiang Quek |
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To commemorate the Chinese New Year, and with this being the Year of the Ox, the Bull Run Challenge was run on 8 Feb 2009 at Singaporeâ™s Racecraft circuit.
The 41 eager racers who had registered for the event were greeted with bright sunny conditions upon arrival at the circuit. 24 racers were entered for the Open 1/10 Touring Class, of which 8 were running XRAY T2'008/009, while 17 racers battled it out in the Open Mini Class (of which 1 was an XRAY T1M). While the majority was Singapore-based racers, a contingent of 6 from Malaysia traveled to the event. |
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Qualifying
The morningâ™s racing consisted of 3 rounds of qualifying for each of the 2 classes. The circuit featured many hairpins and hence the right set-up was essential to clocking a good time. At the end of qualifying in Open Touring, there were 3 XRAY T2'008/009s in the Open Touring Class A Main, and a further 5 XRAYs in the B Main. The qualifying order was as follows:
TQ Nicholas Lee
2 Leonard Sim
3 Glenn Phuah XRAY T2'009
4 Alvin Koh
5 Samuel Tan
6 Jack Lim XRAY T2'009
7 Chee Lip Keong
8 Kenny Koh
9 Roger XRAY T2'008
10 Shawn Chow
In the Open Mini Class, the qualifying order saw the lone XRAY take the 2nd qualifying position
TQ Leonard Sim
2 Alan Tan XRAY T1M
3 Roger
4 Goh Kee Choon
Finals
The finals were run immediately after lunch, and with the blazing sun bearing down, many were making adjustments to their car set-ups to cope with the changed traction conditions. |
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In the first run for the Open Touring A Main, local âśspeedsterâť Nicholas Lee defended his pole position to take the win from Leonard Sim and Alvin Koh. Team XRAY driver, Glenn Phuah, finished in 4th.
In the 2nd run, Nicholas Lee was involved in a racing incident at the start of the race which caused him to drop to 10th position. This opened the way for Leonard Sim to win A2 and set up an exciting showdown for the final run of the A Main. Glenn Phuah (XRAY) finished a strong second, while Shawn Chow took 3rd. Nicholas managed to carve his way through the field to eventually take 5th.
In the final run of the A Main, Nicholas Lee pulled away from the start and maintained a sizable lead throughout to take the win in the run and the overall title. Leonard Sim and Glenn Phuah were able to keep their distance from the fierce battle by the middle runners to finish 2nd and 3rd respectively. |
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Open Touring A Main Results
1. Nicholas Lee (TQ)
2. Leonard Sim
3. Glenn Phuah XRAY T2'009
4. Alvin Koh
5. Shawn Chow
6. Chee Lip Keong
7. Kenny Koh
8. Jack Lim XRAY T2'009
9. Samuel Tan
10. Roger XRAY T2'008 |
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| In the B Main for Open Touring, XRAY claimed all 3 podium positions, with the winner being first-time racer Vincent (XRAY T2'009). The B Main also featured 6-year old Dominic Quek, who drove an XRAY T2'008. |
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Open Touring B Main Results
1. Vincent XRAY T2'009
2. Alan Tan XRAY T2'008
3. HJ Quek XRAY T2'008
4. Asmi XRAY T2'008
5. Nelson
6. Albert Koh
7. Jonest
8. Botak
9. Dominic Quek XRAY T2'008
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| In the Open Mini Class, Leonard Sim took the win, with Gareth Foo in 2nd. XRAY driver, Alan Tan, claimed the final spot on the podium in 3rd. |
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| A great day of racing was enjoyed by all drivers at the event topped off with a strong performance by Team XRAY, which claimed podium spots in 3 of the 4 mains run, the team can expect a great bull-run in the Year of the Ox. |
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