New Sponsor ‘Heats Up’ National Hot Rods World Series NI

Diemen’s is proud to announce its title sponsorship of the Diemens.com World Series NI for National Hot Rods, in what is the most lucrative deal the series has seen to date.

The new sponsorship package is worth up to £4,000 for the World Series NI drivers and there will also be promotional offers for race fans throughout the campaign!

Diemens.com has been established to sell Australia’s award-winning hot sauces in the UK and NI, and aims to promote these awesome products though motorsports sponsorship. In recent times the Diemen’s branding could be seen on the National Hot Rod of local driver Dean McCrory, and now the company have taken the step up to become the new title sponsor of the ultra-competitive World Series NI.

Diemen’s will provide fantastic prizes to the winner of each of the 14 rounds of the series, with additional prizes to the top three finishers in the World Series NI standings at the end of the campaign.

The man behind the Diemen’s brand in the UK and NI is Bertie McCrory, himself a former Ulster Hot Rod racer in the 1980’s, and he is very enthusiastic about the deal, “World Series NI is a fantastic way of advertising our products and we are very pleased to come on board as the title sponsor. Hot Sauces for Hot Rods, and with the World Champion in the ranks it’s great to be associated with the very best in the sport.”

Darren Black from DMC Race Promotions was equally thrilled by the new deal, “We are proud to welcome Diemen’s Hot Sauces on board as the new title sponsor for National Hot Rods World Series NI. The valuable deal shows just how much the series has grown in recent years and it is now recognised as the most competitive of them all.”

“All the cars in action in Diemens.com World Series NI will carry the Diemen’s branding throughout the year, as we aim to give them maximum return for their investment in our sport. We would also like to place on record our thanks to the outgoing sponsors, Simpson Race Exhausts, for their invaluable contribution over the past seasons.”

The 2023/24 Diemens.com World Series NI blasts into action this Sunday, July 23rd, at Aghadowey Oval (1pm start), with new World Champion Derek Martin set to receive a hero’s welcome home as he proudly displays the gold roof for the first time.

Morrell Takes Dramatic Ulster Title Win

An action packed race meeting at Tullyroan Oval on Saturday evening somehow managed to stay dry throughout, with Cullybackey’s Marc Morrell being crowned Rookie Bangers Ulster Champion. There was a perfect hat-trick of victories in the Superstox for Bangor’s Craig McConnell, with Ballymena racer Adam Graham winning the Thunder Rods Tullyroan Challenge Cup.
The other final wins went to Crumlin’s Matthew Milliken in the 1300 Stock Cars and Glenavy’s Callum Magill in the Stock Rods.

Two action-packed qualifying heats kicked off proceedings for the Rookie Bangers, with lively action and spills all around the raceway. Limavady’s Josh Goligher triumphed in both with two great drives, the first ahead of Marc Morrell and Stephen Boyd. The second heat saw Josh ahead but suffering from a puncture late on, and as he tried to nurse the car home he, along with Gavin Gamble and William McFaul all came spinning to the line whilst pointing in all sorts of directions! Goligher got the nod by a hair’s breadth over Gamble and Boyd.
The Ulster Championship final saw Goligher edge clear early on, until he was baulked and taken to the infield by a backmarker. Josh sped across the infield to rejoin still ahead, but that attracted a warning from Race Control. He held on to take the chequered flag, but as he was deemed to have rejoined the race illegally he was demoted out of the podium places by the Stewards. That elevated a delighted Morrell to the championship win ahead of David Gurney and Boyd.

The second round of the Spedeworth TV/NIOvalTV Series for Superstox saw Troy Crawford lead for much of the distance in heat one, before NI Points Champion Craig McConnell muscled his way past on the final lap to grab the win. Heat two saw Crawford again out front before he was relegated by Paddy Murphy. Curtis Greer then hit the front before McConnell again nudged his way through to the victory over Steven Haugh.
The final saw Gerard Hartley build up quite an advantage out front, before that man McConnell came calling once again. Craig burst ahead to complete his faultless treble for the evening over Jamie McCann, Greer and Haugh.

The budget Thunder Rods division served up some great racing throughout the meeting, with Matthew Nicholl pulling off a superb outside line pass on James Goldie to win the opening heat in some style. Heat two saw yet another outside line surge from Davey Wilson as he took the flag over Adam McKinney.
The Tullyroan Challenge Cup saw Nicholl set the early pace before Adam Graham found a gap down the inside on the back straight. He quickly made the lead his own, and held on for the win despite the close efforts of runner up Goldie, with Nicholl taking third place.

A trio of very welcome Tipperary Raceway visitors boosted the Stock Rods grid, and it was one of them, Eogan Burke, who took the opening heat win over a fast charging Mark Foster and Irish Champion Dan Shannon. Heat two saw a fantastic drive from European, British and National Champion Mark Crawford, as he powered around the outside of Joe Largey on the final lap to take a sensational last gasp win on the line by inches.
Burke lead for much of the final but had Declan O’Connor chasing hard throughout. With five laps to go O’Connor launched his bid for the lead, but only succeeded in bundling Burke wide. Declan took the lead but the move would cost him dear after the race. He was unfortunately demoted two places to third for the contact by the Stewards, handing the win to Callum Magill ahead of Crawford.

Plenty of hard racing and contact was the order of the day in the 1300 Stock Cars, with veteran campaigner Tommy McCrory rolling back the years to win the opener ahead of Fionn Donnelly and Ty Richardson. Heat two was all about Alan Milliken, the novice grader taking a great win over his son Matthew with Donnelly in third.
It was a family affair in the feature race final too, with Alan Milliken leading and Matthew moving through into second place with just a couple of laps remaining. Would he let his Dad take the glory? Not a chance said Matthew, as he went in with the bumper to move his Dad wide and race past to take the trophy in a family one-two finish. Ivan Elliott and Jonathan Brown were next home in another great race from the 1300’s.

Important Fixture Changes

With National Hot Rods World Champion Derek Martin and Ninja Karts NI Points Champion Riley Dawson-Stirling both heading to South Africa to race in the coming weeks, we have had to make some changes to our fixture list to facilitate this.

National Hot Rods
The National Hot Rods will now not feature at the Tullyroan Oval meeting on Saturday 12th August, and they have now been added to the fixture on Saturday October 28th at the same venue.

Ninja Karts
The Ninja Karts 2023 Champion of Champions and Individual Achievement Award will now take place on Saturday October 7th at Tullyroan Oval, and not on October 28th as previously scheduled.
The Ninja Karts 2023 Irish Championship which was scheduled for October 7th, will now take place at Aghadowey Oval on 4th November.

Junior Productions
To facilitate the above changes, the Junior Productions have been added to the fixture on Saturday 12th August at Tullyroan Oval, and removed from the meeting at Aghadowey Oval on Saturday 4th November.

All the above information has now been changed and updated on our website fixture list. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

Saturday Night Race Action at Tullyroan Oval

After a short mid-summer break, short oval racing on the DMC Race Promotions circuits resumes this Saturday night (July 15th) at Tullyroan Oval.

Heading the line up is the Ulster Championship for the Rookie Bangers, where the action is sure to come thick and fast from an expected 25+ car field. Garvagh's Stephen Boyd is the defending champion and he will be hoping for another top display. World Champion John Goligher from Limavady is another to watch out for amongst what will be chaos on track, whilst John's son Josh is another contender and is indeed a former Ulster Champion.

The open-wheeled Superstox will be contesting the second round of their NIOvalTV/Spedeworth TV Series. Irish Champion Steven Haugh from the Birches, Bangor's NI Points Champ Craig McConnell and recent form man Lee Davison will be the ones to watch, alongside Jamie McCann, Curtis Greer and Jordan Robinson to name a few. The racing from the Superstox is always entertaining and exciting.

The Stock Rods will see Mark Crawford back in action on home ground having just successfully defended his British Championship title at Ipswich Spedeweekend at the start of the month, and he will be keen to grab more silverware. Jonny Cardwell has also been on top form so far in 2023 and is sure to go close, as will World champion Colin McNiece, his brother Stevie and Irish Champion Dan Shannon. Making a visit north from Tipperary Raceway will be John Gray, Paddy O'Dwyer and Eogan Burke.

The 1300 Stock Cars will also provide some fantastic entertainment as the bumpers are put to good use, with the higher grids this season really bringing the formula to the forefront. Irish Open Champion Ivan Elliott and Irish Champion Jonathan Brown will be amongst the pacesetters as always, but stand well back as the sparks and concrete are sure to fly!

Completing the line up are the budget racers in the Thunder Rods as they contest the Tullyroan Challenge Cup. Sam Preston from Portadown was the winner last time out at Tullyroan and he will be keen for more glory. He will face stiff opposition from flying Ballymena duo of James Goldie and Daniel Rodgers, who are often the class of the field. Zach McCombe, Andrew McLean and Irish Champion Jason Darragh will be other challengers.

The first race leaves the grid at 6.30pm

Ipswich Spedeweekend Winners!

Congratulations to our big winners at the recent Ipswich Spedeweekend, and many thanks to all the drivers and fans who made the effort to represent us so well at Foxhall Stadium.

2023 National Hot Rods World Champion - 20 Derek Martin

2023 2.0 Hot Rods World Champion - 977 Jordan Rochford

2023 Stock Rods British Champion - 698 Mark Crawford

Spedeweekend Classic Hot Rods Final Winner - 128 Anthony Morgan

Emotional Victory For Davison at Tullyroan

A fantastic mid-summers evening of Stock Car racing thrilled the race fans at Tullyroan Oval on Saturday. There were emotional scenes as the feature event, the Neil Davison Memorial Cup for Superstox, was won by Neil’s brother Lee, whilst Coagh teenager Robbie Dallas took victory in The Moffett Shield for Junior Productions. The Tullyroan Challenge Cup for 2L National Bangers fell to Londonderry’s David Gurney, with other feature race wins going to Portadown’s Sam Preston in the Thunder Rods and Dundrod’s Willie Stewart in the 1300 Stock Cars.

From an excellent field of Superstox, it was former World Champion Lee Davison who took victory in the opening heat over David Beattie and Conor Murphy. Davison looked set to take heat two as well, only to hit trouble in the closing stages. That opened the way for Jamie McCann to take the win over Steven Haugh.
The Neil Davison Memorial Cup final set off at a tremendous pace, with Davison soon hitting the front once again. A mid-race caution period brought McCann onto his bumper, but Lee edged clear at the resumption to take an emotional victory, his second success in the three years of the event. A huge battle for second went right down to the last lap, with Craig McConnell taking the place ahead of Haugh and McCann as the latter spun across the line. The Best White/Yellow Grade award went to Murphy.

Lexi Crooks showed great pace to win the first heat for the Junior Productions, leading from flag to flag ahead of Robbie Dallas and Casey Cherry. Heat two saw another runaway win, this time for Brandon Litter as he cruised home ahead of Daniel Stewart and Lauren Berry. The young drivers really did impress during the heats with some great racing.
The Moffett Shield final was an action packed event, with Dallas stamping his authority on proceedings right from the off. Crooks was closing towards the finish, but Robbie had all under control to take his first ever race win. Stewart and Leyton Hughes filled out the top three, with Crooks having to settle for fourth and the top White/Yellow Grade award.

The entries continue to impress in the 1300 Stock Cars, which led to some fantastic action on track as the bumpers were exchanged lap after lap. Jonathan Brown worked his way to the front in a superb opening heat, only for Ivan Elliott to land a telling blow on the final bend to snatch a sensational win. Heat two saw Willie Stewart edge clear early on, and he romped home to a decisive win over Matthew Milliken and Craig Bodenham.
Stewart was again the man to watch in the feature race final, relegating initial leader Fionn Donnelly to race home to complete his double for the evening. James Crossett withstood a last bend hit from Ivan Elliott to hang onto second with Robbie Wright in fourth.

The Thunder Rods made another welcome appearance at Tullyroan, with the first heat seeing a great outside line run from David Wilson to take the win over Gary Freeburn. Freeburn then went one better in heat two, the Ballymena man holding on to take the flag ahead of Rab Preston and Wilson.
Freeburn led the final until Sam Preston nipped by, and despite heavy late pressure from James Goldie it was Sam who took home the silverware. Goldie, Daniel Rodgers and Wilson completed the top four.

A smaller than usual field of 2L National Bangers saw David Gurney win a tame Tullyroan Challenge Cup over Paul Compelli and Kieran McIvor. The support heats then fell to McIvor and Deano McGrath, with McGrath also taking the Destruction Derby win. McIvor picked up the Entertainer of the Meeting and Best Wreck Awards.

Cardwell, Carberry & McKinney Claim Aghadowey Title Victories

Glenavy’s Jonny Cardwell dominated the Stock Rod racing at Aghadowey Oval on Saturday night, taking a heat and final brace of wins on his way to the William Cooke Memorial Trophy. England’s World Champion Mason Carberry won the Golden Helmet Award in the Ninja Karts, whilst Strabane driver James McKinney came home victorious in the Lightning Rods King of Aghadowey. Other feature race winners were Aughnacloy’s Kyle Beattie with a double in the Superstox and Kilrea’s Zack McCombe in the Thunder Rods.

The opening Stock Rods heat saw a clear win for Jonny Cardwell, with Sam McNeice and Stevie McNiece next home. The reversed grid heat two saw Mark Foster claim the win ahead of Mark Crawford and McNiece.
Cardwell and defending title holder McNiece shared the front row for the William Cooke Memorial Trophy final, with Jonny quickly building an advantage out front. As he romped home to the silverware, McNiece held on for second despite the advances of Crawford who took third from well down the grid.

A number of mainland visitors joined the local Ninja Kart stars for the Golden Helmet, with Hampshire’s Jack Jones claiming the opening heat win after William Hunn was disqualified for spinning a fellow competitor late in the race. Jack Murphy and Tommy Melrose filled the places. The second heat was every bit as fraught, and once again littered with caution period for crashes. Kori Curran held on for the win after a great drive, with Mason Carberry and Tommy Johnson taking the places.
Murphy qualified pole for the final, but World Champion Carberry quickly raced ahead. Scotsman Melrose was showing well in second, and despite putting pressure on the leader over the closing laps, it was Carberry who took the win over Melrose and Riley Dawson-Stirling. All the young drivers received drinks and crisps from the Moffett family, who also put up prizes for the top white/yellow grade driver in each race.

Tipperary Raceway based Keith Kirwan joined the locals for the King of Aghadowey in the Lightning Rods, with James McKinney just holding off Nigel Jackson and Dean Catherwood to take the opening heat win. British and Irish Champion Stuart Agnew then won the second qualifier, ahead of Mark Corry and World Champion Ricky Shaw.
McKinney stamped his authority all over the King of Aghadowey final, pulling well clear to record an emphatic win over Corry, Jackson and Agnew.

The opening Superstox heat ended up being decided by the Stewards, with first over the line Graham Meek being docked two places for jumping the start. That handed victory to Jordan Robinson ahead of Craig McConnell. From then on the night was all about World Champion Kyle Beattie, who would dominate both heat two and the final.
Heat two saw Beattie leave Conor Murphy and McConnell trailing in his wake, before another decisive drive in the final saw Kyle take his second victory of the evening over Robinson and Murphy.

The new car of Andrew McLean raced to victory in the opening Thunder Rods heat, with Adam Graham and Zack McCombe filling out the top three. Heat two saw Samuel Murphy race home to the win in his unique Vauxhall Cavalier, with McLean and Graham following him over the line.
Tom Archibald led the way early on in the final, but this time he had McCombe chasing him hard right from the off. Zack slipped ahead on lap seven, and rounded out the rest of the distance to take the trophy. Graham chased him hard all the way for second but just unable to mount a challenge, with McLean, James Goldie and Murphy next to finish.

Cherry On Top At Tullyroan Oval

Local Tullyroan 10-year-old Casey Cherry was the star of the Tullyroan Oval meeting last Saturday night, the young driver taking a hat-trick of wins in only his third ever race meeting to take home the coveted Golden Helmet Trophy for Junior Productions.
During the meeting there were Tullyroan Challenge Cup wins for Strabane’s James McKinney in the Lightning Rods and Chris Hamill from Gawley’s Gate in the 1300 Stock Cars. To complete the programme, both Londonderry’s Dean McFarland and Portglenone’s Lewis Hazlett claimed heat and final doubles in the 2.0 Hot Rods and Ninja Karts repectively.

Scottish drivers Koddi Wright and Maia Thompson joined the regulars for a 20 car field of Junior Productions for the Golden Helmet, presented each year by the McKeown family. Novice grader Casey Cherry, in only his third race meeting, showed some great speed to pull clear of the field from pole position to win heat one. Robbie Dallas and Brandon Litter filled out the top three in that one, before Cherry again dominated the second heat. This time it was Lexi Crooks and Daniel Stewart who completed the top three.
The final on aggregate points from the heats saw Cherry on pole position with Crooks alongside, and despite his lack of experience, Cherry was quickly able to settle into the lead. Dallas challenged early on but Casey was able to edge out an advantage that he kept all the way to the chequered flag to seal a fantastic hat-trick of wins. Casey received the stunning Golden Helmet Cup from the McKeown family, with Weir and Harry Minish completing the podium finishers ahead of Callum Doak and Dallas.

Three welcome Republic of Ireland visitors in Padraig Palmer, Pat O’Sullivan and Jamie Bowen boosted the Lightning Rod numbers for their Tullyroan Challenge Cup. European Champion Nigel Jackson was aiming for five Challenge Cups in as many years, and he got his title defence off to the best possible start with victory in heat one over James McKinney and Ross Houston. McKinney had looked very rapid in the opener, and he turned that speed into victory in heat two ahead of Gerry Rogers and Mark McCambridge.
Despite the best efforts of Jackson in the final, McKinney blasted away from pole position and wouldn’t be challenged all the way home for an emphatic win. Jackson, McCambridge, Houston and Mark Corry completed the top places.

An impressive 19 car field of 1300 Stock Car took to the Tullyroan grid, with superb action and bumperwork throughout the opening heat. Ulster & NI Points Champion Chris Hamill stormed through from the rear to take a great win over Tommy McCrory and David Wilson. Heat Two again saw action all around the raceway, with Fionn Donnelly hanging on for a very welcome win ahead of Ivan Elliott and Marcus Crossett.
With Hamill on pole spot for the final, his rivals were hoping to get a hit on him early on, but he was equal to the challenge and made the perfect getaway to edge clear out front. Chris wouldn’t be challenged all the way to the Tullyroan Challenge Cup win, with Brown a gallant runner up and Josh McKinstry getting the better of an entertaining scrap with Elliott for third.

A healthy field of 2.0 Hot Rods was bolstered by visitors Sean Maher and Brendan O’Connell. Dean McFarland set the pace in the opening heat, but he had no answer to flying former World title holder Wayne Woolsey. He swooped right around the outside to take the victory in some style over McFarland and Michael Rodgers. Heat two saw McFarland this time get the head down and pull well clear early on, winning from Rodgers and rapid Irish Champion Drew McKeown.
McFarland again settle into the early lead in the final, with Scott Cochrane this time doing the chasing having broken free from the star grade. Scott really had the hammer down as he reduced the deficit lap by lap. He would ultimately run out of time though, with McFarland completing a very polished heat and final double in great fashion. Behind runner up Cochrane, Allen Cherry impressed in his new car in third.

The Ninja Karts kids once again entertained with three great races. Kori Curran took a commanding win in the opening race, heading home Jack Murphy and Keegan Turtle. Ethan McQuillan led for much of heat two, only being relegated by a flying Lewis Hazlett with two laps to go.
The final again saw the impressive McQuillan out front again until he and Curran spun out of contention. The rapid Hazlett hit the front and he reeled off the remaining laps to seal his double for the evening in great style. Irish Champion Charlie Johnston was second ahead of NI Points Champ Riley-Dawson Stirling in third.

Big Banger Wins for Bolton and Holmes

A fantastic afternoon of Banger racing entertained the sun drenched crowds at Aghadowey Oval on Sunday. Ballymoney’s Steven Bolton successfully defended his Shamwreck title in the Unlimited National Bangers, whilst Birmingham visitor Joey Holmes Jnr took the win in the 1600 Rookie Bangers Irish Open Championship.
The support races saw feature race wins for Bangor’s Craig McConnell in the Superstox and Portglenone’s Clifford Gordon in the Thunder Rods, both drivers having earlier won a heat too.

First up for the Unlimited National Bangers was their main event, Shamwreck 2023. Leonard Dunn burst ahead early on in the race, before rear end damage saw him drop out of contention. That handed top spot to Kieran McIvor, but he couldn’t withstand the advances of defending champion Steven Bolton, as the former World Champion swept past to make it two in a row ahead of McIvor and Deano McGrath.
The Allcomers saw a great dice for the lead between Bolton and Gordy McKee for much of the distance, with the lead swapped on a number of occasions. Bolton just had the edge when it mattered most, taking the flag ahead of McKee and McGrath
The Dash for Cash race saw Dunn take the victory, after only just surviving clipping the stranded Jonathan Compelli car on the home straight. The meeting concluded with the James ‘The Cat’ Smith Memorial Destruction Derby which fell to Strabane’s Tony Gillespie in his limousine as the last car moving.

A fantastic entry of 1600 Rookie Bangers took to the track for their opening heat, with English star Joey Holmes Jnr moving past early leader Craig Bodenham to take a clear win over Gavin Gamble and Bodenham.
Heat two was the race of the day, with a titanic battle for the lead with a number of cars involved. Marc Morrell and Gamble had spells out front before Seven Boyd went ahead late on, only to be then spun aside by the others! Another English ace, Swindon’s Brad Wickson, sneaked ahead to take the win over Morrell and the recovered Boyd.
Heat winners Holmes and Wickson shared the front row for the Irish Open Championship final, with Holmes quickly edging clear amidst the chaos all around him. As the action continued right through the event, Holmes took the win in emphatic style ahead of Wickson and Boyd, with Phillip Farrell and Dylan Connolly rounding out the top five.
The Dash for Cash support race fell the way of Boyd ahead of Josh Goligher and William McFaul, before the Destruction Derby was won by Farrell after he finished off Chris Herron on the Brown Trout Bend.

Brian Lammey looked on course for his first ever win in the formula in the opening Superstox heat as he was well clear out front, but his victory hopes evaporated when a caution period was called for a stricken car in the second half of the race. That allowed the star men to pounce on the restart, NI Points Champion Craig McConnell taking the win over Neil Hyndman and Curtis Greer. Heat two again saw Lammey ahead, but this time David Beattie roared through for the win over Steven Haugh and Hyndman.
The final saw Beattie quickly hit the front, with Lee Davison charging him down until he hit trouble and retired. The opened the way for McConnell to mount a challenge for the lead, with Craig then going ahead with two laps to go and hanging on for the win. Beattie had to be content with second ahead of Haugh, Jordan Robinson and Davy Clarke.

Tom Archibald led the opening laps of the first Thunder Rods heat, before Clifford Gordon slipped past to take the win ahead of Sam Preston and Samuel Murphy. Heat two saw first over the line, Adam Graham, docked two places for contact which saw James Goldie elevated to the win with Gordon in second.
Gordon hit the front early on in the feature race final, and the Portglenone driver was not going to be headed as he romped home for his second final win in succession. Murphy was closing in second place, but never close enough to challenge. Archibald, Rab Preston and Norman Purdy were next home.

Big Tullyroan Oval Wins For Bell, Doak & Jones

Portadown driver Glenn Bell was crowned National Hot Rods Northern Ireland Champion at Tullyroan Oval on Sunday afternoon, the local star claiming the days feature race win and in the process taking the points win in the year long battle for Simpson Race Exhausts World Series NI. Fellow Portadown racer, teenager Callum Doak, scored a great win in the Junior Productions Tullyroan Challenge Cup whilst Hampshire visitor Kasey Jones took an emphatic victory in the National Ministox Irish Masters.
In the other feature races Richill driver Jake Barnett won the Ninja Kart final and Dundalk’s Gerry Rogers was a popular winner in the Lightning Rods.

National Hot Rods World, European and National Champion Robert McDonald from Scotland joined the local stars for the final round of Simpson Race Exhausts World Series NI. Phillip McCloy, fresh from his wedding the previous day, led the opening heat until he hit engine problems, That handed the lead to Adam Hylands who took the flag ahead of Keith Martin and Derek McMillan. Heat two saw a fantastic race, with Keith Martin holding off the pack out front. Thomas Dilly just couldn’t find a way past, before John Christie stepped forward with a late race burst around the outside to take a superb win. Martin and Dilly were next home.
The final was lined up in season long points order for the finale to the World Series and the right to be crowned NI Champion. Bell got the jump from pole spot, and he edged clear of his nearest challenger Shane Murray. That was how they would finish, with Bell claiming the win and the title ahead of Murray, with Christie again excelling on the outside to take third ahead of Adam Maxwell and Ben McKee.

Three split heats were necessary for the Junior Productions Tullyroan Challenge Cup, with the locals joined by a healthy group of Scottish visitors. Ryan Berry led most of the way in heat one before getting outfoxed in backmarking traffic, leaving Joshua Murray to take the win ahead of Koddi Wright. Heat two saw Dylan Fegan just hold off Callum Doak at the flag, before heat three went to Jake Devlin ahead of Leyton Hughes and Andrew Russell.
The final paired Fegan and Wright on the front row, with Dylan taking up the lead before losing out to Devlin. Doak then went ahead as things got frantic into turn one, the young Portadown driver hanging on for the win over Daniel Stewart and Murray, after Fegan was docked two places in the final analysis.

The visiting National Ministox formula, which usually races the length and breadth of England, were the entertainment of the day for many. The opening heat fell to local girl Lexi Crooks who was guesting in a borrowed car, Lexi leading home Ollie Armstrong and Boden Murfin to the flag. Heat two saw a back straight rollover for Mason Whittle, as Kasey Jones took the win over Murfin and Freddie Rogers. The third heat again fell to Jones, the defending Irish Masters champion taking the win in an action packed race ahead of Freddie Hunter-Johnson and Luke Syrett-Barsby.
The Irish Masters final again saw Jones stamp his authority on the event, Kasey romping home to victory over Toby Partridge and Syrett-Barsby after a fantastic race meeting from the young stars of the future.

The Lightning Rods saw a debut for the stunning new BMW of Ross Houston, as European Champion Nigel Jackson raced home to the opening heat win over Gerry Rogers and James McKinney. McKinney then improved in heat two to take the win over World Champion Ricky Shaw and Jackson.
The final saw Rogers build a commanding lead early on, and despite the best efforts of Shaw once he had broken clear of the pack, Gerry held on for his first ever feature race win - and a very popular one at that! Shaw, McKinney and Stuart Agnew filled the places.

The 20-car Ninja Kart field included welcome Scottish visitors Katie-Lee Smart and Abigail Chalmers, but it was Kori Curran who raced clear to take a fantastic heat one win over Jaxon Cairns and Jake Barnett. Heat two saw Lewis Hazlett race home to the win over Jack Murphy and Keegan Turtle.
Ethan McQuillan led early in the final before Hazlett took over out front, and Lewis looked all set for his maiden feature race win. That was until the very last lap, when a number of the field slowed anticipating a yellow flag caution period that never came. In the confusion Barnett nipped ahead on the run to the line to take the win, with Murphy, Turtle and then Hazlett filling the premier places.

Successful Defence For Hughes & Murfin Wins Sensational Irish Title

Antrim’s Leyton Hughes and England’s Boden Murfin were the big winners at Aghadowey Oval on Saturday night, when the young drivers took centre stage. Hughes was victorious in the Junior Productions Irish Open Championship, whilst a sensational National Ministox Irish Championship fell the way of Mufin after a titanic struggle.
Other feature race wins on the evening fell to Bleary’s Drew McKeown (2.0 Hot Rods), Larne’s Samuel Wilson (Stock Rods) and Portglenone’s Clifford Gordon (Thunder Rods).

A very healthy field of almost 30 Junior Productions, including a number of Scottish visitors, arrived for their Irish Open Championship. Callum Doak was first across the line in an incident-strewn opening heat, but in the final analysis he was excluded from the result for his part in a race stoppage. That handed victory to defending champion Leyton Hughes over Harry Minish.
Jake Devlin overcame early leader Andrew Hawe to win the second heat, with Minish again showing his consistency in second. Heat three went to Matthew Weir after he slipped past early pacesetter Dylan Fegan who had to be content with second.
The tension was at fever pitch before the Irish Open Final, with Hughes getting the jump on Minish at the start to move ahead. Hughes again settled into the lead after a mid-race caution period, and despite the best efforts of Minish it was Hughes who raced home to successfully defend his Irish Open Championship title. Minish, Daniel Stewart and Devlin completed the top four.

The stunning National Ministox arrived from England for their annual visit, and they once again thrilled the local fans with some outstanding racing. There was a great battle out front in the opening heat, before Luke Syrett-Barsby broke clear to take the victory over Kasey Jones.
That same lead pairing again fought out the win in the second heat, with this time Jones coming back hard to take the chequered flag ahead of Syrett-Barsby. Heat three saw Syrett-Barsby again in victory lane, after he demoted early pacesetter Ollie Armstrong.

The Irish Championship final saw the superb cars look very impressive under the floodlights. What followed was a simply sensational event, with a three way dice for much of the distance between Syrett-Barsby, Jones and Boden Murfin. They swapped the lead lap after lap, and sometime twice and three times a lap as they entertained the crowds. The sparks were flying as they thundered off the wall bend after bend, but it was Murfin who snatched the win in tremendous fashion, just ahead of Syrett-Barsby and Jones.

The 2.0 Hot Rods saw a debut for the new Allen Cherry Vauxhall, alongside a return for veteran campaigner Davy Potter. Dean McFarland took a clear win in the opening heat ahead of Scotland’s Frankie Cunningham, before Adam Best came home to the flag in a superb heat two ahead of Adam Heatrick and Denver Grattan. The NI Points Championship title was also up for decision, but unfortunately a retirement in this one for Drew McKeown meant the title went the way of defending champ Jordan Rochford.
McKeown was out to make amends in the final though, surging through the field to take the win in emphatic style ahead of McFarland and Rochford.

An incident packed opening Stock Rod race went to Stevie McNiece, after on-the-road winner Declan O’Connor was excluded for an incident early in the race that led to the demise of Joe Largey. Victor McAfee and Jonny Cardwell filled the top three. Heat two saw a fine win for Mark Overend, the Portadown driver staving off a hardy challenge from stalwart McAfee, with Victor having to settle for his second runner up spot of the evening.
Samuel Wilson quickly worked his way ahead in the final, holding off the pack before they were brought up short by an engine failure in the pack which coated the track in oil. At the resumption Wilson managed to hold them all off right to the flag, taking a very welcome and deserved win over Sam McNeice and Stevie McNiece.

Completing the programme were the competitive Thunder Rods division, with Adam Graham taking the opener over Clifford Gordon and Sam Preston. Heat two then saw a great outside line drive from long-time campaigner Graham Young to net the win, over Graham and Curtis Greer.
The final saw Gordon relegate Chris McNeill early on to hit the front, and Clifford even survived a mid race stoppage to hold on out front all the way to the chequered flag. It was just reward for all his hard work to repair his car after a big crash at the previous meeting. Graham, David Wilson and McNeill completed the top places.

Maxwell To The Fore At Tullyroan Oval

The conditions turned very wet during the second half of Saturday evening’s race meeting at Tullyroan Oval, with Crumlin’s Adam Maxwell turning on the style to win the feature race for the elite National Hot Rod. Aughnacloy’s World Champion Kyle Beattie won the Superstox Tullyroan Challenge Cup after another storming drive, with the other feature race winners being Armagh’s Mark Foster in the Stock Rods, Magheralin’s Stuart Agnew in the Lightning Rods and Monaghan’s Phillip Farrell in the Micro Bangers.

The opening heat for the National Hot Rods saw a deserved win for veteran Keith Martin, the former World Champion holding off Thomas Dilly and Mark Heatrick at the flag. In the damp in heat two, Philip McCloy celebrated a welcome win, just a week before his wedding. Martin and Derek McMillan filled the places.
The track was awash come final time, Round 13 of Simpson Race Exhausts World Series NI. Heat winners Martin and McCloy squabbled over the lead early on, but neither had any resistance to offer to the flying Adam Maxwell. Adam’s pace in the wet was on another level to the rest, and he raced home to a very well deserved final win after a dominant drive. John Christie, Derek McMillan and Glenn Bell were next home, but all some way behind the winner.

The Superstox produced fantastic entertainment all evening, with novice grader Gerard Hartley hanging on for the opening heat win over Conor Murphy and Craig McConnell. Heat two fell to an impressive David McMenemy ahead of Steven Haugh, with Curtis Greer snatching third after a fantastic four way scrap.
The Tullyroan Challenge Cup final was the race of the night by some distance, with Haugh, Jordan Robinson, Kyle Beattie and McConnell trading blows and places throughout. In the wet conditions this was good, old-fashioned Stock Car racing with no quarter given, and certainly none expected! When the others tripped over a backmarker and lost time, Beattie was able to break clear to take the win and the trophy in emphatic style - all after starting the final at the back of the grid after not finishing either heat. Second went to McConnell ahead of Robinson and Haugh.

Mark Foster stamped his authority all over the opening Stock Rods heat, winning by a distance over Dan Shannon and Declan O’Connor after Mark Crawford was demoted from second for contact. Mark Overend then took a rare but very welcome win in heat two, as he drove an excellent race to hold off a whole posse of chasers. Foster and Stevie McNiece filled the places at the chequers.
Foster hit the front on lap four of the final, and he would never be headed as he stormed home to complete his double for the evening and earn a grading rise for the next meeting. Sam McNeice, Samuel Wilson and Crawford filled the premier positions at the flag.

The Lightning Rods opening heat saw another welcome win for Gerry Rogers, who had only tasted victory for the first ever time at the last meeting! James McKinney chased him home in that one, before James went on to record the victory in heat two over Rogers and World Champion Ricky Shaw. Nigel Jackson had edged ahead in this one, only to be sidelined with a gearbox fault.
Recent newcomer Ian Hobson impressed out front early in the final before Mark McCambridge powered clear. But British and Irish Champion Stuart Agnew was on a mission, Stuart sliding ahead with just three laps to go to claim the win. McCambridge, McKinney and Shaw rounded out the places.

A smaller than expected entry of Micro Bangers still put on a show, with Monaghan’s Phillip Farrell surging clear to win a tame ‘Micro Madness’ final ahead of Jay Gurney and Aaron Clarke. Gurney then went on to win the first Allcomers over Jonny Murdock, before that same duo claimed similar places in Allcomers 2.
The Destruction Derby completed the night, with Murdock getting the win after a great battle with Gurney and Josh Anderson. Murdock also claimed the Entertainer of the Day award whilst Gurney claimed Best Wreck.
<b>Photos by John Wolsey</b>