July 30, 2017 | General

EDDIE WINS A THRILLER AT QR

EDDIE ABELNICA defeated Ryan Hansford in the Touring Car Masters best race of the year at Queensland Raceway while the championship is all tied up heading into the business-end of the season.

John Bowe and Adam Bressington now stand tied at the top of the TCM overall standings however it was the race three battle that was arguably the best moment of the weekend.

In a weekend that delivered three winners from three races Abelnica and Hansford battled for the victory in the final race in a breathless duel that saw the pair side-by-side for much of the final two laps.

While the Falcon was quicker in the straights the Torana was faster under brakes and through the corners – producing a thrilling race.

After crossing the line alongside each other on the penultimate lap Abelnica got the best drive out of the final turn on the last lap end ended up edging out the Multispares Torana in a stunning race to the line.

It was Abelnica’s first win of the year the sixth different winner of the 2017 season and his first win since Phillip Island last September.

Hansford’s second represented his best TCM result while Steven Johnson edged out race two winner John Bowe for third place.

The pair had started from the front row however Abelnica’s powerful start from second place – based on the finishing order of race two earlier in the day – saw him pull in front on the opening lap Hansford following him through.

Johnson then also jumped the slow-starting Bowe though the Torana quickly attached itself to the rear bumper of the Mustang and never left it for the remainder of the race.

Jason Gomersall Adam Garwood Adam Bressington Shannon O’Brien Leo Tobin and Mark King completed the top-10.

Gomersall Bressington and Garwood in particular fought a feisty battle for fifth place that lasted a majority of the race.

The mixed results at Queensland Raceway this weekend saw a variety of different driver score trophies; Leo Tobin winning the ProSport class ahead of Darren Beale and Bob Wisely.

Hansford’s superb weekend in the Multispares Torana saw him seal ProAm over Adam Bressington and Adam Garwood while Shannon O’Brien was the best of the locals in the Queensland TransAm series competition edging out Geoff Fane.

John Bowe’s race two victory saw him beat Steve Johnson and Eddie Abelnica for the ProMasters round win.

With three rounds of the 2017 Touring Car Masters series remaining Adam Bressington and John Bowe are now tied at the top of the overall standings with 529 points apiece.

Johnson sits third (517) with Ryan Hansford (482) now fourth thanks to his strong weekend in the Multispares Torana.

Jason Gomersall has jumped to fifth place overall with Garwood Abelnica Mason King and Tilley rounding out the top-10.

The next round of the Touring Car Masters will see the series’ return to suburban Melbourne for the Sandown 500 in September.

RACE 3 RESULTS:

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Pos Car  Competitor/Team                Driver                   Vehicle              Cap   CL Laps     Race.Time Fastest...Lap1    48  Brisbanes Cheapest Cars        Eddie Abelnica (VIC)     Ford Falcon XB Co    5800       12    15:40.9925   2 1:17.2516*2     6  Multispares Racing             Ryan Hansford (QLD)      Holden Torana SL/R   5000       12    15:41.5328   3 1:17.3623 3    17  WM Waste / Illusion Gas Log Fi Steve Johnson (QLD)      Ford Mustang Fast    5800       12    15:48.0791   2 1:17.7445 4    18  Wilson Security / PAYCE        John Bowe (VIC)          Holden Torana SL/R   5047       12    15:48.4548   2 1:17.7190 5    35  Bigmate Racing                 Jason Gomersall (QLD)    HOLDEN Torana A9X    5000       12    15:50.2452   2 1:17.8803 6    12  Giraffe Civil Contracting      Adam Garwood (TAS)       Holden Torana SL/R   5047       12    15:53.2135   3 1:17.9887 7    95  Whiteline Racing / Fabre Austr Adam Bressington (NSW)   Mercury Camaro SS    5800       12    15:53.6342   3 1:17.9085 8    26  Wanna Burger                   Shannon O'Brien (QLD)    Ford Firebird Trans  5800       12    16:01.2823   6 1:18.6806 9    46  THD Motorsport                 Leo Tobin (VIC)          Ford Boss Mustang    5000       12    16:05.8569   7 1:19.3726 10   85  Whiteline Racing / King Spring Mark King (QLD)          Holden Monaro GTS    5800       12    16:06.5518   5 1:19.2172 11   52  Outbound Racing / wheels.com.p Keith Kassulke (QLD)     Holden Monaro GTS C  5800       12    16:07.2015   5 1:19.1235 12   88  TIFS - Warehousing & Distribut Tony Karanfilovski (NSW) Ford Mustang TransAm 5800       12    16:07.6298   5 1:19.2884 13    4  Skye Sands                     Rusty French (VIC)       Ford Mustang Fast    5800       12    16:08.0522   2 1:19.4355 14   72  GFR Industries                 Geoff Fane (QLD)         Chevrolet Camaro SS  5800       12    16:30.1793   3 1:19.9089 15   97  John's Furniture Removals      Allen Boughen (QLD)      Mercury Comet        5000       12    16:30.6989   6 1:20.0659 16    3  Hercules Engines               Cameron Mason (NSW)      Ford Mustang Fastbac 5000       12    16:35.9148   6 1:19.9994 17    7  Wisely Motorsport              Bob Wisely (QLD)         Ford Torana SL/R 500 5000       12    16:38.8486  11 1:21.2675 18   19  Tincone Industrial Services    Darren Beale (QLD)       Holden Monaro GTS    5800       12    16:44.3516  11 1:21.3394 DNF  60  Glennan Transport / ANGLOMOIL  Cameron Tilley (NSW)     Valiant Pacer        4390       10    13:21.9962   7 1:18.9364