The start of the first Formula Regional Oceania Trophy race at Hampton Downs.
Race 1 was a fairly straightforward affair for Sharp, who got the jump on pole position winner Ugo Ugochukwu at the start into Turn 1.
Sharp was pressured by Ugochukwu for the lion’s share of the competition, but never ceded the lead. All told, the MTEC Motorsport driver beat his M2 Competition opponent by a meagre 0.448s after 18 laps.
Kanato Le was third for Hitech TGR, three seconds away from the top two. In fourth was Ryan Wood, who recovered from a slow start to threaten the podium in the closing laps.
Just seven-tenths split Le and Wood at the chequered flag.
Jin Nakamura (Hitech TGR), Freddie Slater (M2 Competition), Zack Scoular (MTEC Motorsport), Yevan David (Kiwi Motorsport), Ernesto Rivera (M2 Competition), and James Wharton (HMD Motorsports/TJ Speed) completed the top 10.
“I got a great start and a great first turn and then it was just about trying to look after the tyres and hold Ugo off as he was very quick,” said Sharp.
“The push to pass gives us a bit of strategy in terms of options but it is still hard to pass with the aero wash, so I was fully aware how important a good start would be.”
Race 2 of the weekend was a frenetic affair from start to finish.
Yevan David started the reverse top eight from pole position, though it was Zack Scoular who got the holeshot to lead into Turn 1.
There was drama mid-way through Lap 1 when James Wharton got spun off the nose of Sebastian Manson.
With Wharton’s car parked up, the Safety Car was drawn. For the contact, Manson was given a drive-through penalty for the incident.
Scoular led the Lap 4 restart and left David to battle over second with Jin Nakamura.
Ryan Wood drives for MTEC Motorsport in Formula Regional Oceania Trophy.
Behind them, the battle for fourth was fierce. Nakamura’s teammate Kanato Le got stuck into the back of fourth-placed Slater and busted the front wing. That forced the Hitech TGR driver to the pits, which promoted Wood to fifth.
Nakamura clinched second on Lap 7, passing David into Turn 1. The Kiwi Motorsport driver tried to take the place back but locked up into Turn 2 and conceded the position.
David’s race would only get worse as he further down the field to an eventual ninth place finish.
With David out of the way, Slater and Wood waged war over third place. Slater was resolute in defence, however. Despite multiple attempts, Wood couldn’t find a way through and settled for fourth.
At the front of the field, Scoular was untouchable. In clear air, he clinched victory by 1.779s over Nakamura while Slater was another five seconds back.
Ugochukwu claimed fifth place ahead of Sharp, Nolan Allaer, Jack Taylor, Yevan David, and Fionn McLaughlin.
“I got a pretty good launch off the line and then built about a three-second gap at the start and just managed it from there,” said Scoular.
Formula Regional Oceania continues on Sunday with qualifying, which will set the grid for the 27-lap feature Race 4. The grid for Race 3 will be set by combined fastest lap times.
Results: Formula Regional Oceania Trophy Hampton Downs, Race 1
Pos
Num
Driver
Laps
Diff
1
11
Louis Sharp
18
0
2
4
Ugo Ugochukwu
18
0.448
3
19
Kanato Le
18
3.036
4
40
Ryan Wood
18
3.789
5
12
Jin Nakamura
18
6.172
6
27
Freddie Slater
18
7.017
7
3
Zack Scoular
18
8.819
8
21
Yevan David
18
11.363
9
24
Ernesto Rivera
18
12.523
10
13
James Wharton
18
13.104
11
5
Yuanpu Cui
18
20.178
12
22
Sebastian Manson
18
21.238
13
33
Fionn McLaughlin
18
21.677
14
52
Nolan Allaer
18
23.005
15
50
Jack Taylor
18
23.746
16
41
Ricardo Baptista
18
28.218
17
69
Kalle Rovanpera
18
28.465
18
8
Trevor LaTourrette
18
49.296
DNF
14
Cooper Shipman
17
Results: Formula Regional Oceania Trophy Hampton Downs, Race 2
Pos
Num
Driver
Laps
Diff
1
3
Zack Scoular
18
0
2
12
Jin Nakamura
18
1.779
3
27
Freddie Slater
18
7.155
4
40
Ryan Wood
18
7.800
5
4
Ugo Ugochukwu
18
8.968
6
11
Louis Sharp
18
10.217
7
52
Nolan Allaer
18
13.66
8
50
Jack Taylor
18
21.685
9
21
Yevan David
18
22.914
10
33
Fionn McLaughlin
18
22.941
11
69
Kalle Rovanpera
18
24.490
12
14
Cooper Shipman
18
26.293
13
8
Trevor LaTourrette
18
36.916
14
19
Kanato Le
18
1:14.043
15
41
Ricardo Baptista
17
1 lap
16
22
Sebastian Manson
17
1 lap
17
13
James Wharton
16
2 laps
18
5
Yuanpu Cui
14
4 laps
DNF
24
Ernesto Rivera
16
