Michael Jackson (54) will battle with Jayden Fraser (36) for the Brett Cooper Memorial Trophy at X Factor Cars Riverside Speedway this weekend. Multiple Southland Championships as well as the annual Memorial Championships and the Demolition Derby will be on offer, in a last attempt for the weather-plagued season. Photo: Corbyn Shuttleworth
ONE more shot is what X Factor Cars Riverside Speedway is giving its horrendous season this Saturday, with the running of multiple Southland Championships and the annual Memorial Championships, not to mention the Demolition Derby.
Youth Saloons and Production Saloons will have their third attempt at running the Southland Championship and, with most clubs throughout New Zealand done and dusted, rumour has it a few have held off stripping their cars for a new season, just to travel south and have a crack at the titles on offer.
Stockcars will have a double whammy of championships with the Southland Championship and the Ronnie Tree Memorial Trophy both on offer.
These should provide some action-packed, full-contact racing throughout the day.
The memorial meetings from the Covid-19-affected season of 2019/20 were run earlier in the year, then the club decided to push the 2020/21 memorials out to late in the season.
However, 11 rain-affected meetings has meant cramming everything into one event.
The club feels it’s important to honour these members and their families with these championships and giving it one last shot to get them run this season is of high importance, they don’t want to be carrying them over again.
Streetstocks will battle it out for the Cecile Kergozou Memorial Trophy, modified sprints the Brett Cooper Memorial and saloons will go wheel to wheel in the Rod McLaren Memorial, with six shooters also confirmed as a support grade.
The season will be capped off with the always popular Demolition Ramp Derby; some drivers have had cars sitting around ready to destroy for more than a year now and they simply cant wait to wreck them.
If this meeting is rained off, Riverside will break the record for most rain-offs in a season.
Currently tied with Wellington on 11, it’s a record the club would rather not have but it’s the one thing the mighty southern club has no control over, but you can’t say they haven’t tried.
If the weekend looks wet, the event will be cancelled during the week, possibly Friday, and the season will be over.
Gates will open at 10am on Saturday with racing set to get under way at noon.
- Daryl Shuttleworth
