champchat
“I would say the fact that we had won the championship for the
third time sunk in right then and there, after that fi rst round, as the
celebrations stated almost instantly! We all remained pretty excited
for quite a while after that!
“Winning a third Super Gas championship, well it doesn’t get any
better than that I think; but having said that – I am not stopping there
– I will be aiming for a fourth
“I just hope our fellow racers can continue to support our bracket.
“My family, my crew and myself all work hard together getting the
results we have achieved and we all enjoy the excitement together
when we do well. Hopefully we can continue to do that as we support
every meeting that we can next season, as we have done for the past
many years.
“In the meantime, we would like to thank Summit Racing Equipment
for their continued support of the championship, and also ANDRA for
their eff orts.”
BRADLEY BISHOP
Summit Racing Equipment Junior
Dragster Champion
and have been able to just have fun all the way through. We always
were pleased to be able to help everyone out and try to make their
weekend’s as enjoyable as ours along the way too.
“There were certainly some downs as well, but this year went really
well and I was happy to not go out in the fi rst round of eliminations
at any event. My worst event for the season was the fi nal, where I
went red by 0.001 of a second – I am still not sure what to think about
that, whether I should look on it as not so bad as it was such a small
margin that I red lit by, or badly because it was so close to a perfect
light!
“Sitting on the sidelines after that red light was a bit hard at the
Grand Finals – I wasn’t feeling the title pressure in the weeks leading
up to the event or even once we were underway in Adelaide, but once
it was out of my control like that it kicked in a bit. I had to sit back
and tell myself that whatever happens, happens, and I was really
happy to see the luck fall my way. It was really rewarding to pick up
the trophy at the end of the night, and to see how many people were
happy about our win.
“I am not sure at this stage what will come next for us as far as racing – I
am ageing out of the Juniors bracket and heading to university, so at this
stage I won’t be chasing the points in the coming season and it may be a
few years before we are back giving it another crack in another bracket.
I can say for sure though that we will defi nitely be back!
“In the meantime, I am going to be lending a hand to the Berias family
at some events as crew – Jake Berias is a gun little racer and will be
one to watch in the next season of Summit Racing Equipment Junior
Dragster. He has a great car and is very comfortable in it, so I am looking
forward to seeing how he goes and helping him out with my 10 years of
JD experience.”
DANNY RICKARD
In his fi nal year racing in the Summit Racing Equipment Junior
Dragster bracket, 17-year-old Bradley Bishop was able to secure the
Summit Racing Equipment Sportsman Series Australian title.
“I guess it has sunk in, it has always been such a huge deal and we
have been chasing it for a few years now,” Bishop said a few weeks
after the Grand Final.
“While the title might say we were the best of the season, I don’t see
myself as any better than anyone else, anything can happen when
it comes to racing and luck plays a huge side to it – I guess when it
is your time, it is your time and I am very grateful for the outcome.
“There is no doubt that we gave ourselves the best shot that we
could at taking it out, and that is all you can do. We have done a lot
of travelling and put in a lot of hard work to get to this point, so there
is a big sense of relief that it has fi nally paid off in the end. I know my
sponsor, dad’s wallet, was certainly happy with the result, it made
everything he has done for me worth it!” laughed Bishop.
“The best parts have been the laughs and the good times we have
had in the pits. At the end of the day we are all there to get one
thing – be that the round or the championship win – but Dad and I are
pleased to have never had any issues with any other racer in the pits,
Modifi ed Bike Champion
In only his second full Summit Racing Equipment Sportsman Series,
Danny Rickard broke through to take the Australian Title honours in
the Modifi ed Bike bracket. He had stepped up to a new bike for the
2017/2018 season, racing the ‘Raw’ V-Rod previously owned by close
friend Niki Zak – who has been called the fastest and quickest woman
in the world on two wheels.
“It was a huge buzz for me to win the championship,” Rickard said.
“It has sunk in now, and I am very proud to be able to show off the
new number on my bike!
“I am pretty lucky to have some of the best people in the business on
my side – most of all my very special friend Niki Zak who has given
me lots of coaching and taught me to relax at the light. Yes, at the
Grand Final the pressure was high, but I didn’t let it get to me, and
obviously all of Niki’s support paid off .
“After running every round, I knew we were in the running to take it.
We went to the Grand Final on 270 points alongside my good mate
Dan Dycer.
“Being presented the trophy at the end of the night was a huge
moment for me – I have only been racing in the Summit Racing