With only 22-points separating the top two drivers’ it will be all-on-the-line for Palmerston North’s Callum Crawley and second placed Alex Hawley of Pukekohe at the 2018/19 North Island Formula Ford Series on Sunday at Hampton Downs.
After starting the season with a convincing round win at Pukekohe in October, Alex Hawley (Stealth) was leading the standings up until the penultimate round help at Pukekohe in March (in conjunctions with the final round of the national F1600 Championship), where a hard charging Callum Crawley (Spectrum 016) surpassed Hawley for the lead.
Having had an DNF at Manfield with clutch issues, and lacking straight line speed at Pukekohe, car troubles have hurt Hawley and his chances of leading heading into the final round. He is sure to bounce back in a big way at Hampton Downs, taking the fight directly to Crawley.
Meanwhile, Crawley has been on a flyer claiming pole positions at both Manfield and Pukekohe (and with it the bonus point) and winning six races in a row for the series.
With 20 points awarded for a win, any reliability issues are sure to turn the points table upside down for the leading duo.
Further back sees an even closer fight between Nick Buxeda and Kim Crocker for third place. They are separated by only three points (82 to 79 respectively) with Dave Silverton looming in fifth just seven points behind. The trio managed to leap Blake Evans for third in the fourth round, with a closely fought three races at Pukekohe. A retirement in the final race was all that was holding Silverton back.
Evans currently sits in sixth after a strong start to the season (including a win in Round 1). Unfortunately he had to forfeit rounds 4 and 5 with heavy damage sustained at Manfield. However, this will motivate seventh place Tony Graham even more, who will have his eyes on passing the youngster in the table and moving up another place, continuing on his strong results from the past two events.
Jordan Mounfort sits in eighth, however is unlikely to make the final round, providing a perfect opportunity for Grant Campbell (Currently ninth) to take his spot.
Further down, an improving Cameron Tanner and seasoned racer Paul Dold will be looking to make the best of any opportunity over the weekend to score maximum points to add to their tally’s.
Crawley Llads Class 1 comfortably while Hawley leads Class 2. Silverton has a 25 points margin over Tony Graham in Class 3.
Overall Points (Top 10)
1 Callum Crawley 144
2 Alex Hawley 122
3 Nick Buxeda 82
4 Kim Crocker 79
5 Dave Silverton 72
6 Blake Evans 68
7 Tony Graham 54
8 Jordan Mountfort 40
9 Grant Campbell 38
10 Noel Woodford 35
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