Glen Collinson wins two races then wins the round at Manfeild

For Sunday’s racing at Manfeild’s OctoberFAST, Glen Collinson finished Sunday’s racing with a 2nd in Race Two then 1st in Race Three, to win the PTS Logistics V8 Utes Round One. Alex Fougere won Race Two but had to settle for 2nd in Race Three. Here’s how the action unfolded.

On Sunday morning, Alex Fougere started deep in the field in 7th in the reverse grid race, alongside Glen Collinson in 8th. Alex had a great start getting around Blair Gribble-Bowring to claim 3rd, leaving his father Paul up front and Geoff Spencer in 2nd.

But by the start of lap two, Alex had dispatched Geoff Spencer, then passed his father to lead. Meanwhile, in just his second race in a V8 Ute, Peter Bennett – after starting 4th – was up to 2nd place by lap two. The race was on.

Glen Collinson, meanwhile, was carving up the field, leapfrogging from the back row and was challenging Peter Bennett by lap three. The two warhorses battled it out, lap after lap. Glen eventually moved past Peter around turn two on the on seventh lap. Then, Glen set out in pursuit of Alex, setting the fastest lap of 1.18.392 in the process. But the wily Holden racer wasn’t relenting and held his lead to the chequered flag.

Meanwhile a little further back, a tense battle between Geoff Spencer, Stu Monteith and Paul Fougere just one second apart saw Paul overtake St Monteith late in the race for 6th place, with Geoff clinging onto 5th.

After the race, an elated Alex emerged from the CORE Holden fists in the air. “Great to have the family here, thanks to Dan (Ludlam), great race.” It’s another podium in the bag for Glen Collinson. While Peter Bennet, at the end of the race, was ecstatic, “1st podium in the 1st weekend is pretty cool”.

For the afternoon’s Race Three, there was another issue looming over two drivers. Track limit warnings in the day’s earlier race for Peter Bennett and Glen Collinson meant both drivers had to stay on track as one more infringement could mean a drive through penalty.

Glen Collinson lined up in P1 alongside Alex Fougere in P2. As Glen recounted after the race, “I was concentrating on being first into turn one”. Remain first he did, leading Alex into the turn, with Peter Bennett, Blair Gribble-Bowring and Geoff Spencer in tow.

Seasoned racer Collinson ran flawlessly to keep extending his lead lap after lap, but not far behind him positions were tight. Alex had Blair Gribble-Bowring and Peter Bennett in his rearview mirror. Alex’s solid driving managed to keep him comfortably ahead. But Blair and Peter – both in Ford Falcon FG utes – were having a fierce battle. Blair managed to keep 3rd place, despite the pressure, making for a riveting race for spectators.

Yet further back, another driver provided some engaging action. The PTS Logistics V8 Utes share the grid with the NZ Sixes, ensuring spirited Ford vs Holden battles across two categories. Yet the faster sixes can even challenge the V8 Utes.

Late in the race, NZ Six racer Christina Orr in a V6 Commodore began breathing down the neck of Bruce McRae. Christina would catch Bruce on the corners, then Bruce would streak away on the straights. The battle continued right to the chequered flag, with Bruce retaining the upper hand. Just.

Now the V8 Utes head for Hampton Downs late November, with more drivers retuning to the series. After the quality of racing we saw this weekend, Hampton Downs will be a thriller.