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Mitsubishi has used the Easter long weekend to further assert its
overall domination of the 4WD unmodified category by winning its
class at the Hyden 400, round One of the 2007 Australian Off Road
Championship. Driving the current Stock Standard Falken Tyres
Ralliart Mitsubishi Pajero NP, six time (2001, 02, 03, 04, 05, 06)
Class Seven champion Geoff Pickering yet again raced to victory in
class (his 22nd on the trot!), crossing the finish line in a
stunning 8th place overall.
Intriguingly, the Townsville based Mitsubishi dealer was 10th
outright at Hyden in 2005 and 9th last year. So all indications are
that he can expect to be 7th, if not better, in 2008! 60 cars
entered the very demanding 400 km long event, which was won outright
by the purpose-built desert buggy of Erick Phillips.
Expertly navigated as always by Glenn Watson, Pickering started the
event quite prudently, finishing the 15 km long prologue in 32nd
place. By the end of the first day of competition, he was up to 15th
overall, and then kept improving his placing over the final day of
racing, greeting the chequered flag in 8th place outright behind
powerful off road buggies. |
“As was the case last year, the Hyden track was absolutely great”,
observed Watson afterwards. “It had a good mixture of everything
from smooth dirt roads to rough and rocky bits which, in general
terms, suited our Pajero to perfection.” “The car was absolutely
sensational”, he added, “the suspension had been tuned to suit the
conditions and we had a very good run, as well as a very good result
to start the year with confidence.”
“The track deteriorated quite a lot towards the middle of the race”,
explained Pickering, “ but those demanding conditions were actually
a good omen for us because the tougher it got, the better it suited
our Pajero.” “We have been able to find a little bit more torque in
our engine, and our suspension system has been refined marginally”,
he added, “and all in all, those little things have enabled the car
to perform at its best.” |
Pickering went on to suggest that even if it has now entered its
seventh year of full and brutal competition - “something that was
not intended”, he confesses - the Pajero NP “is better now than it
has ever been”, and, he predicts that “it will end this season as
successfully as it has ended the previous six ones.”
Pickering concluded by asserting that his Mitsubishi Pajero will
therefore be in top shape when entering the legendary Finke race
(round Two of the championship), which will take place on the
Queen’s Birthday long weekend, South of Alice Springs.
Jean-Pierre Zajac. |
