Warren Oldfield has won an excellent Dan Love Summer Cup for Street Stock at the Make Smoking History Bunbury Speedway on Saturday night.
After an afternoon thunderstorm, the track was in excellent condition, and produced some great racing, with West Australian Champion Hayden Norman winning the opening heat after producing a great outside passing move to take the lead.
Damon Lyall would win a highly entertaining second heat, downing Wayne Thomson and Cody Avins, before Hayden Norman won heat three. David Padmore took out heat four defeating Damon Lyall and Ethan Genev who charged through the field after starting from the back.
Warren Oldfield took the lead on the opening lap of heat five after starting from the third row of the grid on his way to defeating Damon Lyall and Cody Avins. David Padmore and Hayden Norman swapped the lead several times in the final heat, before Padmore prevailed, with Russell Gunn finishing third.
The top eight pole shuffle provided plenty of excitement with several close finishes, but Hayden Norman would outlast Padmore in the final Shuffle to take pole for the 30 lap main event.
Norman got the best of the start, while Padmore found himself under immediate pressure from Barry Rewell and Cody Avins, with Rewell moving to second on lap two after starting from the third row of the grid.
A great battle for the minor placings took place, as Hayden Norman opened a small lead over the remainder of the field. Warren Oldfield moved to fourth on lap seven and then to third on lap nine, at the expense of Padmore. Avins and Padmore would then race side by side for numerous laps behind Rewell and Oldfield, as Norman continued to lead by seven car lengths.
At the half way mark Clint Hadley brought on the yellow lights when he spun on the back straight. This is some ways shaped the result of the event, as immediately after the stoppage, Barry Rewell, who had great car speed, spun himself out on turn two, dropping to second last, elevating Oldfield and Avins to the top three. The duo joined Norman in a great three way battle for the lead, with Norman persisting with a highline around the 530 metre venue.
Oldfield took the lead with seven laps remaining, but would have to survive a four lap restart, after a multicar pile-up occurred in Pits Bend, with as many as five cars strewn all over the track, with Wayne Thomson deemed the cause and was sent to the rear of the field.
Oldfield would go to win by four car lengths as Norman, Avins and Ethan Genev had a final three way battle for the minor placings. Norman and Genev got the better of Avins in the final laps, who then had to battle with Padmore again, in what was a highly entertaining race. Damien Amato, who had a very eventful night, would finish in the top six after starting from position fifteen.
