The Australian V8 Superboats Championship presented by Penrite will make a welcome return to Griffith’s Lake Wynagan venue on February 11 for the penultimate round of the 2022 season, the Series making it’s first visit to the challenging venue since September 2019, prior to the impact of the Covid 19 pandemic.
A lot has changed since 2019, and a lot is riding on the result of the day-night event, notably for the Unlimited Superboat and LS-Class where ongoing wins for Phonsy Mullan and son Bastian will seal back-to-back Championship titles, whilst in the hotly contested 400-Class category, Griffith too becomes a vital piece of the Championship puzzle – Jody Ely looking to turn the tables on title rival Brendan Doyle and go after his third win of the season. That result would see the title decider come down to the final round at Keith in late March.
For Griffith, it has been without V8 Superboats since the hotly contested 2019 season, a season that saw Slade Stanley steal the mantel of Unlimited Superboat Champion from newly crowned World Champion Phonsy Mullan. It was one of the last times that Mullan didn’t appear on the outright podium in the category, with Stanley leading home former title holders Daryl Hutton and Scott Krause for the round win.
Interestingly, whilst Stanley has retired, Daryl Hutton will return to Griffith in the very boat in which Stanley all but dominated the 2019 Championship, the popular ‘Hazardous’ hull shared this weekend by Hutton and the boats new owner Chris Edmonds.
In 400-Class we will be looking for a first-time Griffith winner as none of the current teams have stood on the top step at the Lake Wyangan circuit, in fact during his last visit to Griffith in just his maiden season, 2022 points leader Brendan Doyle was forced to retire early after a big accident in qualifying, an accident which saw both he and wife Rory injured and with a complete boat rebuild on their hands. That rebuild ultimately led to the development of the new Daniel James (a former podium finisher at Griffith) built ‘PULSE’ hull, a project which has developed a hull which is arguably the new world standard in the sport, with both Doyle and eight-time Unlimited Superboat Champion Phonsy Mullan campaigning the new Australian-made hull this weekend.
For LS-Class, and for many of the competitors in the sport, they will be making their debuts at Griffith, a circuit which is recognised as arguably the toughest in the country, and with its reputation preceding it, there will be more than a few nervous teams in the pit area prior to the lights coming on Saturday night.
For LS-Class points leader Bastian Mullan though, you could expect the wins to continue, the reigning Champion displaying the same kind of calculating approach as his father and with all of Phonsy Mullan’s prior experience to draw on, you could expect his domination of the category to continue. That said, he will face former Champion Kyle Elphinstone who has his own experience to draw on at the Griffith venue, and this could be his best shot yet to upstage the Victorian teenager.
UNLIMITED SUPERBOAT
Reigning Unlimited Superboat Champion Phonsy Mullan returns to Griffith with one hand firmly wrapped around the 2022 Championship trophy, the seven-time Unlimited Champion looking to extend his winning streak, although how he will fare against a resurgent Daryl Hutton is yet to be determined.
Hutton showed last time out at Temora that he has closed the gap to the reigning Champion, and with the tight twisty nature of the Griffith circuit, he may well be able to close that gap even further.
That said, unlike Mullan, Hutton will be sharing the ex-Stanley ‘Hazardous’ machine with boat-owner Chris Edmonds, putting twice the pressure on the popular blue ‘Stinger’.
Hutton meanwhile may need to keep a close eye on Edmonds who has shown over the last couple of months that he is more than capable of taking the fight to his compatriot. He finished just six tenths behind Hutton last time out at Temora, before taking the fight to his team-mate in New Zealand where the two last competed in Edmonds’ new 500 cubic-inch ‘Sprintec’, Hutton going on to his first win in years whilst Edmonds showed great pace to be on pace with New Zealand’s best before easing off in the finals to allow Hutton to go after the win.
Buoyed by that first taste of victory in many years, you could expect the Hutton-Edmonds combination to look for more at Griffith, and whilst two drivers sharing the boat adds greater burden, it also provides double the data!
Phonsy Mullan might come into the Griffith round as a former winner, however he hasn’t seen the top step of the podium at Lake Wyangan since 2017, although you might not want to read too much into the history books, especially as the 2018 round was called early after an intense rain storm, although at that point Scott Krause was already setting the pace.
Don’t discount Krause either, the 2018 Champion is also a former winner at Griffith, whilst he’s also seen the harsh nature of the circuit after inverting the boat in the water in 2019, but with more experience under his belt and a sniff of a return to the podium, you can be sure he’ll be in the mix come the finals.
And whilst predicting who to keep an eye out for (pardon the pun), Glenn ‘Spider’ Roberts is arguably the most experienced driver to compete at the Griffith circuit, the V8 Superboats veteran though does suffer under lights thank to the effects of Usher Syndrome which impairs both his vision and hearing. During the day he is expected to put in a great fight to put his big-block powered ‘Blown Budget’ into contention, but come darkness you could expect his pace to fall away, although that said, he turned in one of his best ever drivers under lights last time out at Temora and he is embroiled in a fantastic fight over third in the Championship, so keep a close eye on his performance.
Throw in the returning Sam Everingham who will be back in his new purchase – ‘Excalibur’ – for his second event in the multiple race winning package, and you have the foundations of a fantastic battle right through the field, whilst for rookie Simon Doyle, he will be looking to earn more valuable miles as he cements his position in the field ahead of the 2023 season.
400-CLASS
With the Unlimited and LS-Class titles all but sorted for the 2022 season, it is the 400-Class fight between great mates Jody Ely and Brendan Doyle that will be the big focus at Griffith, the outcome of which may well seal the 2022 Championship result.
After victory in the opening two rounds of the 2022 season, Jody Ely was looking good to seal his maiden Championship victory – the demise of reigning Champion Justin Roylance with back-to-back crashes at Cabarita and Keith, then the retirement of 2019 Champion Paul Kelly to focus on business only adding to his favouritism – but nobody had told Brendan Doyle..
Campaigning his new Australian-made ‘PULSE’ hull, Doyle approached the opening rounds with caution before striking at Keith to claim his maiden V8 Superboats victory, and since then, he has been undefeated.
To Jody Ely’s defence, he did make a rare error in round four at Temora, before employing a new ‘GM Motorsport’ built engine for round five where Doyle again defeated him, but by only 49 one thousands of a second, Ely admitting to backing off on a couple of corners to conserve.. Doyle didn’t..
At Griffith though things could change. Ely admits he has never been caught out by the notorious Lake Wyangan layout, whilst Doyle very nearly ended his V8 Superboats career at the circuit – almost before it had begun – so he returns to the venue with those memories fresh in his mind.
For the pair though, they may very well have another challenger on their hands, and sadly it’s not Justin Roylance (who has reportedly sold his title winning ‘Jetspeed’ on to a new owner), nor Paul Kelly, but rather the returning Tremayne Jukes, a driver with his own experiences of the Griffith circuit.
Jukes has joined forces with Hugh Gilchrist in an effort to help Gilchrist develop further in the category, the Australian Moulding & Door Company boss debuting his own ‘Mackraft’ hull mid-season, before buying out former team-mate Greg Harriman’s share in ‘Apache’, the boat which Jukes will campaign at Griffith, the team keen to determine which of the two 400-Class packages is best before moving into their own ‘PULSE’ hull for the 2023 season.
Speaking of new packages, there’s even more change in the tightly regulated category, with 2022’s emerging star Danny Knappick making a hull change over the Christmas break. In just his second season in the sport, Knappick has taken on Jody Ely’s ‘spare’ hull, the Victorian selling Knappick his brand new ‘Sprintec’, allowing the former ski racer to step out of his existing ‘Stingray’ and step into one of the most widely respected hulls in the business, Ely suggesting it could be just the tonic Knappick needs to have him join the outright fight in coming seasons.
And as for Darrin Kesper – who has endured the full spectrum of emotions in season 2022 – he returns to the sport after a big off last time out at Temora, the ‘OzPebble’ supported team having repaired their ‘Aitchison’ hull and replaced safety items on the boat to ensure they can keep their championship alive, although they will be without regular navigator Kayla Foote who continues to recover from the incident.
LS-CLASS
Despite debuting an all-new LS-Class package last time out, the status quo remained for the reigning championship winning ‘RIPSHIFT’ team, in fact you could argue the team took another step forward in their bid to claim back-to-back titles, with Bastian Mullan not only securing his fifth consecutive win of the season, but for the first time in the current season, he was joined by younger brother Nate on the podium.
Splitting the pair after finishing second was 2019 Champion Kyle Elphinstone, one of few drivers in the LS-Class field with previous experience at Griffith, although despite racing there in 2019, he didn’t enjoy the greatest of weekends, but perhaps starts round six with his best chance yet of taking the fight to Bastian Mullan.
Sadly we’ll be without the ‘Nood Nutz’ team, a prior commitment keeping them in South Australia, whilst crowd-pleaser Mike Hessell will be moving across to B-drive Luke Walters’ ‘The Spartan’ after rumours he’s stepped out of his existing boat with plans to campaign a new hull in 2023.
We will also be seeing the return of Jade Atchison after the ‘Disturbed Racing’ team spent the last two rounds tidying up the ‘Twisted’ package, whilst Karen Howlett’s return to the wheel of ‘Drop Bear’ in a rotational role with husband Lawrie as B-driver, will give us two female drivers in the field, a first for many years in the sport.
Meanwhile, Tyler O’Day runs the penultimate round as sole driver of ‘Agro-Vation’, looking to keep his Championship battle alive with Nate Mullan and Jim Beaman, whilst Noel Verning, Lance Edmonds and Rob Johnston will also be looking to make an impression on the points leaders.
JUNIOR DEVELOPMENT
We will again see three Junior Development drivers in the field, with points leader Connor Smith looking to replicate his round winning performance last time out to close in on reigning champion Koby Bourke who has three wins under his belt this season. Another win for Smith would bring the title fight down to the final round, whilst for round three winner Eliza Roylance, she will be looking for more improvement as she looks for a return to the top step of the podium.
Round six of the 2022 Australian V8 Superboats Championship presented by Penrite will be contested at the Griffith Boat Club located at Lake Wyangan just north of Griffith on Saturday 11 February, with opening qualifying from 2:45pm ahead of the finals which will begin at 8:20pm.
For anyone attending round six, the circuit is located at Lake Wyangan, around 10-kilometres north of the Griffith city centre, on Lakes Road. Tickets are available online or at the gate.
For those of you unable to make the event, this weekend a live stream, and a range of interviews and videos will be made available via www.facebook.com/V8Superboats where results and updates will also be posted, but if you live in the area, do yourself a big favour, and drop down to Lake Centenary in Temora to take in some of the action live, you certainly won’t be disappointed!
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Rnd#6 2022 Australian V8 Superboats Championship presented by Penrite
Lake Wyangan, Griffith, NSW
11 February, 2023
UNLIMITED SUPERBOAT
1. Phonsy Mullan/Leigh Stewart (RAMJET)
28A. Daryl Hutton/Mick Parry (Phoenix Lubricants/Hazardous)
28B. Chris Edmonds/Jamie Maroney (Hazardous)
37. Scott Krause/Rachel Parsons (KAOS)
41. Sam Everingham/Simon Williams (Excalibur)
214. Simon Doyle/Xander Doyle (The Girlfriend)
888. Glenn Roberts/James Parsons (Blown Budget)
400-CLASS (GROUP A)
2. Jody Ely/Jessica Webb (Rampage)
4. Brendan Doyle/Rory Doyle (PULSE)
43. Darrin Kesper/Jake O’Day (Let’s Boogie)
45. Danny Knappick/Darren Tickell (Tuff’n’Up)
360. Tremayne Jukes/Brad James (APACHE)
863. Hugh Gilchrist/Narelle Pellow-Djukic (Mattrix)
LS-CLASS
1A. Bastian Mullan/Tahleah Mullan (RIPSHIFT)
1B. Nate Mullan/Cain Wallace (RIPSHIFT)
14A. Lawrie Howlett/Karen Howlett (Drop Bear)
14B. Karen Howlett/Lawrie Howlett (Drop Bear)
29A. Tyler O’Day/Xavier Jackson (Agro-Vation)
46. Jim Beaman/Erin Collins (JB Racing)
114. Rob Johnston/Grant Dodd (Almost There)
212. Lance Edmonds/Peter Sendy (Solid Gold)
219. Kyle Elphinstone/Jacob Bellamy (Blackout Racing)
269. Noel Verning/Nathan Garrett (Quiet Time)
300A. Luke Walters/Juzzi Calvert (The Spartan)
300B. Mike Hessell/Laura Stevens (The Spartan)
777. Jade Atchison/Erin Kearney (Twisted)
Junior Development
97A. Koby Bourke (Lil Psycho)
97B. Connor Smith (Lil Psycho)
97C. Eliza Roylance (Lil Pyscho)
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RACE SCHEDULE
Saturday, 11 February, 2023;
1:50pm – Practice laps commence
2:45pm – Qualifying #1 (55-minutes)
3:40pm – Qualifying #2 (55-minutes)
4:35pm – Qualifying #3 (55-minutes)
5:30pm – Qualifying #4 (55-minutes)
6:25pm – Qualifying #5 (55-minutes)
7:20pm – Dinner break (sunset – 60-minutes)
8:20pm – Junior Development FINAL
8:30pm – Top 12 Finals (LS-Class/400-Class/Unlimited)
8:55pm – Top 6 Final (LS-Class/400-Class/Unlimited)
9:40pm – FINALS (LS-Class/400-Class/Unlimited)
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V8 Superboats and Griffith – HISTORY
Rnd#5 2019 Penrite V8 Superboat Championships
21 September, 2019
FINAL RESULTS
TOP 3 FINAL
Unlimited Superboat
1. 08. Slade Stanley/Vanessa Stanley (Hazardous) – 33.928
2. 28. Daryl Hutton/Mick Parry (Phoenix Lubricants) – 36.790
3. 01. Scott Krause/James Parsons (KAOS) – 38.549
400-Class (Group A)
1. 40. Paul Kelly/Naomi Gow (4Zero Racing) – 38.425
2. 1. Mark Garlick/Kerry Garlick (Grumpy On Edge) – 39.980
3. 53. Brett Thornton/Lyn Thornton (2Obsessed) – 40.553
LS-Class
1. 62. Andrew Medlicott/Phil Shead (Gone Nutz Again) – 44.678
2. 380. Dwayne Mezzadri/Mitch Curtis (Unleashed) – 45.366
3. 17A. Graham Reynolds/Chloe Reynolds (Red Rum) – 48.351
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Rnd#1 2018 Penrite Australian V8 Superboats Championships
24 February, 2018
TOP 12 FINAL (rain out for Top 6/FINAL)
Unlimited Superboat
1. Scott Krause (KAOS) – 38.446
2. Phonsy Mullan (RAMJET) – 39.965
3. Glenn Roberts (Blown Budget) – 40.218
4. Paul Gaston (Heatseeker) – 42.240
5. Daniel deVoigt (Devo Racing) – 42.411
6. Michael Cunningham (AusPro Logistics) – 42.484
TOP 6 FINAL (rain out for FINAL)
400-Class (Group A)
1. Ben Hathaway (Weapon) – 39.824
2. Paul Kelly (4Zero Racing) – 39.883
3. Jody Ely (Rampage) – 41.015
4. Mark Garlick (Grumpy) – 41.041
5. Mitch Roylance (Blackjack) – 41.826
6. Brett Thornton (2Obsessed) – 47.825
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Rnd#3 2017 Australian V8 Superboats Championship
15 April, 2017
FINAL
Unlimited Superboat
1. Phonsy Mullan (RAMJET) – 37.008
2. Tremayne Jukes (Maniac) – 37.572
3. Ted Sygidus (Frankenzstain) – 39.160
400-Class (Group A)
1. Paul Kelly (4Zero Racing) – 41.685
2. Daniel James (Spitwater Team Outlaw) – 42.867
3. Justin Roylance (Spitwater Team Outlaw) – 43.000
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Rnd#1 2016 Australian V8 Superboats Championship
26 March, 2016
FINAL
Unlimited Superboat
1. Phonsy Mullan (RAMJET) – 37.350
2. Jamie Welch (Natwel Racing) – 38.715
3. Darek Sygidus (Frankenzstain) – 39.802
400-Class (Group A)
1. Brad Marsden (Allcott Transformer) – 43.391
2. Brett Thornton (2Obsessed) – 44.116
3. Ben Hathaway (Weapon) – 44.956
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2022 Australian V8 Superboats Championships presented by Penrite – Series Points
Unlimited Superboat (after round five of seven)
1. Phonsy Mullan (RAMJET) – 180-points, 2. Daryl Hutton (Phoenix Lubricants) – 153, 3. Glenn Roberts (Blown Budget) – 136, 4. Chris Edmonds (Non-Hazardous) – 120, 5. Rob Coley (Poison Ivy) – 109, 5. Scott Krause (KAOS) – 109, 7. Tremayne Jukes (The Girlfriend) – 54, 8. Simon Doyle (The Girlfriend) – 46, 9. Tyler Finch (Loose Cannon) – 30, 10. Sam Everingham (Excalibur) – 28
400-Class (Group A) (after round five of seven)
1. Brendan Doyle (PULSE) – 171-points, 2. Jody Ely (Rampage) – 164, 3. Danny Knappick (Tuff’n Up) – 142, 4. Darrin Kesper (Let’s Boogie) – 102, 5. Justin Roylance (Outlaw67) – 81, 6. Daniel Warburton (Team Attitude) – 76, 7. Hugh Gilchrist (Mattrix) – 59, 8. Greg Harriman (Apache) – 56, 9. Paul Kelly (4Zero) – 52, 10. Brett Thornton (Still Obsessed) – 24
LS-Class (after round five of seven)
1. Bastian Mullan (Ripshift) – 180-points, 2. Kyle Elphinstone (Blackout Racing) – 159, 3. Matt Malthouse (NoodNutz Racing) – 138, 4. Nate Mullan (Ripshift) – 128, 5. Tyler O’Day (Agro-Vation) – 124, 5. Paul Hill (Slicer) – 120, 7. Lawrie Howlett (Drop Bear) – 112, 8. Mike Hessell (Borrowed Time) – 92, 9. Noel Verning (Quiet Time) – 78, 10. Jim Beaman (JB Racing) – 68, 11. Ron O’Day (Agro-Vation) – 58, 12. Rob Johnston (Almost There) – 34, 13. Jade Atchison (Twisted) – 28, 14. Luke Walters (The Spartan) – 26, 15. Lance Edmonds (Solid Gold) – 20, 16. Matt Riley (Toe Cutter) – 18, 17. Darren Pollard (Disturbed) – 16, 17. Mitch Malthouse (NoodNutz Racing) – 16, 19. Karen Howlett (Drop Bear) – 6, 20. James Machan (Twisted) – 2
Junior Development (after round five of seven)
1. Connor Smith (Lil Psycho) – 168-points, 2. Koby Bourke (Lil Psycho) – 138, 3. Eliza Roylance (Lil Pyscho) – 69
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2022 Australian V8 Superboats Championships presented by Penrite
Rnd#1 – Tweed Coast, NSW – 23-24 July, 2022
Rnd#2 – Tweed Coast, NSW – 27-28 August, 2022
Rnd#3 – Keith, SA – 8 October, 2022
Rnd#4 – Temora, NSW – 5 November, 2022 (Colin Parish Memorial)
Rnd#5 – Temora, NSW – 3 December, 2022
Rnd#6 – Griffith, NSW – 11 February, 2023
Rnd#7 [FINAL] – Keith, SA – 25 March, 2023
About Penrite
Founded in Melbourne in 1926 by – then – 16-year old Les Mecoles, Penrite Oil utilised high-quality lubricants from Pennsylvania [USA] base stocks, hence the name ‘Pen’ from the base stock and ‘rite’ for the right oil.
In 1979, due to ill health, Les sold the company to John and Margaret Dymond. A mechanical engineer by trade and a car enthusiast at heart, John rapidly expanded the Penrite range of products. His technical background and commitment to quality ensured that Penrite continued to produce the highest quality products becoming the market leader in Australian oil and lubricants.
90 years on from those early beginnings the Dymond family have built Penrite into one of Australia’s most prominent and recognised brands.
The iconic Australian-made and owned lubricants company has a simple philosophy: ‘the right product for the right application’.
Penrite Oil Company produces a large range of high-quality products suited to the Australian conditions including the exciting 10 Tenths Racing Oils range which offers a superior package of performance and protection for both competition and high performance engines.
For more information about the extensive range of Penrite Oils available, visit www.penriteoil.com.au
For more information on the 2022 Australian V8 Superboat Championships, please visit www.v8superboats.com.au
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