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| Added: 22 Sep 2015 |
Category: 2015 Oval Racing |
| Superstox World Final - NI’s Biggest Meeting this Century! |
I know what you’re thinking, it’s a grand title and a big big claim to make that it’s the biggest meeting of the century, so let’s take a minute to think about it, what has been staged this century that is bigger? …… done thinking yet? Here are some stats to help, NHR World…. never staged here and probably even if every car on the grid was from NI it still wouldn’t be staged here, 2 Litre World’s are two a penny, Stock Rod’s I wouldn’t be surprised if NI stages two World Finals for them next year (bonkers!), Lightning Rods have had a few worlds but don’t have a 54 year history with the prestige and heritage of the Superstox. BriSCA F2 World I wouldn’t imagine will ever be anywhere but the mainland and you’ve to go back to the early 90s for the Saloon World coming to NI. So there you have it, the Superstox World Final this weekend will be the biggest meeting this country has staged this century.
One a very wet Friday night at Aghadowey last October just ahead of the staging of the Superstox Irish Championship, Darren Black came onto the track and announced over the PA that DMC race promotions would be staging the 2015 Superstox World Championship, I was standing only a few feet away taking grid shots and only just made out what had been announced. I came off the infield to photo the race from our filming stand and mentioned it to Jonny and he said he’d heard nothing over the PA, such were the conditions on the night, for a while I thought I’d misheard it, but it was announced again, and I’ve been looking forward to it every since. On Saturday 26th of September Aghadowey Oval plays host to the Superstox World final for only the second time the event has been staged in the province.
Open wheeled and contact racing fans in Northern Ireland have been a bit deprived of home major championships in recent years, since the turn of the millennium the 2.0 Hot Rod World final has been staged here five times (I think), the Lightning Rod World twice, The Stock Rod World four times (again, I think), there has been numerous Europeans and British championships for those classes too, but if you follow things with bumpers of opened wheels then you have to go back to 93 for a Saloon Stock Car World final, if you follow open wheeled racing then you’ve to go back to 1995 when Bert Finniken won the F2 British at Nutts Corner since a major championship has been staged here. Before the F2 British in 95 the previous big meetings were the 93 European at Nutts Corner and the 92 Superstox World Final was held between Shamrock Park and Ballymena.
There is much debate and banter around the Superstox and F2s regarding the merits of each class, but the fact is this, since the Superstox last merged into the F2s at the start of 1998 we haven’t had a major championship staged here for F2’s (World/British/European), almost as though when the classes merged it was taken for granted that all open wheelers would be F2’s. The Superstox are now in their third season since their return and already the World final will be staged here this season and if you’re an open wheeled fan, a contact fan or a racing fan at all I’m sure it’ll be a spectacle you don’t want to miss.
Superstox and F2s were nearly on a fairly even keel by the middle of last season, which is some going for the Superstox in their infancy against a class that has been established since the 80s. This season there has been a bit of a shift in the balance and the F2s have gained a few cars and the Superstox have lost a few, but I’ve seen good races and poor races in both and decent turnouts and poor turnouts in both. I know there is plenty of people dismiss the idea of Superstox being as good as F2, they won’t be interested because they aren’t F2’s, but you never know what tomorrow will bring, F2’s are have taken a big hit from Superstox in NI and in Scotland while in England they face new opposition from Outlaw F2’s, we could see a day when F2’s aren’t the big appeal anymore and Superstox are the big class in NI, if we don’t stage another World Final for them in 20 years who knows what the lay of the land will be in open wheel racing.
I grew up watching “Stock Cars” and F2 in particular, I’d have been 11 years old the last time the Superstox World was staged here, if I was at it, I don’t remember it. Jordan Robinson and probably more drivers on the grid this year weren’t even born the last time it was here and probably weren’t born the last time we’d an open wheeled major championship.
When you talk to people around the racing these days you get a lot of “do you remember the night……” stories and there isn’t too many of them refer to modern times, let’s get behind this World Final and make it a night to remember with an electric atmosphere and one of those meetings that people talk about for years to come, let’s show what this country can stage the big events then even if you’re F2 to the bone it demonstrates a World in NI is do-able, but most importantly let’s have an NI winner! #9XX for Gold!
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