Last night Sprintcars Queensland returned to AusDeck Patios Archerfield Speedway for Round 11 of the SuperCheap Auto Sprintcar Track Championship. While several teams ventured interstate in the past few weeks, for many it was the first race meeting in over a month and all were keen to get a win on the board. Luke Oldfield, back behind the wheel of the Titan Garages and Carports Q36 racer, had a spectacular night, finally breaking through for his maiden A-Main win for the team. Oldfield easily won the Shootout events to start the 30-lap feature event from pole position and quickly secured the lead in the main event when the lights went green. Andrew Scheuerle almost caught him several times in lapped traffic, but Scheuerle was soon forced on the defensive as Lachlan McHugh began challenging for second. It was clear from the very beginning of the season that Lachlan McHugh, in only his Rookie season in Sprintcars, was going to be one driver to keep an eye on. Last night he demonstrated once again just how much potential he holds, securing quick time in qualifying, and then racing underneath Scheuerle for second in the closing stages of the A-Main event. Scheuerle fought back hard, but McHugh was faultless and went on to take second with Scheuerle forced to settle for third. Kevin Titman and Bryan Mann rounded out the top five.

Qualifying got underway and it was Lachlan McHugh who topped the leader board at the end of the qualifying runs. McHugh stopped the clock just a fraction outside the 11-second bracket, setting the benchmark at a quick 12.005 seconds. Andrew Scheuerle was second quickest around the tight Archerfield Speedway circuit, crossing the line with a 12.028 second lap. Bryan Mann was third quickest with a 12.049 second lap, while Luke Oldfield (12.066) and Richard Morgan (12.091) rounded out the fastest five. Just 0.086 separated the top five, while just 0.789 seconds separated the top twenty-three cars. Anthony Lambert and Paul Morris recorded identical times of 12.140, while Steve Greer beat Mitchell Gee by just three thousandths of a second.

Heat one started with Mark Pholi and Dan Murray from the front row, with Pholi getting an amazing start on the pole line and quickly securing the race lead. Murray initially tried to challenge Pholi for position, but Pholi quickly began opening a comfortable margin over his rivals. Brent Kratzmann and Callum Walker raced side-by-side into turn one, with Walker on the high side getting the most drive exiting the corner to secure third, leaving Kratzmann to defend his position from Brandon Rawlings. Lachlan McHugh made his way underneath Anthony Lambert as they rounded turn four, with Callum Walker quickly catching, and passing, Dan Murray for second. Murray again tried to fight back, with Kratzmann now right on his tail, while McHugh closed the gap to Rawlings and Kratzmann and began putting all kinds of pressure on Rawlings, before Rawlings managed to pull a couple of car lengths ahead. Callum Walker began closing the gap to Mark Pholi in the race lead but ultimately ran out of laps. Mark Pholi took the win with Callum Walker home in second ahead of Dan Murray, Brent Kratzmann, Brandon Rawlings, Lachlan McHugh, Anthony Lambert and Clem Hoffmans.

Andrew Marks and Brad Ayers shared the front row for the start of heat two, with Dave Fanning and Kevin Titman out of the second row. Ayers got a brilliant start on the high-side, with both Titman and Richard Morgan quickly following, while Marks faded towards the rear of the field. Dave Fanning, Paul Morris and Andrew Scheuerle had a close battle mid-field, with Morris soon slipping under Fanning as they raced down the back straight just a few laps into the race. At the front of the field Titman was all over the back of Ayers, absolutely relentless as he searched for a way past the race leader, keen to take control of the race. It was spectacular to watch but contact between the pair as they exited turn two and raced down the back straight could have so easily ended in disaster for both drivers. Whilst both drivers were fortunate to escape a more serious incident, Ayers made heavy contact with the concrete wall before heading down track and spinning to a stop on the very edge of the infield. The race continued without a stop, with Titman now in the race lead and only a few laps left on the board. Kevin Titman went on to take the win ahead of Richard Morgan, Paul Morris, Andrew Scheuerle, Dave Fanning, Andrew Marks, Nelson Reddacliff and James Grady. Brad Ayers did not finish the race.

Dale Shilleto started heat three from pole position with Scott Doyle alongside. Shilleto got the initial jump but Doyle was quick on the high side, quickly securing the lead, by the time they hit turn two, while Mitchell Gee had an impressive run on the high line through turn one to race past both Andrew Liebke and Dale Shilleto, only to get too crossed up in turn two, spinning the car in front of the entire field. Shilleto, Liebke and Luke Oldfield were all very lucky to escape without incident. Gee restarted at the rear of the field while Shilleto and Doyle led the field around for the second attempt at a start. Shilleto got the jump on the start and while Doyle again challenged hard on the high-side, this time Shilleto was able to hang on to the lead. Oldfield quickly made his way into third and was challenging Doyle for second when at the tail end of the field an incident that involved both Steve Greer and Mitchell Gee left Gee stranded on the inside edge of turn three. Officials deemed Greer the cause of the incident and restarted Gee at the rear of the field as the field lined up for restart number three. It was a case of third time lucky for heat three, with Doyle securing the lead before the field hit the first corner. Shilleto held down second, but only until turn two when Oldfield effortlessly slipped underneath the Q91 racer and set his sights on Doyle. Mid-field Bryan Mann was putting all kinds of pressure on Andrew Liebke, all with Mitchell Gee right on his tail. Mann was breath-taking to watch as he searched for the right way past Liebke, at one stage having a big look up the inside as they raced through turn four, only for Liebke to fight back hard on the high side to maintain his position, both drivers giving each other just enough racing room and putting on a brilliant show for race fans. At the front of the field Oldfield was all over the back of Doyle, eventually finding his way into the race lead as Mann had a look on the high side of Liebke, and Steve Greer's flat left rear tyre completely shredded as he raced into turn three. Luke Oldfield went on to take the win ahead of Scott Doyle and Dale Shilleto, while Andrew Liebke withstood enormous pressure from Bryan Mann in the closing stages of the race to hang on to fourth. Mann crossed the line in fifth with Mitchell Gee the only other finisher. Steve Greer, Simon Jupe and Dylan Menz all failed to finish the eventful heat.

Heat four started with Dale Shilleto and Mitchell Gee from the front row, with Scott Doyle and Brent Kratzmann close behind. While Shilleto and Gee raced side-by-side across the line it was Gee on the outside who secured the lead before they hit turn one. Desperate to make up for a less than average opening heat, Gee quickly began to open a comfortable margin over his rivals, while Brent Kratzmann was magnificent on the high side through turns one and two, sweeping beautifully around Shilleto to steal second by the time they exited turn two. Kratzmann set out after Gee, and while he was able generate a lead of a couple car lengths on the rest of the field, he wasn’t able to get close enough to Gee to challenge for the lead. Brandon Rawlings raced around the outside of Paul Morris deep in the field, with Morris then finding himself under extreme pressure from Luke Oldfield. Oldfield pushed hard for several laps, while Morris not only defended his position, but searched a way back past Rawlings. With only a few laps completed Rawlings began to spin the NQ44 racer on the low line in turn two, while Oldfield uncharacteristically looped the Q36 racer on the high side coming out of turn one. Morris managed to avoid an incident while both Rawlings and Oldfield completed several simultaneous 360-degree spins before both managed to not only straighten their cars, but rejoin the race without causing a stoppage. Oldfield spent most of the rest of the race trying to find a way past Rawlings, while Morris worked on closing the gap to Doyle. Mitchell Gee went on to take the win ahead of Brent Kratzmann, Dale Shilleto, Scott Doyle and Paul Morris. Clem Hoffmans crossed the line in sixth and led Brandon Rawlings and Luke Oldfield past the chequered flag.

Andrew Marks and Dan Murray led the start of heat five, with Murray getting the better start and securing the lead, leaving Marks in second while the rest of the field fought over the minor places. Bryan Mann was brilliant on the high side, and after starting from position six he beat Kevin Titman into turn one, before racing around the outside of both Steve Greer and Mark Pholi in turn two, and sliding under Andrew Marks as they exited turn four at the end of the first lap. Marks fought back and managed to maintain his position, only for Mann to race around the high line a lap later. Moments later the race was brought to a stop for Kevin Titman who had spun to a stop in the middle of turn four. Dan Murray led the restart from Bryan Mann and Andrew Marks and the rest of the field, with Mann instantly taking to the high line and racing around the outside of Murray in turn two to steal the lead. Mark Pholi searched for a way past Andrew Marks, while Steve Greer found himself under fire from Andrew Scheuerle. Scheuerle slipped under Greer and set his sights on Pholi, capitalising on a small mistake by Marks in turn two that cost Pholi speed. Scheuerle made it past both Pholi and Marks before they hit turn three, with Pholi racing under Marks through turn four. Marks completed a 360-degree spin in turn two a few laps later, but managed to keep the car going and carefully rejoined the race. Bryan Mann went on to take the win, an impressive 4.337 seconds ahead of second placed Andrew Scheuerle. Dan Murray crossed the line in third and led Mark Pholi, Steve Greer, Brad Ayers, Kevin Titman and Andrew Marks across the line.

Nelson Reddacliff and Andrew Liebke shared the front row for the start of heat six with Liebke managing to secure the lead when the lights went green. Anthony Lambert had a great start on the high line but unfortunately the race was brought to a stop when Callum Walker got a fraction too sideways entering turn two, leaving Lachlan McHugh nowhere to go, the two became quite entangled. A full race start followed, with Walker out of the race and McHugh at the rear of the field. Liebke again got the better start and quickly secured the race lead, with Reddacliff holding down second but coming under pressure from a hard-charging Dave Fanning. Fanning managed slip underneath Reddacliff as they completed the first lap, with Anthony Lambert quick to follow him through and Lachlan McHugh, who had just made his way past Richard Morgan, coming on strong. However the race was soon brought under caution when James Grady spun the Q40 racer in turn two. Andrew Liebke led the restart from Dave Fanning and Nelson Reddacliff with nine laps still to run. Richard Morgan raced around the outside of Anthony Lambert before slipping underneath Reddacliff, while Lachlan McHugh copied the feat only a lap or two later. Morgan and McHugh began to close in on Fanning, who in turn was working on closing the gap to Liebke, but there simply were not enough laps left in the race for anyone to really challenge the race leader. Andrew Liebke went on to take the win ahead of Dave Fanning, Richard Morgan, Lachlan McHugh, Nelson Reddacliff, Anthony Lambert and James Grady. Simon Jupe and Callum Walker did not finish the event.

The Bronze Shoot Out, with qualifiers three to eight, hit the track for two qualifying laps. Lachlan McHugh was by far the quickest of the group, stopping the clock at 13.206 seconds and securing his transfer to the Silver Shoot Out. Also managing to secure a transfer position were Paul Morris, Luke Oldfield and Kevin Titman, while Richard Morgan, who missed out by a tiny 0.027 seconds, and Brandon Rawlings were eliminated from the Shoot Out events. Morgan and Rawlings would start the A-Main from positions seven and eight respectively.

For the Silver Shoot Out Andrew Scheuerle and Bryan Mann joined Lachlan McHugh, Paul Morris, Luke Oldfield and Kevin Titman on track. This time it was Bryan Mann who managed to be quickest around the circuit, stopping the clock at 13.151 second, while Andrew Scheuerle was second quickest with a 13.321 second lap. Both Mann and Scheuerle transferred to the Gold Shoot Out, as did Paul Morris and Luke Oldfield, while Lachlan McHugh and Kevin Titman were eliminated from the event and would start the A-Main race from positions five and six respectively.

The Gold Shoot Out was a four-car, five-lap, reverse-grid match race that saw Luke Oldfield and Paul Morris share the front row. Oldfield got the jump and quickly settled into the race lead while Morris temporarily held down second. While Mann entered the first corner of the race in fourth, he committed to the high line and made it work him, putting on a truly spectacular show for race fans as he raced around the Scheuerle and Morris, to steal second. Scheuerle slipped under Morris in the second corner of the race and put the challenge straight to Mann, but by the end of the first lap Mann had second covered and had begun to put a small margin between himself and his rival. Luke Oldfield went on to take the win, declined the Kratzmann Challenge, and thus elected to start off the front row for the main event. Bryan Mann finished second in the Gold Shoot Out and would share the front row for the start of the A-Main with Oldfield. Andrew Scheuerle and Paul Morris rounded out the Gold Shoot Out finishers and would share the second row for the start of the feature event.

The twelve-lap B-Main field rolled onto the track, with Mitchell Gee and Mark Pholi to lead them away and only the top four to transfer into the feature event. Gee and Pholi raced side-by-side into turn one and while Pholi fought hard it was Gee who emerged in front. Pholi was forced to settle for second, with Dale Shilleto a solid third while the rest of the field argued over the minor places. Dan Murray held down fourth, while Nelson Reddacliff managed to secure his position ahead of Callum Walker as they raced through the opening couple of corners. Simon Jupe made his way underneath Clem Hoffmans at the end of the first lap, but Hoffmans fought back to regain his position just half a lap later. Callum Walker was making impressive progress towards the front, edging ever closer to a transfer position, while Brad Ayers closed in on Nelson Reddacliff. With six laps left to run Andrew Marks spun in turn three, with James Grady spinning in an effort to avoid the stranded car, and brought the race under caution. Both Marks and Grady restarted at the rear of the field while Gee, Pholi and Shilleto led the field to the green. Callum Walker took to the high line once the race resumed and quickly made his way past Ayers, Reddacliff and Shilleto, and set out after Dan Murray. Murray had capitalised on a small mistake by Shilleto in turn two and made his way into third, with Walker closing in fast. Reddacliff slammed the wall entering turn one and faded through the field before pulling out of the event, while Grady brought the race under caution once more when he spun in turn four. A two lap dash to the chequered flag saw Mitchell Gee take the win with Mark Pholi in second and Dan Murray in third. Callum Walker secured the final transfer to the A-Main event with Brad Ayers crossing the line in fifth. Simon Jupe, Clem Hoffmans, Andrew Marks, James Grady and Dale Shilleto completed the B-main finishers, with Nelson Reddacliff the only driver to fail to finish.

Eighteen cars lined-up for the start of the 30-lap A-Main event, with Luke Oldfield from pole position and Bryan Mann alongside. Oldfield got a brilliant start and quickly secured the lead, while Andrew Scheuerle did not hesitate as he followed Oldfield to secure second by the time they hit the first corner. Mann settled into third while Lachlan McHugh held down fourth with a tough field right behind him. Andrew Liebke and Scott Doyle began working their way forward, while Callum Walker was having a great run in the Q33 racer as he tried to find his way past the Consol Racing team-mates of Mitchell Gee and Brandon Rawlings. Oldfield had begun navigating lapped traffic when the race was brought under caution for the spun car of Mark Pholi in turn four.

Luke Oldfield led the restart from Andrew Scheuerle, Bryan Mann and Lachlan McHugh, with Mann instantly taking to the high line and challenging Scheuerle for second. While Mann tried to make the high line work to his advantage, McHugh saw the potential on the bottom and began challenging Mann for third. Mid-field Rawlings and Gee had a great battle going, with each soon making their way in front of Doyle, But an incident in turn two left Rawlings stranded on the track, Doyle tipped on his side and Steve Greer with yet another flat left rear tyre. Whilst no-one was injured, unfortunately all three were out of he race.

Luke Oldfield again led the restart, this time with 21-laps left to run, with Andrew Scheuerle in second and Lachlan McHugh now in third. Mid-field Brent Kratzmann had a great battle with Richard Morgan and Paul Morris, before racing under Morris as they headed down the main straight a few laps into the restart. Morgan tried to run the high line, but lost several positions as Anthony Lambert, Andrew Liebke and Mitchell Gee joined the battle. The leaders entered lapped traffic and Scheuerle really started closing the gap to Oldfield, while McHugh closed in on Scheuerle. Within a few laps McHugh slid beautifully underneath Scheuerle through turn three to steal second, but had to work hard to maintain his position as Scheuerle stepped up the pressure. Luke Oldfield took a long-awaited and well-deserved win, with Lachlan McHugh managing a very impressive second in perhaps his best Sprintcar drive to date. Andrew Scheuerle finished a very respectable third while Kevin Titman managed to get the better of Bryan Mann in the closing stages of the race to secure fourth. Mann crossed the line in fifth and led Brent Kratzmann, Mitchell Gee, Paul Morris, Anthony Lambert, Andrew Liebke, Callum Walker, Dan Murray and Mark Pholi across the line. Richard Morgan, Brandon Rawlings, Scott Doyle, Dave Fanning and Steve Greer all failed to finish the event.

Sprintcars Queensland will venture to Bundaberg Speedway next Saturday night for another thrilling night of Speedway racing action. The team at Bundaberg Speedway have gone to a lot of effort to try and put this show on for Sprintcar fans so, if you can, get yourself trackside and cheer on your favourite drivers and teams. Sprintcars will return to AusDeck Patios Archerfield Speedway the following weekend, Saturday 27 February 2016 for Round 12 of the SuperCheap Auto Sprintcar Track Championship, calumniating in the Twin Feature event. Get yourself trackside and see it all for yourself.