Following its introduction to the Kiwi automotive events calendar earlier in 2017, the New Zealand Burnout Championship (NZBC) has lived up to its name, providing a burnout championship with rounds that have covered the country across both the North and South Island. Kicking off at Masterton Motorplex, on the brand-new purpose-built burnout pad, the show headed north to Taupo’s Bruce McLaren Motorsport Park for round two, before travelling to the extreme end of the country — The Rock Riverside Speedway just outside Invercargill, for the third round.
All the while, the show included two Australian heavy hitters, in the form of Andrew Lynch’s notorious ‘LYNCHY’ Corolla, and Sam Surace’s tough ‘MADSAM’ Ford Capri, along with a local contingent of burnout heavyweights determined to claim the country’s inaugural national championship crown.
NZBC 4.0 took place on the long-established pad at Meremere Dragway, south of Auckland, representing the final NZBC round for the year before the final round, which is to be held in March of 2018. And what the Meremere pad lacked in size, relative to the others, it more than made up for in tough competitors — this was exactly the kind of burnout assault the fans had trekked along to witness!
The most obvious standout was a car and driver combination that has been in NZBC from the start — Rob Toheriri and his ‘AGROXB’ Ford Falcon, now sporting an in-your-face blower above the big block, and if you thought this thing was tough before, you’d be in for one hell of a surprise! The XB was on song, shredding the rears and netting Rob the Second Overall award by the end of the day.
And, while it may be obvious, the same could be said of Chris Daley’s staunch ‘SYCO8’ Holden HQ Monaro. With an 8-71-supercharged 540ci big block for forward propulsion, not only is this thing a legit nine-second street car, but a champion skid rid, and Chris came out with the First Overall and Pro Class trophies to his name.
In other HQ Monaro news, Nigel Dixon parked his Top Doorslammer for the weekend, instead electing to take the wife’s Monaro to Meremere for some skids. He’s no stranger to lighting up the bags, and he knows how to show an engine a good time, too — Lord of the Revs is one of the event’s most coveted awards, and he took it out, no sweat!
Gavin Wenzlick of High Performance Rotaries had his wicked ‘TUF RX’ Mazda RX-4 out to play, and this weapon is a testament to his engine building skills. Not only does he drive this all over the place, but he abuses it relentlessly, and it just keeps on taking it. He took out the Tip-In King award, as well as taking out the Rotary Class trophy …
Something easier said than done, when you’re up against guys like Steve Ellicott, who has no qualms with thrashing his 13B-powered Mazda 808 wagon.
And we’ve got to give credit where it’s due, especially when it concerns leading the charge as far as Barra power in New Zealand is concerned. Shaun Jury is dedicated to Ford’s six-cylinder answer to the LS, and with the phenomenal performance he’s managed to extract from his built Barra turbo, you can hardly blame him.
Unfortunately, things didn’t go so well for Andrew Lynch, whose LS decided to kick the rods out in protest against its last competition in New Zealand. With the Aussie exhibition cars shipping out the Australia for Summernats and the summer season, Lynchy’s damn lucky he’s got a stockpile of LS engines waiting back home. It’s certainly going to be interesting to see who ends up being shipped over the the next NZBC round, but that’s what makes it so exciting.
Check out the gallery below, thanks to Garry from Outlaw Photography, for more of an idea of just what went down at NZBC 4.0. The next NZBC round is going to take place at Masterton Motorplex on March 31, 2018 — make sure you save the date, because this thing is gonna be epic!
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Hard Park Awards
Best Represented Club — On A Roll
Promoter’s Choice — Steven Rutherford, Holden HK Monaro (MYNARO)
Burnout Awards
First Overall — Chris Daley, Holden HQ Monaro (SYCO8)
Second Overall — Rob Toheriri, Ford XB Falcon (AGROXB)
Third Overall — Gavin Wenzlick, Mazda RX-4 (TUFRX)
Young Guns — Denver Hurndell, Ford Falcon
Pro Class — Chris Daley, Holden HQ Monaro (SYCO8)
V8 Class — Rob Toheriri, Ford XF Falcon (AGROXF)
Six-Cylinder Class — Warren Shirtcliffe, Sunbeam Rapier (JUSTA6)
Rotary Class — Gavin Wenzlick, Mazda RX-4 (TUFRX)
Lynchy’s Pick — Alistair Campbell, Ford AU Falcon
Madsam’s Pick — Michael Keenan, Mitsubishi Lancer EX
Tip-In King — Gavin Wenzlick, Mazda RX-4 (TUFRX)
Lord of the Revs — Nigel Dixon, Holden HQ Monaro
Judges’ Choice — Rob Macaree, Holden HQ
Best Celebration — Rob Toheriri, Ford XB Falcon (AGROXB)
Hard Luck — Andrew Lynch, Toyota Corolla (LYNCHY)