Mark Brown once again took SSS top honours at Tyrepower Parramatta City Raceway last Saturday night after screaming to victory in the ‘Rondalee 35’ before a home town crowd ahead of Brett Morris and Mark Cooper.

Heading into the finale event, Brown led the West Australian duo of Neville Lance and Dene McAllan in the SSS Championship with Troy Jenkins snapping at their heals. In effect, any of the top three hard chargers had the opportunity to walk away with a brand new Stealth Chassis by the end of the night, with the series pointscore extremely close.

By claiming his third "Speedway Shop" QuickTime award for the 06/07 Speedcar Super Series and claiming pole for the main event aside fellow Sydney-sider Peter Bourke; Brown continued his fine form of late and was with little doubt the crowd favourite to take home the win to clinch his first SSS Championship!

SSS Champion Mark Brown N11

Immediately grabbing the lead at the drop of the green, Brown led away Jenkins, Bourke, Morris, Cooper, Nathan Smee, Lance and young gun Matt Smith. Before long Jenkins headed to the highline; a move that appeared to be paying off as with 33 laps to go, the N2 BOC Gases Stealth began to reign in Brown who maintained a mid track route.

Behind them a battle waged between Smee, Lance and Smith; the trio switching positions across all lines of the track before the yellows were shown when Victoria’s Harley Bishop came unstuck in turn two with 31 laps left on the board.

Brown again led away Jenkins, Bourke, Morris, Cooper, Smee, Lance, Smith and McAllan at the restart; with Jenkins again moving to the high line as Morris began his campaign on the Bourke machine in third. Screaming on the highline, Morris moved into position to snatch third until Bourke moved up track exiting the turn swatting any advantage from the Mini Pickers machine. Maintaining pressure; Morris slipped past only a lap later with 29 laps remaining before pouncing on Jenkins to claim second!

Cooper shot low out of turn four with 27 laps remaining to claim 4th from Bourke, as Smee also came into the mix. Shooting down low before Bourke shut the door, Smee went to the outside line entering turn three as Bourke moved up track to defend his position; the duo making contact sending the N6 Kingsfeld Stealth towards the pit wall in a series of spectacular barrel rolls. Smee walked away from the crumpled car after what track announcers could only call a crash anyone was “lucky to walk away from”.

Returning to race mode, Brown led away Morris, Jenkins, Cooper, McAllan, Lance, Smith, Tim Evans, Matt Young, Alan Day and Victoria’s Troy Jordan before Philip Jeffery came to a stop after spinning in turn two, again bringing on the cautions.

With a wheel stand on the green, Brown again shot away from the pack whilst Troy Jenkins threw it all at Morris in a challenge to reclaim 2nd. Running way out wide through turns one and two, Jenkins inched ahead but again succumbed to third as Morris out powered him out of turn two on the low line.

Cooper meanwhile used Jenkins’ challenge to his own advantage, snapping to the tail of the N2 BOC machine in a fierce fight for third allowing Brown and Morris to build on their increasing lead. With 23 laps remaining, Cooper and Jenkins began their first of a number of wheel to wheel bouts as lapped traffic began to filter through the field.

Suddenly misfortune appeared to strike the WA21 MAC/Hawk of McAllan; after a hellish night with one DNF due to a flat right rear, the young West Aussie now found a violent shudder hit the car as the right rear wheel lost it’s mud plug and continued to unevenly fill with clay forcing him to slow drastically. With 18 laps remaining, McAllan had fallen back through the pack to 10th, forcing him from contention. Likewise only three laps later, McAllan’s closest rival in the SSS Championship also struck trouble with Jenkins suffering a flat right rear tyre, also dropping back through the pack before being black flagged with a mechanical defect.
 

The battle for the placings Brett Morris and Mark Cooper

With the front runners now in the thick lapped traffic, Morris regained some lost ground on the leading Brown and almost slipped through to capture the lead before Brown again whipped out one of his smooth moves the showman has become renowned for, relegating Morris back into second.

Brown continued his viscous onslaught over the remaining eight laps; at times even fish tailing through traffic in his bid to distance himself from Morris and the third running Cooper. Persistence paying off, Brown crossed the line ahead of Morris, Cooper, Smith, Evans, Day, Jordan, Bishop, Lance, Young, Ghent, Cavanagh and McAllan to claim his third SSS victory of the 06/07 season and stamp his name into the history books as this year’s SSS Champion!
 

Pictures by www.KingImages.com.au