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Qualifying in a respectable third behind seasoned Top Alcohol campaigners Newby and Bray, Hambridge and his team worked on consistency rather than record breaking to get the job done and ran a string of 5.7's and 5.6's in the run to the final round of eliminations. The line-up was a tough one however and it was last year's winner, Debbie Reed that lined up against Aaron in the first round of competition.
After levelling the count at one win a piece, Hambridge then moved on to face fellow dragster pilot and national record holder, Wayne Newby. In his best form to date, Aaron sent the APM rocketship straight down the centre of the lane, running a 5.682 second ET, just three thousandths of a second different to his previous blast down the quarter.
Driving around a competitor like Newby clearly did wonders for the APM team's confidence who turned the car around for the final in no time at all and prepared to face off against funny car racer, Aaron Lynch. Lynch had hurt the motor on the previous pass and following a serious thrash in the pit area, presented their Mustang to contest the final of the Top alcohol bracket.
Despite the quicker light by Lynch, Hambridge went on to run his third consecutive 5.6 second pass in eliminations and take the victory at his home track. The win opening his championship points account in style and making sure that the team's growing fan base as well as all of the competition will be paying attention to the Albion Park NSW based team.
"The car never missed a beat for the duration of the event and it's a credit to my crew and sponsors that the lead-up to the event went so well", Hambridge said at the conclusion of the event. "We're still creeping up on the new engine combo and there's a lot more to come from us this year."
All of the runs in eliminations were super consistent and bode very well for the team's future hopes of a shot at the Australian top Alcohol Championship. In fact, the final three runs of the meeting were 5.679, 5.682 and 5.680 clearly demonstrating both the new found performance and driving talent so abundant in the team. Adding to the respectable figures in the deep, the short times for these passes were all under 0.92 seconds with the final run a staggering 0.906 seconds. "With the right backing we can really make a go of it this year. We have really great support from our existing sponsors and with a little help there'll be no stopping us" Aaron said.
It was a win that was a long time coming for the APM team who currently operate on a budget significantly smaller than that of any of the big name teams. Aaron couldn't say enough about his crew (Steve, Ross, Andy, Ben and the two Pete's) who had worked tirelessly in the lead-up to the event and wanted to thank all of his sponsors for their help in preparation for the event: Advanced Performance Machining, Fabre Australia, Steve's Speed Shop, East West Clutches and B&J Transmissions.
Aaron Hambridge Is All Aces At The A C Delco East Coast Nationals
Friday, 7 September 2007 - (Sydney, NSW) After the heartbreak of being unable to contest the final at last year's AC Delco East Coast Nationals, Aaron Hambridge, driver of the APM/Fabre Australia Top Alcohol Dragster was over the moon with his team's performance last weekend and gratefully accepted his first ANDRA gold Christmas tree.Qualifying in a respectable third behind seasoned Top Alcohol campaigners Newby and Bray, Hambridge and his team worked on consistency rather than record breaking to get the job done and ran a string of 5.7's and 5.6's in the run to the final round of eliminations. The line-up was a tough one however and it was last year's winner, Debbie Reed that lined up against Aaron in the first round of competition.
After levelling the count at one win a piece, Hambridge then moved on to face fellow dragster pilot and national record holder, Wayne Newby. In his best form to date, Aaron sent the APM rocketship straight down the centre of the lane, running a 5.682 second ET, just three thousandths of a second different to his previous blast down the quarter.
Driving around a competitor like Newby clearly did wonders for the APM team's confidence who turned the car around for the final in no time at all and prepared to face off against funny car racer, Aaron Lynch. Lynch had hurt the motor on the previous pass and following a serious thrash in the pit area, presented their Mustang to contest the final of the Top alcohol bracket.
Despite the quicker light by Lynch, Hambridge went on to run his third consecutive 5.6 second pass in eliminations and take the victory at his home track. The win opening his championship points account in style and making sure that the team's growing fan base as well as all of the competition will be paying attention to the Albion Park NSW based team.
"The car never missed a beat for the duration of the event and it's a credit to my crew and sponsors that the lead-up to the event went so well", Hambridge said at the conclusion of the event. "We're still creeping up on the new engine combo and there's a lot more to come from us this year."
All of the runs in eliminations were super consistent and bode very well for the team's future hopes of a shot at the Australian top Alcohol Championship. In fact, the final three runs of the meeting were 5.679, 5.682 and 5.680 clearly demonstrating both the new found performance and driving talent so abundant in the team. Adding to the respectable figures in the deep, the short times for these passes were all under 0.92 seconds with the final run a staggering 0.906 seconds. "With the right backing we can really make a go of it this year. We have really great support from our existing sponsors and with a little help there'll be no stopping us" Aaron said.
It was a win that was a long time coming for the APM team who currently operate on a budget significantly smaller than that of any of the big name teams. Aaron couldn't say enough about his crew (Steve, Ross, Andy, Ben and the two Pete's) who had worked tirelessly in the lead-up to the event and wanted to thank all of his sponsors for their help in preparation for the event: Advanced Performance Machining, Fabre Australia, Steve's Speed Shop, East West Clutches and B&J Transmissions.
