G1 ROUND 2 Event Report

Team CTS Drift has moved to the top of the championship table after the first win for the year with new driver Simon “The Pitbull” Podlewski taking the victory in the final battle.

Initial indications suggesting the event may be a wet affair, but the team was confident a recent wet test session would work in their favour come crunch time, especially after a disastrous wet Drift Super Cup event.

Practice would see the Team CTS Drift 180SX on the money straight out of the transporter. With Simon easing into the chilli track conditions and testing the limitations early on, it became apparent the car and driver had improved a lot since the last event.

Qualifying would see the team secure 2nd position in the field with 2 solid qualifying runs, only being pipped by an improving Jake Jones. With the limited seat time available in G1 events the pressure to qualify well is intensified but the team and Simon were very pleased with the result.

After qualifying an opportunity to take Channel 9 “A Current Affair” reporter Kelly Clappis for a hot lap was made available by Rob Curkpatrick from Mallala. Driver Simon Podlewski summed it all up “It’s great to be given the chance to show the main stream media what the sport is all about. I think they were impressed with the laps we ran and I made sure we gave them the full monty. If it can help with getting the government to see we need more drift facilities then I’m happy we could do that.”

Top 16 Battles would see the CTS Drift 180 line up against slower competitor Evan Daws, making the following run considerably more difficult, but the team had found a compromise setup which aided in slowing the car down. Once the CTS 180 was in the lead any mistakes made in the first run were equalised as Simon found the groove and drove away with the win.

Simon Michelmore was drawn for the top 8 battles, once again Team CTS followed in the first run. Simon Michelmore lead out well in the SR20 powered Corolla but managed to spin unassisted heading into the fast turn one, practically handing Team CTS the win.

Team CTS then met Jack Monkhouse in the Top 4. Jack put up a much tougher fight pushing Simon all the way with some of his best runs of the day, but Team CTS would prevail in the end with another win to move through to the final.

James Mardle had made his way into the final with Team CTS Drift after some impressive driving all day, considered a bit of a giant killer Mardle is never to be underestimated. The first run would see Team CTS Drift following while Mardle set the pace in front. “The Pitbull” maintained great proximity though the whole run only losing a little to Mardle in turn 2 but quickly caught up through the finish line. The lead run would see the Team CTS 180 stretch it legs through the tight esses section, Mardle drove the wheels of his underpowered Nissan Silvia but just didn’t have the grip to keep up with Simon who was in the zone completing a faultless lead lap, and taking the win.

A surprised Simon “The Pitbull” Podlewski couldn’t believe he had done enough to take his maiden Drift win a few events ahead of planned. “It’s a great result for Bill and the team, without these guys the whole thing wouldn’t have been possible. Also a big thank you to the sponsors, these guys allow us to do what we do by putting their money where their mouth is and provide fantastic support to the team. Its unbelievable to be given the opportunity to drive the Team CTS car, it’s so fast and reliable it really makes life a hell of a lot easier, I’m really happy with the win.”

Team Principle Bill Bromley was also understandably happy with the win, “It’s a great result that has come a lot earlier than planned. Simon did a great job all day, he has settled into the car a lot more which will help when we go to Oran Park for Drift Australia in September. I would like to thank all the sponsors, the crew, Davin and Adam, they kept the car in top order all day, and also a big thanks to all the family members that help behind the scenes. Now all we have to do is finish off strong to take the championship.”