Reedy Race heading towards Ryan & Ryan showdown

The Reedy Race of Champions is heading towards a classic Ryan & Ryan showdown as the latest round of 2WD action produced a win each for Maifield and Cavalieri keeping the separation between the arch rivals at 1-point with two more rounds of racing left to decide the champion.  For defending champion Dakotah Phend, the round effectively ended his quest to become only the third driver to take back to back wins at the legendary event, as he ended up with an 8th in the race which was won by Ty Tessmann. Having shared the points lead at the end of 4WD, Tessmann survived needing to be marshalled to register his first 2WD win but it looks to have come too late for the new Xray signing to play a part in the title showdown.

‘I did what I needed to do.  I started in front and stayed in front’ was Maifield’s reaction to putting a second 2WD win on the board.  The 2015 Champion continued, ‘Once I got in the lead I started to cruise to conserve tyres as I want to end the day on the same set’. Making his debut for new team Yokomo, his Reedy race break through coming on his TLR debut, he said, ‘I’m having a good time with the team, and fun driving, so so far so good’.

Cavalieri, who is chasing a 4th Reedy Race title, said, ‘I got a great start from 9th. I was due one of those’.  He continued, ‘I’m happy with how everything is working and my car is real good.  Just 2 more rounds to decide who its going to be’.  ‘Running a different set of tyres for his latest encounter ‘to prepare for the next two rounds’, the Team Associated driver said ‘it was a good run with those tyres for sure, we’re looking good for the last two’.

Summing up the race that ended his title hopes, Phend said, ‘I started at the back and got together with a couple of people and couldn’t get to the front.  The 19-year-old continued, ‘It sucks but happens. That’s what makes the Reedy Race so hard to win’.  The result drops him to 8th in the standings while Tessmann moves up into a podium position.

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Cavalieri first to double up in 2WD

Ryan Cavalieri is the first driver to double up 2WD at the Reedy Race of Champions, the Team Associated driver registering the win in the most heavily stacked heat of the third round. Starting from 4th on the grid, which also included former Champion Dustin Evans, World Champion Spencer Rivkin and Ty Tessmann, he would quickly find his way to the front with Rivkin coming through from 7th to get a second ahead of Evans and Tessmann.  Having come into the final day of the event as the points leader, Ryan Maifield had the perfect race converting his P10 starting position into a win over Jared Tebo to keep his one point advantage over Cavalieri.  Having had a bad finish to Day 2 of the event, when a rough encounter left him with a P6, Day 1 leader Dakotah Phend bounced back to claim his first 2WD win from 8th on the grid ahead of pole sitter Alex Kosciuszek.  Now sitting 3rd in the standings, if the defending champion discards his 6th as his 2WD throw out, he shares second spot, with Cavalieri 1-point ahead of Maifield.

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Maifield leads going into final day of Reedy Race

Ryan Maifield goes into the final day of the Reedy Race of Champions leading the points table, the Yokomo driver ending Day 2 with a P2 in the second round of 2WD to hold a 1 point advantage.  With Ty Tessmann getting a third in his encounter, Jake Mayo the winner of that, and Dakotah Phend having a rough race finishing 6th from 4th on the grid, a win over Jared Tebo, Maifield and Spencer Rivkin promotes Ryan Cavalieri to second in the standings.  Notching up his second win of the event from 4th on the grid, the result puts Cavalieri right in contention for a fourth Reedy Race title with the overnight Top 3 completed by Tessmann and Joona Haatanen who starting from last on the grid again got the better of Tessmann to finish second behind Mayo.  The third winner was Dustin Evans, the former Champion finally registering a win in impressive fashion having started from the back.

While pleased to be the overnight leader Maifield was ‘a little disappointed’ with his 2nd place in the concluding round of the day. Making his Yokomo race debut at the OCRC Raceway hosted event, the 2015 Champion and 2014 & 2016 runner-up said, ‘that was the best 2WD car I have ever driven, it was fricken awesome but I got so excited to catch Ryan I made too many mistakes.  I’m a little disappointed I was not patient’.  Having started the opening two 2WD encounters ‘deep in the field’ he said ‘hopefully for tomorrow the draw will give me some up front starts so I can cruise rather than hunt’.

‘I kind of needed something like that’, was Cavalieri’s reaction to his win.  The Associated driver continued, ‘I have just been really patient and sometimes it bites me a bit’.  Having a car that ‘feels really good’, he said he needed to ‘just keep driving it’.  One concern the multiple World Champion has for tomorrow’s four encounters is tyres saying, ‘I think tyres will come into play as they have really gone down’.  Having won his last title in 2014 he concluded ‘it will be interesting’.

Evans, who shares the same points as fifth placed Tebo, was relieved to clock up a win saying, ‘I’ve been right there but I’ve just not been winning due to dumb mistakes’.  Describing the latest race as the ‘best and most comfortable’ his Reedy powered B6 has been and ‘going from 10th to 1st was really good’ admitting ‘I was a little lucky too that there was some carnage’. Opening with a second behind Rivkin, after the strong start to 2WD the 2011 Champion is hoping for more of the same tomorrow.

Taking a very popular win in front of a home crowd, Invitation class debutant Mayo said, ‘I just drove smart. I got a little lucky too’.  Starting from 9th on the grid, the 18-year-old Team Associated driver whose previous best finish was a 5th in 4WD, said ‘I made a few changes to my car and that was the best it’s been.  They made it easier to drive’.

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