BEVERIDGE GOES BACK-TO-BACK!

Feature photo: Dylan Beveridge was impressive as he drove to his second consecutive Australian Formula 500 Championship victory.

All Photos courtesy of: Peter Roebuck.

Media Release by DTN Media.

Dylan Beveridge (Dylan Beveridge Racing #71) proved to everyone at Perth Motorplex, Saturday, February 11 that last year’s national title win was not a fluke after he won his second Australian Formula 500 Championship in as many years.

Beveridge was strong all weekend. He entered night two second on points going into night two second on points, then claimed the win in his final heat and started on the pole position in the twenty-five lap final alongside his nemesis for the weekend, local hope Steven Ellement (Steven Ellement Motorsport).

The field heads for the start of the 2023 Australian Formula 500 Championship, February 11, at Perth Motorplex.

As the race went green Ellement charged immediately into the lead down the front straight with Chris Dymock (Dymock Motorsport) racing by Beveridge for second, then using his momentum to move inside Ellement to lead the first lap.

Unfortunately, only a couple of drivers would cross the line before the red lights came on, with Angus Hollis and Cameron McKenzie (Cameron McKenzie Racing) both crashing heavily into the turn three wall.

Both emerged unhurt.

The field bunched up for a complete restart, with McKenzie and Hollis out, and reserves Jett Hart and Hayden Pascoe now in the starting line-up.

This time Beveridge got the best of the start, racing away from Ellement and Dymock, but again the race came under cautions, with Matt Brown (Matt Brown Racing) coming to a sudden stop in turn two before a lap was completed and his race also over before completing a lap.

Take three and this time Ellement used the outside line on Beveridge, but Beveridge pulled away, with Dymock again into third ahead of Liam Williams, Terry Rankin and Dylan Willsher.

Finally a lap was completed and the field began to settle into a rhythm, Beveridge stretching his legs to pull away from Ellement and was over two seconds ahead by the time five laps were completed.

Behind him a number of cars began a charge, including Mark House who moved into fourteenth after starting twenty fourth.

The yellows would come out shortly after as Jett Hart spun in turn two, setting up another restart and as had been the case already throughout the night, Beveridge was again in front from Ellement, with Liam Williams taking the opportunity to race around Dymock for third at the completion of lap six.

Dymock fought back, retaking the position the next lap and it seemed to fire him up as he began to pull away from Williams and chase down Ellement.

Beveridge meanwhile was back out to a two second lead with ten laps completed, Ellement, Dymock, Williams and Willsher rounded out the top five.

Lapped traffic was encountered shortly after, with Beveridge quickly moving through until the yellows came on again, this time for Brendon Marshman (Opal Finance F500 Racing) who found himself stranded in turn one with eleven laps run.

Again Beveridge was strong on the restart leading away Ellement, with Dymock in third place being pursued by a massive pack of cars all desperate to make their mark.

As he had done earlier, Williams got by Dymock for third on lap fourteen, with Angelo Karoussis also moving into the top five as Willsher dropped back into the chasing pack.

With fifteen complete Karoussis passed Dymock for fifth, but the yellows came on shortly after as Ben Butcher exited the track on the front straight and caught fire.

Under the same cautions the top wing of Hayden Pascoe, which had been sitting at an awkward angle for most of the race, finally ripped off the car, seeing him also forced infield.

Ten laps remained on the restart, with Beveridge leading away Ellement, Williams, Karoussis and Dymock.

Karoussis quickly grabbed third, Dymock went under Williams and took fourth, then Tim Rankin also used the highline to move into fifth, then passed Dymock for fourth a lap later.

With seven to go Beveridge was out by over one second from Ellement, with Karoussis now third followed by Dymock, who got back by Rankin for fourth.

Lap twenty one saw Beveridge back in lapped traffic, but it didn’t slow him down as he picked his way through with precision until all of a sudden he got very lucky, surviving a moment with a lapped car half spinning right in front of him.

Beveridge threw his car into the turn and was lucky to avoid the other car, but this allowed Ellement to close the gap significantly with the chances to make a move starting to run out.

Now in thick lapped traffic Beveridge was fighting hard, with Ellement closing on him very quickly, but in the end one lapped car zigged when Ellement zagged, seeing Beveridge get just enough of an advantage to go on and claim the win by just 0.501 seconds from Ellement with Karoussis in third.

National title winner Dylan Beveridge is pictured with runner-up Steven Ellement (left), third-placed Angelo Karoussis (right) and fourth placegetter Chris Dymock (far right).

Dymock and Rankin would round out the top five finishers, with twenty five cars finishing the race in what was an epic display of superb Formula 500s racing.

A huge thank you to all the interstate drivers for travelling to Perth, and to the local drivers for supporting the title, as well as to all those who worked so hard to make this show happen.

Also a big thank you to the major sponsors of the event, Chamberlains Auto Electrics, to the Perth Motorplex for hosting the show and finally, congratulations to Dylan Beveridge, the 2022/23 season Australian Champion!

B Main, 15 laps: 1. Jordan Mansell, 2. Craig Bottrell, 3. Ben Butcher, 4. Jake Pobjoy, 5. Brendan Condren, 6. David Carstairs, 7. Jamie Pages, 8. Hayden Pascoe, 9. Jett Hart, 10. Brooke Newson, 11. Bryan Sharpe, 12. Ashleigh Oldfield, 13. Darren Wood, 14. Ryan Anthony (14), 15. Craig Noakes (14), 16. Nikita Donohoe (14). DNF: Carl Della (13), Jayden Maughan (4), Alex Dewers (3), Jett Speed (1), Troy Samwell (0). DNS: Cody Turacchio, Lachlan Caunt, Debbie Garland, Gavin Casey, Shane Andersson. Total Time: 4.12.457. Winning Margin: 0.919. Fastest Lap: 16.508 Jordan Mansell.

AUSTRALIAN CHAMPIONSHIP 25 LAPS: 1. Dylan Beveridge, 2. Steven Ellement, 3. Angelo Karoussis, 4. Chris Dymock, 5. Tim Rankin, 6. Liam Williams, 7. Kaydon Iverson, 8. Jordan Rae, 9. Thomas Davies, 10. Dylan Willsher, 11. Terry Rankin, 12. Mark House, 13. Ryan Higgs, 14. David Sinagra, 15. Josh Pokarier, 16. Alfonso Guadagnino, 17. Craig Bottrell, 18. Indy Rae, 19. Glen Mears, 20. Jamie Pages, 21. Brendan Newmarch (24), 22. Jake Pobjoy (24), 23. Jordan Mansell (24), 24. Jett Hart (24), 25. David Carstairs (24). DNF: Hayden Pascoe (15), Ben Butcher (15), Brendon Marshman (11), Glenn Carstairs (5), Matt Brown (0), Angus Hollis (0), Cameron McKenzie (0). Total Time: No Time. Winning Margin: 0.501. Fastest Lap: 15.944 Dylan Beveridge.