Stratford Speedway | Taranaki Sport | Surfing, Rugby, Soccer, Football, Cricket in Taranaki

Ferocious racing and mechanical failure decimated Taranaki's midget field at the Stratford Speedway on Saturday.

Spectators were treated to the most exciting races of the season as the non-contact class was literally turned on its head.

New Plymouth's Neil Willans was the first casualty, failing to make it past the warm-up, with a seized engine.

It was visiting Aucklander and protagonist, Bradley Anstis, who set the tone for the evening, with what could be best described as an indignant wheelie on the infield after being shunted early on.

Anstis rejoined the race like a man possessed and seemed to have lit his own fuse as he barged through the field in pursuit of race leader, New Plymouth's Eric Beardmore.

Waitara's Tony Reade was the next casualty, after spinning and ending up on his side, while Opunake's Jim Dodunski had gearbox trouble and later suffered a broken camshaft, which ended his night.

However, it was the coming together of Anstis and Stratford's Neville Thomson which brought the crowd to its feet.

In the final lap and in his haste to catch Beardmore, Anstis clipped Thomson's rear and sent him sideways before becoming airborne.

Thomson's midget completed a two-and-a-half turn somersault before smashing into the track, sending wheels and debris everywhere.

Although Thomson came out of the crash unscathed, reports from the pits that the incident did not end there, tarnished what had been a furious race which had all the thrills and spills spectators come to see.

In Races 2 and 3, Beardmore struck trouble and did not cross the finish line, while New Plymouth's Steve Paul had a misfire in his brand new engine and was off the pace.

In the final race, bad luck continued to plague Taranaki's drivers. Eltham's Daryl Hughes had been consistent all night and only had to cross the finish line to take overall honours, but a burst oil line sent him to the infield and put paid to his efforts.

New Plymouth's Ricky Paul also struck trouble, with a broken cam belt.

It was Anstis and Thomson - who had miraculously managed to get his car back on the track - who summed up the night's racing.

The two went head to head from start to finish, in the most scintillating display of semi-controlled aggressive driving seen this year.

Thomson took the chequered flag by a half a car length to finish off a memorable night, but Anstis secured enough points to win the night overall.

The full-contact street stock class was notable for all the reasons the midgets weren't.

Close, but controlled, racing no animosity and a display of classy driving by Stratford's top three drivers.

Paul Blinkhorne (Chrysler Valiant), John Young (Ford Falcon) and Stuart Cadman (HQ Holden) gave a brilliant display of full throttle controlled dicing.

Three-time Taranaki champion Blinkhorne, current champion Young and 2006 Taranaki champion Cadman, were in blistering form and mostly had the track to themselves as they pulled away from the field and showed wannabes how to slide, pass and extract the best their machines had on tap.

In the end it was Blinkhorne's night, with Cadman and Young close behind.

This Saturday, the Taranaki Saloon Car Championship is up for grabs, with up to 20 visitors expected to compete for the trophy.