VOL. 54 ISSUE 1 JANUARY 10, 2017 P45
the Whanganui race.
Once again, Moir took the
holeshot, although it wasn't long
before Rees muscled his way
to the front and carried on for
his second victory of the day,
and the Suzuki Series win. Moir
held onto the back of Rees
throughout the race for second,
and Frost won a tough race-
long battle for third with Mettam,
Summers and Saiger to cross
the line in that order.
Isle of Man TT Champion
Michael Dunlop persevered
with ongoing mechanical issues
with his Suzuki NZ GSX-R1000
throughout the day, which meant
the 13-time TT winner was un-
able to show his true potential
at the Cemetery Circuit. Saiger
(Red Devil Racing Kawasaki
ZX-10R) rode his best during
the Robert Holden Memorial,
where he almost matched Rees
in pace and made a last-lap
passing attempt, which was
aggressively held off by veteran
Rees. The finishing order was
Rees, Saiger, Moir, Summers
and Jamie Maindonald (Hastings
Suzuki).
Rees' win in the Robert Hold-
en Memorial was his seventh
feature race victory at Whan-
ganui—26 years after his first win
in 1990. Stamping his authority
at Whanganui, he set a new out-
right lap record of 49.052 sec-
onds, ending Andrew Stroud's
long-term record set in 2006.
Keeping the family trophy
cabinet full, Tony Rees' 21-year-
old son, Damon Rees (Honda
Rider Insurance CBR600RR),
won the F2 600 Suzuki Series
after finishing a steady third
in both races. Wellington rid-
ers Shane Richardson (Wainui
Joinery Kawasaki ZX-6R) and
Jay Lawrence (Carl Cox Motor-
sport GSX-R600) won a hectic
race each, while a fast-riding
David Hall (PJ Racing & Wreck-
ing GSX-R600) crossed the line
fourth in each leg behind Damon
Rees.
Terry Stevenson
Adam Unsworth and Stu Dawe won both F1 Sidecar races at Whanganui.
PHOTOGRAPHY
BY
CRAIG
DAWSON
Damon Rees kept the family tradition going in Whanganui,
taking third on the day and the F2 600 series win.
