The eight pairs who attended were as follows:
RIOT SQUAD
606 Jon
27 Cap
MIDNIGHT RUNNERS
238 Kane
307 Foster
THE PREDATORS
919 Macca
70 Aaron
TEAM PURPLE
870 Looney
228 Splat
TEAM BANDICOOT
997 Rik
960 Pepino
TEAM DUMBHIRE
337 Manhire
649 Dumbo
THE RED Js
616 Jam
83 Jordan N.
SAM 'N' ELLIS
726 Sam
823 Ellis
After a steady start to the meeting, two pairs sped away from the rest of the pack and ended up in a very unusual position...
Top 6 scored in heats and final. Allcomers were non-points. Drivers in italics finished but did not score points. 2 points went to the surviving drivers in the DD.
CODES
RS = Riot Squad
MR = Midnight Runners
PR = The Predators
PU = Team Purple
TB = Team Bandicoot
TD = Team Dumbhire
RJ = The Red Js
SE = Sam 'n' Ellis
Heat 1: MR238 Kane, RS27 Cap, TB960 Pepino, RS606 Jon, RJ616 Jam, SE726 Sam, PU228 Splat, RJ83 Jordan N., TD649 Dumbo, MR307 Foster, PU870 Looney
Heat 2: TB960 Pepino, MR238 Kane, TB997 Rik, RJ616 Jam, PU228 Splat, RS606 Jon, RS27 Cap, SE726 Sam, TD649 Dumbo, RJ83 Jordan N., PR70 Aaron, PU870 Looney, MR307 Foster, TD337 Manhire
Heat 3: MR307 Foster, TB960 Pepino, MR238 Kane, RS606 Jon, RS27 Cap, RJ616 Jam, RJ83 Jordan N., SE726 Sam, TD649 Dumbo, PR919 Macca, TD337 Manhire, PU228 Splat, PU870 Looney, TB997 Rik
Heat 4: MR307 Foster, TB960 Pepino, RJ616 Jam, RS27 Cap, RJ83 Jordan N., SE726 Sam, TD337 Manhire, PU228 Splat, TD649 Dumbo, MR238 Kane, TB997 Rik
Heat 5: TB960 Pepino, MR307 Foster, RS27 Cap, MR238 Kane, RJ616 Jam, RJ83 Jordan N., RS27 Cap, TD337 Manhire, PR70 Aaron, PU870 Looney, MR307 Foster, TB997 Rik
Heat 6: SE726 Sam, TB960 Pepino, MR238 Kane, RJ616 Jam, RS606 Jon, RJ83 Jordan N., RS27 Cap, TD337 Manhire, PR70 Aaron, PU870 Looney, MR307 Foster, TB997 Rik
Final: MR238 Kane, RS27 Cap, TB997 Rik, TB960 Pepino, RJ83 Jordan N., RS606 Jon, RJ616 Jam, PR70 Aaron, PU870 Looney, SE726 Sam
Allcomers 1: TB997 Rik, MR238 Kane, SE726 Sam, RS27 Cap, RJ616 Jam, PR919 Macca, TD337 Manhire, TD649 Dumbo, PU228 Splat, PU870 Looney, RS606 Jon
Allcomers 2: SE726 Sam, TB997 Rik, MR238 Kane, RS27 Cap, RS606 Jon, RJ616 Jam, PR70 Aaron, PU870 Looney, TD337 Manhire, PU228 Splat, RJ83 Jordan N., TD649 Dumbo, PR919 Macca
DD: Tie between TB997 Rik and SE726 Sam - declared after 30 minutes.
POINTS
1st: Midnight Runners, Team Bandicoot - 51 points
3rd: Riot Squad - 35 points
4th: The Red Js - 23 points
5th: Sam 'n' Ellis - 10 points
6th: Team Purple - 2 points
7th:= Team Dumbhire, The Predators - 0 points
With the pair of them containing 3 of the most successful drivers in 2016 so far, it's no surprise to see both Midnight Runners and Team Bandicoot at the top. However, the surprise has come with both teams finishing on exactly the same number of points. Kane won a heat and the final while Foster won two others for MNR, but Bandicoot fought back with two heat wins from Pepino, two placings in the top 6 in the final and the crucial DD draw for Rik.
The other winner of the DD, which was called after half an hour of battling because neither driver could be bothered to kill the other one (
), was Sam, who made his first appearance in 2016. Alongside the DD draw, he also won a heat and an allcomers, which was a great way to mark his return to the league.Riot Squad were the best of the rest despite not winning a race, while the assembled-on-the-night pairing of the Red Js in Jam and Jordan did very well indeed with a string of scoring finishes. Team Purple only managed a solitary 5th in the opening heat, with The Predators and Team Dumbhire not registering a single point between them, although Dumbo #649 managed to record four consecutive 9th place finishes in the opening four heats, which surely must count for something... but it doesn't.
The fact MNR & TB tied just goes to show how strong both pairings are as racers. Pepino was the best of the four with 37 points scored, although Kane wasn't far behind on 34 points. Foster and Rik also chipped in with 17 and 14 points respectively.
So, without further ado:
CONGRATULATIONS TO MIDNIGHT RUNNERS & TEAM BANDICOOT - JOINT WINNERS OF 2016 MICRO BEST BUDS!