Toby Price has won the Cars title at the Finke Desert Race for the second year in a row, in record time.
He and navigator Jason Duncan were already on record pace on the outbound leg to Aputula (Finke) in his Mitsubishi Triton Trophy Truck (Extreme 2WD class), and they got back to Alice Springs in an aggregate time of 3:21:46.2s.
Price is now an eight-time King of the Desert in total, and still the only competitor to have achieved victory on both two wheels and four, the latter on six occasions.
CLICK HERE for comments from Price, including about his chances of another ‘Iron Man’ campaign in both Bikes and Cars
Aaron James finished second overall, and first in the Pro Buggy class, at 2:08.9s off the pace, which represented a tightening of the margin by more than three minutes relative to how they ended Leg 1.
Brent Martin/Ben Dawson (Jimco Prolite Buggy) also made the podium at a further 4:31.7s off the pace, with the top five rounded out by six-time Kings of the Desert Shannon Rentsch/Ian Rentsch (Jimco Pro Buggy) and Tyler Owen/Max Owen (Alumicraft Pro Buggy).
Hayden Bentley/Viv Coe (Trophy Truck, Extreme 4WD) maintained sixth position on the way back to the Alice, from Jake Swinglehurst/Kate Swinglehurst (Jimco Pro Buggy) and Brent Smoothy/Reece Burgess (Geiser, Extreme 2WD).
Greg Gartner, the 2011 King of the Desert, slipped to ninth on the return leg in the Ford Geiser (Extreme 2WD) which he shared with Jamie Jennings and Mark Hannaford, and Kent Battle/Heath Lawson (Element Prodigy, Pro Buggy) ended up 10th.
The return leg of the Bikes is in progress.
UPDATE: Bikes winner has been decided
Results: Finke Desert Race Cars, Top 10
Pos | Class | Num | Competitor(s) | Vehicle | Day 1 time | Day 2 time | Total time | Split to 1st | Split to prev |
1 | X2WD | 487 | Toby Price/Jason Duncan | Mitsubishi TSCO Trophy Truck 600 CHEV 3600cc | 01:36:38.5 | 01:45:07.6 | 03:21:46.2 | ||
2 | PRO | 93 | Aaron James | ALUMICRAFT FORD 3500CCcc | 01:41:44.1 | 01:42:10.9 | 03:23:55.1 | + 00:02:08.9 | + 00:02:08.9 |
3 | PROLITE | 120 | Brent Martin/Andre De Simone/Ben Dawson | JIMCO NISSAN 3500cc | 01:42:56.4 | 01:45:30.4 | 03:28:26.8 | + 00:06:40.6 | + 00:04:31.7 |
4 | PRO | 33 | Shannon Rentsch/Ian Rentsch | JImco 3500cc | 01:43:39.7 | 01:48:20.3 | 03:32:00.1 | + 00:10:13.9 | + 00:03:33.3 |
5 | PRO | 41 | Tyler Owen/Max Owen | ALUMICRAFT GM 6000CCcc | 01:43:03.3 | 01:51:49.9 | 03:34:53.2 | + 00:13:07.0 | + 00:02:53.1 |
6 | X4WD | 818 | Hayden Bentley/Hannah Bentley Viv Coe Sam Bentley | TROPHY TRUCK RACER ENGINEERING 3500cc | 01:46:26.4 | 01:49:13.9 | 03:35:40.3 | + 00:13:54.1 | + 00:00:47.1 |
7 | PRO | 49 | Jake Swinglehurst/Kate Swinglehurst | JIMCO AUSSIE SPEC J239cc | 01:47:09.9 | 01:48:44.4 | 03:35:54.3 | + 00:14:08.1 | + 00:00:14.0 |
8 | X2WD | 447 | Brent Smoothy/Reece Burgess | GEISER 6000cc | 01:49:09.0 | 01:48:43.3 | 03:37:52.4 | + 00:16:06.2 | + 00:01:58.1 |
9 | X2WD | 410 | Greg Gartner/Jamie Jennings/Mark Hannaford | Ford Geiser Raptor Raptor FORD 6000cc | 01:46:54.1 | 01:52:39.3 | 03:39:33.5 | + 00:17:47.3 | + 00:01:41.1 |
10 | PRO | 31 | Kent Battle/Heath Lawson | ELEMENT PRODIGY CHEVROLET 6000cc | 01:52:54.0 | 01:48:59.3 | 03:41:53.3 | + 00:20:07.1 | + 00:02:19.8 |