Sieders and Jane claims Ute wins at Bathurst

David Sieders and Kim Jane have shared race wins to open Round 6 as the Auto One V8 Utes – Protected By Armor All took another twist at Mount Panorama.

Nathan Pretty was effectively stripped of the series lead which he thought he had earned during qualifying after the Milwaukee Tools Commodore was excluded from the session due to being underweight.

Up front, Sieders didn’t make the best use of pole position but relieved Stephen White of the lead at The Chase on Lap 3, opting for the grass on the way out to avoid contact after getting on the outside of the Commodore under brakes.

The Mine Site Fencing Australia Falcon was soon clear of the chasing pack before Sieders cruised to victory and consolidation of second in the series standings.

White, who nearly slid into the wall at Reid Park on cold lap 1 tyres, briefly had to contend with Andrew Fisher behind but was otherwise safe enough on his run home to second with Fisher third.

Utes rookie Jesse Dixon was impressive in a measured yet lonely run to fourth, Jeremy Gray was fifth and Pretty 17th.

Jane started Race 2 from P1 after Sieders drew ball number nine in the reverse grid draw, and that was where he finished after re-passing Kris Walton around the outside at The Cutting on Lap 6.

Walton was slowly away from the outside of Row 1, dropping to third, but picked off Craig Dontas and Jane in typically aggressive fashion to lead for just over a lap.
His final late-race effort to reclaim first was unsuccessful.

Ryan Hansford finished third, while fourth for Stephen White gives Erebus Motorsport something to smile about after he claimed the fastest lap of the race on his way to earning a P1 start for Race 3.

Dontas was fifth, Sieders actually regressed to 10th after running as low as 12th, while Pretty’s uncharacteristically aggressive drive yielded only one positional gain to 16th.

Remarkably, there has not been a single red flag or safety car period in any V8 Utes session in the weekend to date.

Round 6 concludes with Race 3 tomorrow at 8:00 local time.

Race 1

Race 2