TAYLA SHOWS THE WAY IN THE TOP END

Western Australian female racer Tayla Dicker has set the pace during the opening day of the 2013 Northern Territory Karting Championships at Hidden Valley today.

Dicker qualified fastest and showed the boys a clean pair of heels in both heat races in the Junior Rotax category. Local driver Bryce Fullwood ran second for the majority of the day while Natasha Herne showed good speed to be placed near the front of the field.

Just as was the case during last weekend’s Queensland Championships, Nicholas Rowe and Jake Klein set the pace in the Junior Clubman category throughout the day. Rowe qualified on pole position before winning both heat races ahead of Klein. Local driver Thomas Maxwell kept the pair honest by running in third place.

Rowe has also been dominant in the Junior National Heavy category with Ben Harders also running strongly throughout the day.

In the Rookies category, Victorians Jordan Caruso and Cooper Murray have been joined at the front of the field by Queenslander Harrison Hoey. After qualifying on pole position, Hoey dropped to the back of the field in turn one of heat one before fighting back to third behind Caruso and Murray. In the second hesat, it was Hoey who proved superior.

Junior National Light has seen local driver Thomas Maxwell upstage the reigning national champion Bryce Fullwood while Western Australian Jacob Prestipino also ran near the front of the field. The trio led home a gaggle of karts in the opening heat that included Joshua Buggy, Luis Leeds and Aaron Love.

Adam Garnaut and Matt Davis led the way in Leopard Light while Nathan Davis was also near the front throughout the day.

In the Clubman ranks, the Davis brothers have also been at the pointy end of the field as they both chase a pair of victories at the event.

In the largest class at the event, the Cadets, there has been plenty of action across the day with Western Australian Mason Patience mixing it with Jack Doohan and Damon Papasergio as the trio led the way.

The racing will continue tomorrow with the pre-final and finals to be contested.