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MEDIA PREVIEW 27 April 1998 Round four, Winton (Victoria)
WINTON NOT A WORRY SAYS VICTORIAN ROOKIE Top rookie honours in Australia's premier junior development motor racing championship are no longer enough for Victorian Formula Ford racer Steve Owen. After cruising to his maiden victory at Phillip Island in the second Formula Ford race on 19 April, the 23-year-old has his sights firmly set on Australian Formula Ford Championship leader Adam Macrow and an out-right win at Winton, this weekend. Brash and competitive, Owen is confident of making it two-in-a-row at the tight and twisty north-east Victorian circuit. "After winning at Phillip Island I guess a third or fourth will be a bit of an anti-climax, so I'm going all out to win this Sunday," the Melbourne racer says. "I've only raced at Winton once and I managed to get pole position there last time, so on that score I think I've got a good chance, although I expect the other Spectrum drivers like Adam Macrow and Craig Zerner to be pretty competitive as well. "I certainly wouldn't mind if it's a little damp on Sunday because I enjoy racing when it's a bit slippery, and that could give me a bit of an advantage over a couple of the other drivers out there, although I'll be just as happy if the weather's fine. "Reliability is probably our biggest concern at the moment … the team is fairly new to the game and we're still learning things about the car as we go, but if the car stays together then we'll be very competitive," Steve Owen says. Another rookie rocking the established order is fellow Melburnian and Spectrum racer Ashley Seward. Runner-up in the 1997 Victorian Formula Ford state series and Victorian Formula Ford Championship (two separate titles), Seward has consistently finished in the top ten throughout the 1998 Australian Formula Ford Championship and looms as Owen's strongest rookie rival. "Steve (Owen) and I are actually pretty good mates … we've been racing with each other since we were in karts, so I'm not really setting myself up to beat him in particular this Sunday … no more than anyone else out there anyway," Ashley Seward says. "My goals at the start of the year were to finish in the top ten and be in the running for the top rookie award, so I suppose it's fair to say that things are going pretty much to par at the moment. "I'd like to think I could still finish in the top six from here, and if I win the rookie award, well, that would just be a bonus really. "I've raced at Winton plenty of times in the past, and with that experience there I'm hoping to be able to qualify in the top three or four. Winton is probably my best chance of getting my first win of the year," Seward says. Another 'new face' for 1998 who stamped his authority on the racing at Phillip Island was 'come-back kid' Iccy Harrington. Harrington finished a solid fifth in the 1996 Australian Formula Ford Championship, before missing most of the 1997 season because of a lack of budget. Returning this year in a competitive Mygale chassis, Harrington's motor racing career is back on track after a strong second placing in the second race at Phillip Island. "Initially it felt a bit strange being back (in Formula Ford) … virtually all the faces had changed … but I've pretty much come to terms with that now," Harrington says. "I'm certainly enjoying being back in a car again, and with each time we've gone out and raced, my Mygale has been improving … it felt pretty good at Phillip Island and I think that after our testing this week it will be very good for Winton. "Despite some of the set-backs I've had in the past couple of years, I've still got my eye on competing overseas, or finding a drive in a V8 Supercar, and if I can keep finishing near the front in Formula Ford, the prospects are reasonably good." Pointscore (after round 3): 1. A. Macrow (Vic) 100; 2. D. McDougall (Vic) 70; 3. T. Leahey (NSW) 62; 4. C. Jones (Qld) 50; 5. S. Owen (Vic) 42; 6. C. Zerner (NSW) 36; 7. A. McNally (WA) 35; 8. A. Seward (Vic) 30; 9. G. Ritter (Vic) 20; 10. I. Harrington (Vic) 18. Lap record : Scott March, 1 min 29.7800 secs (April 1997) For Further Information: Gavin McGrath
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