Toby Waghorn has had a stellar season in 2019 breaking through for his opening open meeting victories at Top Guns. Showing competitive speed all around the state and he was looking to take his maiden state championship at his home track of Eastern Lions Kart Club.
In Friday practice Waghorn ran inside the top five all day with times extremely close between the top ten drivers in the field. In timed practice Waghorn was second fastest only missing out on first by 0.001 of a second putting him second out for qualifying which Toby’s father was really happy with. “It was a great day, we made multiple changes and to end up second was a great result” Waghorn told. “Its Toby’s home track so we hoped to be competitive but to land in the top two was more then we expected but the weekend has a long way to go”.
Saturday came around and qualifying came around and the pace was fast and super competitive with a number of drivers in the running to take the all-important pole position. Waghorn managed to qualify on the outside of the front row in position two by 0.06 of a second putting himself on the outside of the front row of the grid for the opening tow heats. In heat 1 Waghorn got the jump off the start and was able to lead the early stages of the race. Waghorn swapped the lead multiple times with Pole sitter Joshua D’Ambrosio and Johnny Hill. Waghorn started the last lap second but made a move with three corners to go to take the heat one win. Heat 2 come around and Waghorn again got the jump and went to the lead. Waghorn was again in a battle for the lead with the lead changing multiple times and he was able to take back to back heat wins on Saturday. “Sensational day” Toby Waghorn’s father told. “Perfect day great to grab some wins before tomorrow. Tomorrow is the big day though so let’s see what happens”.
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Sunday came around with huge nerves with Waghorn’s biggest day of his karting career upon him. Waghorn was able to take out heat 3 and 4 putting himself out of pole position for the all important final. Waghorn got the jump in the final and the early stages it was a five-kart train at the front with Johnny Hill going to the lead. Waghorn got the lead back on lap four as the top four pulled away and continued to battle. Waghorn opened a slight margin just over half race distance. Competitors Joshua D’Ambrosio and Johnny Hill worked together and did everything they could to get to the back to Waghorn. In a three-kart battle to finish the race Waghorn took the win and his maiden state championship.
Waghorns father was over the moon in his son’s championship win. “What a day, I was always confident Toby could do it but that was hard to watch” Waghorn told. He drove his heart out but when they were reeling him back in, I was getting nervous. A credit to him we haven’t been in the sport long but he drove like someone who had been doing this twenty year”. Toby Waghorn is now the 2019 KA4 Junior Heavy Victoria State Champion, the number 1 ranked driver in the state.
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