Portland Heats Up VCS

words – Andrew Hayes, AHR Media
images – Brad McLaren, BPM Photography

The second round of the 2025 DPE Kart Superstore Victorian Country Series has been held in hot conditions at the Portland & District Kart Club’s Yarraman Park circuit.

The host club once again held themselves to a particularly high standard, with an immaculate facility and exceptionally well run meeting.

There was some outstanding performances as we have come to expect, with several drivers clean sweeping their classes.

• scroll to bottom for photo gallery
• full results on Speedhive HERE
• more photos by BPM Photography Motorsport – Friday HERE, Saturday HERE, Sunday HERE

Around 200 entries took part, here is the AHR MEDIA rundown:

KA3 JUNIOR HEAVY (20 Entries)

2024 Series runner up Chelsea Humphrey made the perfect start to her weekend, claiming pole position (37.506) in KA3 Junior Heavy.

Capitalising from her slick qualifying effort, Humphrey went three from three in the heats, edging away in each event.

When the final rolled around, there was simply no stopping Humphrey, as she once again paced the field in a very high quality performance to claim a clean sweep of wins! Defending round winner and series champ Levi Jones put it all together in the final to claim second, ahead of Lucas Rickard in third. Incredibly, the same three drivers on the podium as the previous round. Hudson Taintey and Aydan Warren completed the top five.

1^st Chelsea Humphrey (ELKC)
2^nd Levi Jones (MGKC)
3^rd Lucas Rickard (GKCV)

TAG RESTRICTED LIGHT (19 Entries)

SA driver Shane Moreland returned to VCS competition in a hurry, taking pole position (36.663) in Restricted Light.

Moreland started beautifully to claim the first two heats, before being pipped in the third by Ryan Dealy, who had come from 14^th in qualifying after an engine seizure.

Moreland was away quickly in the final in a kart that looked almost too good in the early laps, but as the race wore on the Moreland machine kept remarkable pace to claim a fine victory. Madi Bickerton had her best VCS weekend and was every bit the contender in second place, ahead of Ballarat winner Dealy in third place. Jacob Dowlin and Bailey Kirk home in fourth and fifth.

1^st Shane Moreland (MGKC)
2^nd Madi Bickerton (GKCV)
3^rd Ryan Dealy (GVKC)

TAG HEAVY (12 Entries)

The reigning state cup champion on his home track was always going to be hard to beat, and Scott King did not disappoint by taking pole (36.066) in Tag Heavy qualifying.

Three heat wins came for Scott, each with varying amounts of pressure, the third his most comprehensive.

The final would be a battle of two Kings, Scott and Adam. Adam was on the charge after a heat three DNF and looked to threaten Scott’s stranglehold on the class. Adam got close, but Scott had the answers, as Portland’s favourite sons went 1-2. Luke Fong put in a huge performance when it mattered, smiling like a cheshire cat as he secured a massive third place. Ballarat winner Ben Mouritz was fourth ahead of SA’s Duran Cowland in fifth.

1^st Scott King (PORT)
2^nd Adam King (PORT)
3^rd Luke Fong (BALL)

CADET 12 (22 Entries)

Portland’s Beau Chambers brought his pole winning speed from Ballarat to his home track, claiming pole position 39.925. Remarkably Ethan Turnbull and Alana Gurney were within 0.006 of Chambers time in an amazing display.

Chambers prevailed in the opening two heats, before Gurney grabbed the upper hand in the third heat, each hotly contested.

The speedy young pair would again lock horns in the final, with both taking turns in the lead, as they were shadowed by Turnbull, Sam Barling and Jasper Partouche. Chambers made the decisive move mid race, and managed to keep his nose ahead when it mattered, to win for a second round in a row. Gurney took a fine second place after being upto her eyeballs in the fight  for the win. Barling was right on their hammer at the end, claiming third in what was his first VCS podium. Turnbull and Partouche fought it out for fourth and fifth.

1^st Beau Chambers (PORT)
2^nd Alana Gurney (OAK)
3^rd Sam Barling (WBOOL)

KA3 SENIOR LIGHT (21 Entries)

Jaylen Paragreen launched into VCS competition, announcing his arrival with pole position (36.580) in KA3 Senior Light.

Ballarat round winner Zach Findlay lit up in the heats, greeting the chequers first in all three runnings, each under varying levels of pressure.

Findlay was off and motoring in the final, proving simply too good as he claimed a second consecutive round win in the lighter class. Paragreen was stout in second place after putting together a very competitive weekend.       A dramatic run to the finish line determined the back end of the podium, and it was SA’s Troy Moreland who snagged the third place trophy, his best run when it counted. Lachlan Cutting scampered home for fourth, ahead of Dallas Greene in fifth.

1^st Zach Findlay (GKCV)
2^nd Jaylen Paragreen (ELKC)
3^rd Troy Moreland (MGKC)

CADET 9 (18 Entries)

Milan Sami signalled his intentions for the weekend from the get go, storming to pole position (40.228) in Cadet 9 qualifying.

Sami was sensational in the heats, proving to be a class above by taking three comfortable wins.

Sami dished out another stunning performance in the final, leading every lap to cap off a dominant weekend with another win! Ballarat winner Zac Duynhoven was competitive all weekend on his way to second, ahead of the hard charging Ben Henman who jagged a hard fought third in the closing laps. Max King did the fastest lap of the race on his way to fourth, ahead of Jonathon Testa in fifth.

1^st Milan Sami (OAK)
2^nd Zac Duynhoven (SWEST)
3^rd Ben Henman (ELKC)

VIC COMBINED MASTERS (15 Entries)

The Master from Horsham was at it again in Masters, Remo Luciani using his supreme skills to notch up another pole position (37.337).

Luciani put in more strong performances in the heat races despite coming under pressure in the third, to claim the perfect set of three wins.

The final was another exhibition from Luciani, using his speed and precision to lead the field from lights to chequers, claiming yet another VCS win. Former Masters series champ Phil Smith made a welcome return, and stood on the podium like old times, second his final result. The rest of the field wasn’t as clear cut, as the battles raged. In the end it was Ash Mitchell who claimed the final spot on the podium after some fierce racing with Mark Heemskerk and Jason Domaschenz, who finished fourth and fifth respectively.

1^st Remo Luciani (WIMM)
2^nd Phil Smith (VKA)
3^rd Ash Mitchell (MILD)

KA3 SENIOR MEDIUM (3 Entries)

KA3 Medium had a staggering 3 Entries! Spiros Anagnostopoulos clean swept the weekend, Seth Burton did qualifying and one heat, whilst Robbie Turmine stuck it out to be second in the final.

1^st Spiros Anagnostopoulos (ELKC)
2^nd Robbie Turmine (WIMM)

TAG RESTRICTED HEAVY (6 Entries)

Restricted Heavy was back, just meeting the minimum entry numbers to form a class. NSW driver Josh Herne made his trip worthwhile, taking a first up pole position (37.893).

The Lismore driver was too speedy in the heats, as he cruised to three consecutive heat wins.

Jett Rendell made the most of the start, and looked promising in the early stages. But Herne hadn’t come all that way for second, and by mid race he had regained the top spot, which he never relinquished on the way to victory. Rendell backed up his Ballarat win to finish in second place, ahead of Mick Angwin, who inherited the final spot on the podium after a penalty for Logan Burton. Portland’s Levi Trigg rolled in for fourth, ahead of the revised position of fifth for Burton.

1^st Josh Herne (LISMORE)
2^nd Jett Rendell (BALL)
3^rd Mick Angwin (BALL)

KA3 JUNIOR LIGHT (19 Entries)

Jai George continued his incredible VCS form to back up his Ballarat pole position with another pole (36.666) in Portland.

George was awesome in the heat races to claim all three, the biggest challenge coming in the third, but once again he was dialled into the circuit which he won his black plate in December last year.

George was as feisty as ever in the final, sneaking out to 2.4 second victory by the flag, in another flawless performance. Riley Harrison gave an excellent account of himself all weekend to finish a fine second, ahead of the reigning Cadet 12 champ Archie Bristow in third. Oscar Corless and Riley Gee were smooth and fast on their way to fourth and fifth.

1^st Jai George (ELKC)
2^nd Riley Harrison (OAK)
3^rd Archie Bristow (BALL)

TAG LIGHT (18 Entries)

Tag Light qualifying was closely contested as always, with the top three covered by less than a tenth. When the clock stopped it was the impressive Zach Findlay holding the pole time (35.357).

Findlay was on fire in the heats, as he collected the set of heat wins.

The final was again the playground of Findlay, as he claimed his second win of the day, cementing his star status in the series. Dallas Greene and Angus Hall both landed on the podium for the second consecutive round, this time it was Greene in second and Hall in third. Curt Sera and Ben Kilsby completed the top five.

1^st Zach Findlay (GKCV)
2^nd Dallas Greene (GKCV)
3^rd Angus Hall (OAK)

TAG RESTRICTED MEDIUM (22 Entries)

SA star Paul Pittam picked up exactly where he left off in Ballarat, taking a second consecutive pole position (37.413).

Pittam put together three heat wins on the trot, although he had a bit more of a fight in the third as Josh Herne led the early laps.

The final was a straight forward run for Pittam, as a skirmish behind him on the first lap meant that the result was determined then, barring mechanical failure. There was no hint of a failure as Pittam put the field to the sword to win again. Herne completed a good first weekend in VCS by taking a strong second place ahead of Jason Domaschenz, who actually crossed the line second but was relegated by a post race penalty. Fourth was Grady Hutchesson, ahead of Ella Dealy, who was third in Ballarat.

1^st Paul Pittam (SGKC)
2^nd Josh Herne (LISMORE)
3^rd Jason Domaschenz (PORT)

THOMAS7 MOTORSPORT ENCOURAGEMENT AWARD WINNERS:

• CADET 9 – Harry Spence
• CADET 12 – Max Parry
• KA3 JUNIOR LIGHT – Jaska Maher
• KA3 JUNIOR HEAVY – Mass Calabro

DPE KART SUPERSTORE Victorian Country Series competition is back by the seaside at Warrnambool’s Lake Gillear circuit on June 21-22.

THANKS TO THE 2025 SERIES SPONSORS:

• DPE KART SUPERSTORE
• REMO RACING / IAME ENGINES
• KFC
• KARTING AUSTRALIA
• ACCELERATE MOTORSPORT
• MILDURA FORKLIFTS
• LATERAL PLAINS PTY LTD / LPR
• THOMAS 7 MOTORSPORT
• CENTRAL VIC KARTS & PARTS / CVRE
• DJM RACE ENGINEERING
• VITAL KARTING
• CANNIE RIDGE ELECTRICAL
• ALL STAR GRAPHICS
• TECNO KART RACING SA
• EKS KART AUSTRALIA
• BPM PHOTOGRAPHY
• AHR MEDIA
• RP & LJ DOWLIN PTY LTD