Tasmanian uncle-nephew duo goes back-to-back
IT was special to be the first ever Targa Great Barrier Reef champion but it was even sweeter to make it back-to-back in 2019 for champion pair John and Jason White.
Following their inaugural victory in the Far North in 2018, the Whites have been the team everyone has been talking about since that day and they backed it up over the weekend, claiming a thrilling outright win yesterday afternoon.
Tasmanians, Jason and his codriving uncle John, went into the final day, made up of six stages across 110 competitive kilometres, with a slim 11 seconds lead before extending their margin to 53 seconds at the end of the rally.
The 2019 result mirrors that of last year’s finish, with White taking the honours from reigning Australian Targa champion Paul Stokell and Kate Catford 12 months ago.
“We definitely had a plan on how fast we had to go based on last year,” Jason White said from Gordonvale on his drive back to the Cairns Convention Centre.
“The stage times we were doing up until Kuranda were pretty much on par with what I planned was required to win.
“But obviously Paul Stokell had done a bit of work and pushed us out of that comfort zone a bit.
“We had a bit of a situation on our hands. The run into Millaa Millaa and out to Palmerston was exceptional. It was 100 per cent commitment and a few sketchy moments
Mark Cates and Declan Stafford (Nissan GTR R35) were third outright. White said he was over the moon to return to the winner’s list after mechanical troubles ruined his Targa Tasmania campaign.
The final round of the Targa series now heads to Victoria in November, but event organisers were yesterday declaring, in just its second running, Targa Great Barrier Reef has established its credentials as one of the country’s finest tarmac rallies.
More Targa Great Barrier Reef coverage, including photo galleries, at cairnspost.com.au Outright 1 Jason White/John White (Dodge Viper ACR Extreme) 2 Paul Stokell/Kate Catford (Lotus Exige 350) +53 seconds 3 Mark Cates/Declan Stafford (Nissan GTR R35) +3:05 4 Luke Anear/Alan Stephensen (Subaru WRX) +4:21 5 Liam Howarth/Larry Howarth (Nissan Skyline R35) +4:42 Full list of winners on page 36 but we were in the zone. It was a good bit of teamwork in the car and John was calling the notes perfectly.”
White made his move near Millaa Millaa on Sunday when he extended 23 seconds away from the chasing pack. Stokell and co-driver Catford tried to stick with the leaders but fell short of a second successive victory after their breakthrough triumph in Targa Tasmania in May.