WILKINSON PRO7 RX-8 NATIONAL CHAMPION

With the Nexen Tyre Mazda Pro7 Racing national championship run over two hotly contested rounds at Highlands Motorsport Park and Manfeild Circuit, Keith Wilkinson has secured the RX-8 New Zealand championship title for the 2018–2019 season.

‘Hotly contested’ is an understatement, with conditions at each event soaring to 30°C air temperature and track temperatures reaching over 60°C. Despite the harsh conditions, Pro7 club captain Leo Bult says the winners — including Pro7 Plus winner Dylan Smith — had standout drives and pace.

“In Race 2, Wilkinson was seen parked with a water hose on the car and an overheating problem. He knew he needed to complete 75 per cent of the race to be classified, so continued at 50kph to complete eight of the 10 laps. These are very testing conditions for both cars’ set-up and tyres. The Nexen SUR4G tyre performed perfectly with lap times at track-record pace under these extreme conditions.”

Wilkinson says he now has his sights set on a podium finish in the North Island series. “Part of my ultimate goal this season in the New Zealand champs was to be number one, secure a podium finish in the North Island series and smash lap records in the process,” he says. “I wasn’t really thinking it was going to be achievable earlier this year. After a clean sweep in round one of the New Zealand champs at Highlands, things changed.”

The RX-8 class was introduced to the series back in the 2015–2016 season and it’s grown to become the biggest and fastest growing class. They will run again next in the North Island series at Hampton Downs, 8–10 March, and Taupo Motorsport Park, 13–14 April.