Knight Keen To Extend Championship Lead At Home

Knight Keen To Extend Championship Lead At Home

After a lengthy wait Christchurch racing driver Andy Knight arrives at his home round of the 2007/2008 Toyota Racing Series this weekend hoping to extend his championship points lead.

Twenty-one year old Knight made a great start to the series at Pukekohe in his Milwaukee Power Tools Toyota at the beginning of November. On that occasion he took pole position for each of the three races before going on to win all three to leave the South Auckland track with maximum points. Since that opening event there has been a two month break until the next round of the series. However the action becomes intense during January with three high profile rounds in successive weekends. These three rounds will constitute a separate International Series while still comprising part of the overall championship.

The first of them takes place this weekend at Powerbuilt Tools Raceway at Ruapuna near Christchurch. The Toyota Racing Series competitors will contest three races with the third and final race on Sunday afternoon being fought out for one of New Zealand's most prestigious pieces of motor racing silverware, the Lady Wigram Trophy. While it is his home race the circuit hasn't always treated Knight kindly. "We haven't always got the results here for one reason or another but it is nice to race at home," said Knight recently. Referring to his great start to the season he says, "it would be good to extend that lead. It would be great to get another three in a row but it will be tougher with Daniel Gaunt and Matthew Halliday there this time. However if we get it right there is no reason why we can't," says Knight.

Gaunt, a two-time TRS Champion and the current Lady Wigram Trophy holder, and Halliday who has raced in many categories internationally are just two of the drivers who have joined the field for the international series.

Knight arrives at this weekend's event with 225 points in the championship, twenty-four clear of Cambridge driver Nic Jordan who finished second to him in all three races at Pukekohe. This is the Cantabrian's fourth season in the series. In that time he has been one of the pacesetters having finished second, third and fourth in the championship in the three previous years.

Support for Knight throughout the 2007/2008 season comes from Milwaukee Power Tools, one of the world's premium power tool brands, Mitre 10 Mega, Structex, Silencer Batts, Radio Sport and Latimer Hotel in Christchurch.

2007/2008 TOYOTA RACING SERIES CALENDAR

* Round 1: 2-4 November 2007 - Pukekohe Park Raceway, Auckland

* Round 2: 4-6 January 2008 - Powerbuilt Tools Raceway, Ruapuna, Christchurch (Lady Wigram Trophy Race)

* Round 3: 11-13 January 2008 - Manfeild Autocourse, Feilding (New Zealand Grand Prix)

* Round 4: 18-20 January 2008 - Taupo Motorsport Centre, Taupo (Support event to the A1-GP World Cup Of Motorsport)

* Round 5: 15-17 February 2008 - Manfeild Autocourse, Feilding

* Round 6: 29 February-2 March - Timaru International Motor Raceway, Levels, Timaru

* Round 7: 7-9 March 2008 - Teretonga Park, Invercargill

* Trophy Race: 18-20 April 2008 Hamilton 400 Street Race, Hamilton

Lindsay Beer, on behalf of Milwaukee Power Tools & Knight Motorsport

ENDS

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