Wicked Westernats Wows Packed Perth Crowd

Two thrilling days and nights of National Drag Racing Championship (NDRC) action have wrapped up in spectacular fashion at the 54th annual Westernationals, lighting up a packed Perth Motorplex well into Sunday evening.

Fans were treated to back-to-back excitement with a second day and night of group one and sportsman racing, headlined by Top Fuel – with these 11,000hp, 500kph monsters making their only trip to the West in 2025 for round three of their NDRC Championship chase.

Top Doorslammer and Top Fuel Motorcycle competitors also put on a show, battling it out in their own NDRC championship rounds alongside eleven fiercely contested Aeroflow National Sportsman Championship brackets.

While the sportsman racers finalised their qualifying before heading into intense eliminations on Sunday, the group one racers were straight into racing and following three rounds of all-run competition, it was Peter Xiberras over Damien Harris (Top Fuel), Brodie Zappia over Steve Aldridge (Top Doorslammer), and Damian Muscat over Wayne McGuinness (Top Fuel Motorcycle) who celebrated with the coveted Gold NDRC Christmas Trees on Sunday evening.

Top Fuel Motorcycle

In Top Fuel Motorcycle, Damian Muscat and Wayne McGuinness headed to the A-Final after taking two wins apiece, making for a highly competitive final match-up.

When all was said and done, Muscat drove all the way for a 6.448-second 308.77kph win over McGuinness (8.326/193.81), whose run had started strong before he ran into trouble mid-way through and chose to back off.

Muscat had earlier enjoyed a bye in round one thanks to his Top Qualifying effort, running a 6.625-second 252.07kph, before another solo pass in round two, where complete with fireworks from his Nitro Phoenix racer he delivered a 6.209-second 307.42kph run.

Despite a wheel stand to the 800ft line in round one, McGuinness (6.561/296.92kph) got the better of Greg Durack (7.795/319.07kph) in round one, before running solo in round two (8.401/203.16kph) when Corey Buttigieg was pushed back from the start.

While he didn’t get down into the lauded fives this weekend, Muscat was happy with the win, especially considering the fact that he was plagued with engine issues all weekend.

“We’ll take the win!” Muscat smiled as he was handed the Gold NDRC Christmas Tree trophy after the A-Final.

“The JTS rocketship was giving us drama all weekend, and we’re on our third engine for the weekend.

“Thanks to the crew for all of their work to put on a good show for the crowd, and thanks to the crowd for being here and for their support.”

Tony Wood was another racer to take wins in all three rounds, including the B-Final over runner-up Greg Durack. Wood blazed down the lane in the final with candles on the whole way (7.740/272.74kph), leaving Durack (9.732/165.78kph) far behind. Wood and Durack both ran solos in round two, with Wood (7.902/229.46kph) also getting the better of Buttigieg (11.696/125.54kph) in round one. The C-Final saw Buttigieg matched with Kevin Gummow to cap off what was his first time racing at the Perth Motorplex, taking the win on a solo after Gummow was unable to proceed from the startline.

In the Aeroflow National Sportsman Championship, qualifying continued for all but Super Stock and Competition this morning with those bracket’s Top Qualifiers having been decided on Saturday night. At the conclusion of qualifying, the following racers joined Errol Quartermaine (Super Stock) and Michael Buckley (Competition) in being awarded the NDRC Top Qualifier Medallions in their respective brackets on Sunday: Justin Townson (Modified Bike), Seth Jarvis (Junior Drag Bike), Chris Allen (Competition Bike).

In all, more than 160 Aeroflow National Sportsman Championship racers across eleven brackets raced for valuable championship points, with the following racers claiming NDRC Gold and Silver Christmas Tree trophies in their respective brackets:

Modified Bike

Winner – Tony Ambrosini
Runnerup – Paul De Klerk
#1 Qualifier – Justin Townson

Competition Bike

Winner – Chris Allen 
Runnerup – Michael Holister
#1 Qualifier – Chris Allen

Chris Allen was on fire this weekend in Competition Bike, securing the #1 qualifier spot with a blistering 6.975 in an 11-bike field!

Allen carried that momentum through eliminations, charging into the final against #3 qualifier Michael Hollister. With dial-ins set at 7.78 for Allen and 8.10 for Hollister, the stage was set for a showdown!

Hollister grabbed the early lead with a .114 reaction time over Allen’s .146, but trouble struck down track, allowing Allen to power past and take the win at the stripe!

Junior Drag Bike

Winner – Riley Kilvington
Runnerup – Tyler James
#1 Qualifier – Seth Jarvis

 

 

The 2024/2025 NDRC season continues across April 5-6 at Dragway at The Bend for the Riverbend Nationals with Top Fuel, XPRO Nitro Funny Car, Top Doorslammer and Aeroflow National Sportsman Championship taking to the track.

The Gulf Western Oil Nitro Champs will then follow in Sydney on May 2-4, headlined by Top Fuel and XPRO Nitro Funny Car alongside the full range of group one categories plus the Aeroflow National Sportsman Championship.

Then, the biggest event of the year is back with the return of the Gulf Western Oil Winternationals at Willowbank Raceway across June 5-8, featuring Top Fuel, XPRO Nitro Funny Car, Top Doorslammer and Top Fuel Motorcycle, plus Pro Alcohol, Pro Stock, FuelTech Pro Mod, Pro Stock Motorcycle, and the Aeroflow National Sportsman Championship.

For the full listing of events, please visit https://nationaldragracing.com.au/calendar/

To learn more about the NDRC, visit www.ndrc.tv

QUALIFYING

WA’S ONLY 2025 TOP FUEL SHOW READY TO RACE FOR WESTERNATS GLORY

A full day and night of incredible drag racing performances in front of a packed house have set the stage for what is set to be an epic Westernationals race day at the Perth Motorplex (Sunday 2 March).

This weekend’s event is being headlined by WA’s only Top Fuel show for 2025, with six 11,000hp/500kmh+ Top Fuel Dragsters competing for round three of their NDRC championship chase. Joining them in delighting a huge crowd are a full complement of Top Doorslammer and Top Fuel Motorcycle competitors – also chasing NDRC national championship glory – as well as the Aeroflow National Sportsman Championship.

Fans filled the stands at Perth Motorplex Saturday and with another big crowd expected for race day Sunday, fans are advised to get their tickets online at www.ndrc.tv now to make sure they can secure their seat trackside.

When all was said and done in the group one ranks Saturday evening, it was Damien Harris (Top Fuel), John Zappia (Top Doorslammer), and Damian Muscat (Top Fuel Motorcycle) who top qualified and will lead their fields into race day.

In Top Fuel Motorcycle, national record holder Damian Muscat claimed the top spot with a 6.081/342.65kph effort in Q1.

Muscat’s top qualifying time was one of only two six-second passes of the evening for Top Fuel Motorcycle; agonisingly close to the coveted five second zone which has been graced by only two riders in Australia previously, one of those being Muscat.

Benny Stevens also got down into the sixes, with a 6.860/332.51kph run in Q2 seeing him secure the second spot.

Wayne McGuinness’s 7.612/200.89 Q1 effort saw the WA racer third quickest, while Tony Wood (Q2 – 7.637/264.96kph) and Corey Buttigieg (Q2 – 8.472/174.38kph) qualified in fourth and fifth, respectively.

Spots six through nine belonged to Greg Durack (6th – 8.678/173.65kph), Travis Lorraway (7th – 13.715/102.53kph), Kevin Gummow (8th – 22.773/34.72kph), and Ian Ashelford (9th) – who was unable to record a time.

“The day started out with a 6.08s, and I misjudged the finish line a whisker, so I actually got off it early unintentionally,” Muscat said.

“We changed the motor between rounds and went out in the second round with a little too much fuel in the second half of the track and it started mixing cylinders, but I stayed in it. We got really good data from those two runs, and we should be able to transform that into something tomorrow.

“We’ll try to go as fast as we can and try to put a show on for the crowd here. The team’s worked pretty hard to get us to where we are and we’ll definitely go out and give it all we’ve got to see if we can make this bike go faster.”

More than 160 Aeroflow National Sportsman Championship racers also impressed the packed stands with qualifying runs across all eleven brackets.

Errol Quartermaine and Michael Buckley have officially top qualified in Super Stock and Competition, while the rest will conclude their qualifying battle tomorrow, with the following racers currently leading the way in their respective brackets: Gavin Donnelly (Super Street), Terry Phillips (Super Sedan), Vince Belladonna (Supercharged Outlaws), Connor Wood (Modified Bike), Jesse Martin (Junior Dragster), Seth Jarvis (Junior Drag Bike), Chris Allen (Competition Bike), Michelle Morrison (Modified Eliminator) and Jason Lippi (Top Sportsman).

The 54th annual Westernationals concludes on Sunday March 2 at the Perth Motorplex, with the continuation of the Aeroflow National Sportsman Championship qualifying runs from 10.30am before racing begins for these eleven exciting brackets from 12.50pm local time. Top Fuel, Top Doorslammer and Top Fuel Motorcycle will be on-track from 4.00pm.

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For more information about the NDRC, please visit www.ndrc.tv

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