Bilinski races to Denny Hulme Trophy and early championship lead

Poland’s Roman Bilinski ended a fine debut weekend in New Zealand with another victory – his second of the weekend – to secure the Denny Hulme Memorial Trophy and take an early series lead in the 2024 Castrol Toyota Formula Regional Oceania Championship.

The M2 Competition driver bided his time perfectly in the 23-lap race, settling into third place behind Kiwi Liam Sceats and a fired up Christian Mansell before making near identical passes on each at the Taupo circuit’s final sequence of corners.

It was a fine win in a competitive field. “I don’t know what to say really, I must thank the team for doing a really great job,” he beamed after what had been a long hot race without any Safety Car intervention.

“What a race! I managed to make a few good overtakes and get the win so I am very happy. We have a very good race pace, and we were able to show that in this race, so that is good news for the remainder of the championship.”

Mansell should have started on pole position but a post-race penalty from the morning’s second race left him starting from fifth on the grid. Nonetheless he made a great start and in less than a lap was tucked under the rear wing of early leader Liam Sceats, who had beaten pole position sitter Alex Crosbie in the drag race to the first turn.

Sceats did well to hold off the charging Australian for five laps and it took a great move from Mansell to get by the young Kiwi before he edged off to a narrow lead. Bilinski meanwhile was playing the long game and bringing his Pirellis in gently in the heat and humidity of the Taupo afternoon.

As the two ahead worked their tyres harder, Roman got closer and closer and his exquisite passes demonstrated not only bravery but patience. Mansell never gave up in the final lap or so and finished right on the 19-year-old Polish ace’s tail, but Roman’s win was well deserved.

Behind the top three there were other great battles in the field including Canadian Patrick Woods-Toth’s efforts to make his way deep into the top ten and two other great scraps between Landan Matriano Lim and Lucas Fecury and Kaleb Ngatoa and Nicola Lacorte.

At the end of it all it was Bilinski who was first past the chequered flag, followed by Mansell with Sceats just over two and a half seconds in arrears. Alex Crosbie had a lonely race in fourth while Michael Shin came home fifth.

Lacorte put in his best performance of the weekend and was a solid top ten performer throughout the race, ultimately bringing his Alpine Junior Team-liveried car home in a solid sixth. Kaleb Ngatoa brought his Giles Motorsport car home seventh while Titus Sherlock – runner up in the F4 US Championship last season – had his best race of the weekend in eighth. Woods-Toth put a frustrating weekend behind him with ninth and Elliott Cleary impressed yet again with another top ten finish.

Bilinski now adds his name alongside the likes of Lando Norris on the unique trophy which incorporates the actual trophy Denny Hulme won for his last Formula One victory at the 1974 Argentine Grand Prix.

The championship reassembles in less than a week for round two, with the spirit of another great Kiwi motorsport icon in attendance at Manfeild - Circuit Chris Amon in New Zealand’s Manawatu region.

2024 Castrol Toyota Formula Regional Oceania Championship certified by FIA – R1 Race 3

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• Kiwi Motorsport