Australia’s NDRC round wows in far Western Australia….
Two thrilling days and nights of National Drag Racing Championship (NDRC) action wrapped up in spectacular fashion at the 54th annual Westernationals, lighting up a packed Perth Motorplex.
Fans were treated to back-to-back excitement with a second day and night of group one and sportsman racing, headlined by Top Fuel class 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.
In Top Fuel, Peter Xiberras’ A-Final win was exceptionally special for the Sydney-sider as his first win at the Perth Motorplex.
After last-minute trouble struck defending champion Damien Harris, who was pushed back from the start line, Xiberras ran an impressive 3.854-second 502.36kph run all the way to the deep end and laid down the only 500kph+ run of the finals.
The Top Fuel winner was Peter Xiberras – it was his first career win at the Perth Motorplex.
Earlier in the day, Xiberras had taken the round one and round two victories – 4.001/425.02kph over a red lighting Phil Lamattina (6.354/170.18kph) and 3.895/473.36kph over a pedalling Phil Read (4.708/257.37kph) who had a drive job on his hands after getting out of shape off the line in that run.
In the B-Final, WA underdog Kyle Putland had the crowd on its feet as Top Fuel’s newest racer went all the way to the end with a blistering 3.969-second 460.66kph run in the final over Wayne Newby (6.653/142.24kph). Putland, who had been chasing a three-second run all weekend, didn’t let off the gas even as Newby, who had been battling clutch issues all weekend, shut off early in the run.
It was a side-by-side drag race in the C-Final for Phil Lamattina and Phil Read until the former’s Fuchs Lubricants dragster erupted in a fireball, with Read driving on through for the win. Running in the left lane for the first time today, this was also the Hydraulink Jim Read Racing pilot’s best run of the night (3.862/455.41kph).
NDRC TF points leader after 3 races – Damien Harris – was R/UP
In Top Doorslammer, the A-Final victory was a particularly popular result, with young rookie Brodie Zappia not only making it all the way to the A-Final but also claiming his first Top Doorslammer victory mere months after obtaining his licence late last year.
Brodie Zappia’s final run started with a wild burnout, almost sending the 19-year-old into the wall before racing even began. Lined up against Steve Aldridge, the young gun ran all the way through to the end with an impressive 5.899-second 385.58kph holeshot over Steve Aldridge (5.812/397.02kph), who gave it everything he had.
Consistency was the name of the game for the younger Zappia all weekend, with the nephew of 11-time champion John Zappia also claiming wins (5.871/388.10kph and 5.859/387.39kph) over Frank Taylor (7.169/249.29kph and 6.148/384.90kph) in both rounds one and two.
2nd Generation driver Brodie Zappia earned his first NDRC Top Doorslammer event title.
Defending Top Doorslammer champion Russell Taylor enjoyed a solo run in the B-Final after Maurice Brennan’s wounded Just Flooring Commodore suffered mechanical issues after round two and was unable to appear. Taylor didn’t let running solo stop him from putting on a show for the crowd, laying down his quickest and fastest run of the night at 5.685-seconds and 408.53kph.
In the C-Final, John Zappia lined up against Lisa Gregorini in a rematch of not only their second-round run tonight (where Lisa sent John packing with a holeshot 5.772/380.45kph v 5.763/396.71kph victory after being shut down at the waterbox in round one) but also the Nitro Slam event earlier in the year.
Steve Aldridge was R/UP for the Top Doorslammer class.
While Lisa had dispatched the 11-time champ on both of those occasions, in the C-Final it went the way of the Dananni Hotshots Fuchs Monaro, with the elder Zappia (5.725/401.15kph) sailing through to the end after a wheel stand at the start for Lisa that smoked the tyres, causing the Scratch and Match Motorsport racer to back out early (14.111/94.02kph).
Zappia had earlier enjoyed a solo in round one thanks to his status as the NDRC Top Qualifier Medallion winner, laying down a 5.733-second 403.66kph to be the only racer in that opening round to break the 400kph mark.
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.
Damian Muscat was the quickest & fastest while winning in Top Fuel Motorcycle.
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: Jake Chaisty over Todd Stacy (Super Stock), Connor McClure over Jon Ferguson (Competition), Lisa Garbellini over Daniel Brecich (Super Street), Kyle Higgins over Michael North (Super Sedan), Kasey McClure over Peter Appleby (Supercharged Outlaws), Tony Ambrosini over Paul De Klerk (Modified Bike), Nixon Cannuli over Nathaniel Kuchel (Junior Dragster), Riley Kilvington over Tyler James (Junior Drag Bike), Chris Allen over Michael Holister (Competition Bike), and Yvette Gregg over Roger Moorhouse (Top Sportsman). In Modified Eliminator, Paul Garbellini won the event over Michelle Morrison, however Paul is ineligible for NDRC points or trophies due to his personal decision to not carry the required championship decal as per the rules and regulations.
Connor McClure won in Competition eliminator which this cool turbocharged Corvette.
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.
Posted by Amanda Cobb (Jigsaw Communications)
Photos by Grant Stephens (Cackling Pipes Photography)
