BORDERLINE SPEEDWAY: GOODYER LANDS FIRST BLOW
Feature photo by: Richard Hathaway Photography
By Thomas Miles (Auto Action)
Date posted: 31 January 2026
The opening night of the 2026 Australian Sprintcar Championship is complete with Jock Goodyer landing the first blow at Borderline.
Goodyer emerged victorious after a thrilling side-by-side battle with Ryan Newton in the dramatic Preliminary A Main on Friday night, January 30.
Newton and Goodyer head into Saturday night’s decider with the most points with 88 and 86 respectively, while big names Lockie McHugh and James McFadden are also in contention.
At one state Newton and Goodyer were wheel to wheel for three straight laps before the Tasmanian edged ahead and he was delighted.
“It was cool to race Ryan side by side. Respect goes a long way in this sport and hats off to him running a clean race against me which was awesome
Even if I ended up on the other side of that I would still be happy to have such a clean and fun race.
“Good to bank the points, but tomorrow is the main night where I really want the #1 back on this car.
“We will keep tuning it up.”
Following the time trials there was high drama in the heats when racing began under cool, but gloomy skies.
Todd Moule held off Michael Keen in the opener, while Daniel Storer proved his speed by streaking clear of Tate Frost and McHugh.
The action kicked off in Heat Three with a terrifying crash taking place before the field even completed turn 1.
The likes of Peter Doukas, Max Guilford and Grant Stansfield were jostling for position on the high line approaching the opening bend and it resulted in disaster.
Contact between Doukas and Guilford sent the Kiwi airborne with the #N79 soaring as high as the catchfence, where his wing end plate was left behind hanging over the track.
The Kiwi eventually came back down to Earth, with Doukas also having a tumble as the reds were required.
The big winner of the chaos was Dayne Kingshott as it cleared an open path to victory. Thankfully, it was all green for Heat Four as Tim Hutchins dominated. However, he jumped the start, which saw Ian Madsen inherit the win.
Heat Five was a stop-start affair as Randy Morgan headed the field throughout.
The first stoppage occurred on lap five when a whack from Dennis Jones sent Marcus Dumesny careering into the barriers on the back straight. Dumesny was furious, waving angry hand gestures towards Jones for two consecutive laps.
Another stoppage was needed when Jordyn Charge spun coming out of the final corner and into the path of a helpless Jy Corbet. The contact was so heavy Corbet was launched into a flip.
A two-lap dash to the finish saw Morgan hold on and Glen Sutherland steal second from Michael Saller.
Supercars driver Brad Vaughan was on the front row for Heat 6, but jumped the start. Brock Hallett used his experience to take the win, while Touring Car Masters champion Joel Heinrich raced hard and lost second to Daniel Sayre late on.
Heat Seven saw some exciting racing between a champion and a rising star. Parker Scott converted pole into an early lead as McHugh and Ethan Wyllie clashed for second, seeing the #T15 do a 360. McHugh kept the foot down and caught Scott to set up a battle for the lead.
The pair went side by side for two-thirds of a lap before the local boy got his elbows out and emerged in the lead, and took the win to the delight of the home crowd.
Heat Eight was a tame affair with Newton leading from start to finish, but the action was back in the next sprint, which was a defining part of the night.
It was all looking steady until the final five laps, when Adam Alexander spun in front of the leaders, while Ben Morris had a close call at Turn 4 as well.
Storer was the leader, but Goodyer used the restart as his opportunity to make a statement. Goodyer was the first to use the high line, and it was a masterstroke as he soared from third to first in a handful of laps to steal the win from Storer in stunning style.
The final heat produced some of the biggest cheers as Corbet’s team, with kindness from others, pulled off an epic rebuild to return to the track.
Corbet rewarded them with a fighting third behind the dominant McFadden.
The target of the Preliminary B Main was booking one of the top four transfer spots.
Matt Dumesny showed his speed early by being the runaway leader, but he was lucky to carry on after Morris spun in front of him at the final corner.
As the 15-lap race went on, the “slick” surface on the outside of turns three and four became a notorious hot spot for wiping out cars.
Matt Egel was the first to be taken out after a barrel roll.
Not a single racing lap was possible before the same fate happened to home hero Sutherland, who fired head-on into the concrete.
There was more drama during the yellow as Vaughan suffered heartbreak.
The Super2 winner was looking safe in one of the transfer spots, only for a “broken birdcage” to send him into the infield.
Dumesny drove clear to victory over Kingshott, Madsen and Daniel Sayre, who also booked tickets to the main event.
When the lights went out Newton took the lead from McHugh, who struggled to find momentum. After battling for the lead McHugh slipped to fourth behind Goodyer and Storer.
After 10 clean laps the thrilling battle between Newton and Goodyer was sparked. A switch back saw Newton retain track position as the first yellows arrived three laps later.
Frost and Matt Dumesny spun at turn two, with Ian Madsen lucky to not join them.
Before the restart, Storer was demoted two spots from third to fifth as the fight for victory ignited.
Goodyer attacked Newton on the inside, and the pair raced wheel-to-wheel for the lead for the next three laps.
Eventually, a good run out of turn two saw the Tasmanian emerge in front, but he could not enjoy the track position for long.
With four laps to go Ian Madsen took a big tumble and, after walking out shaken, was taken away from the track for further checks.
The red set up a five-lap sprint home with Goodyer shooting clear and not looking back, driving to a 2s glory.
Newton was safe in second, while McHugh recovered from his early battles to secure a gritty third.
McFadden challenged on the outside, but could not quite knock off McHugh off the podium as Port MacDonnell’s Pestka completed the top five.
The stage is set for the decider of the 63rd Australian Sprintcar Championship tonight at Mount Gambier’s Borderline Speedway.
Tickets are still available, while the action can be viewed on Clay Per View.
On track action begins at 17.00 with gates opening from 15.00.
More information can be found here
