Andrew Pezzutti was the winner of the Mr Modified Series Grand Final event at Castrol Edge Lismore Speedway last night, with the overall two-round tournament taken out by birthday boy Mitch Randall.

Randall, who clinched the series win with a runner-up result to Pezzutti in the 30 lap decider, had accumulated enough points after he got his campaign off to a perfect start with a Round One Boxing Day feature race win at the circuit.

Big crowd sees Mitch win Mr Modified opener

Josh Rose was placed third in yesterday's main event.

When the final Mr Modified series points were tallied by officials, Randall (376) was three points clear of Pezzutti (373), while Lee Gorton (293) was third overall in the championship.

Andrew Pezzutti had a great win to take the Mr Modified Series Grand Final at Lismore Speedway but failed to overtaker Mitch Randall for the series title. Photo: Tony Powell

Gorton, who finished seventh in this most recent main event, had scored enough points by virtue of his strong second placing in the opening round.

It's interesting to note Randall was the fastest driver in the title decider when midway through the feature race he put down a 14.676 second lap for a speed of 119 km/h.

“It's great to win the series and I cannot thank my team enough for this win,” he said in victory lane. “We just had to be consistent and follow up on our good first round result as best we could and that's how it worked out.”

The other main event – the Northern Rivers Classic for Australian Motor Contest Association (AMCA) sedans – was taken out by Shane Newstead who was followed to the finish line by Steve Price and third-placed defending Classic trophy winner Thomas Vickery.

Pezzutti started at the front of the field in the Mr Modified series final and in the early stages it was Mark Robinson who held down second spot with Randall right on his tail. Gorton and Trent Scofield also battled further back for the minor placings as Randall overtook Robinson for second position.

As the race continued Robinson dropped back through the field and ultimately withdrew with 15 laps remaining.

In the latter stages the focus was on the Pezzutti and Randall leadership battle as they moved through lapped traffic. Pezzutti was caught up with a spinning lap car which brought on a yellow light. However, not deemed the cause of the accident, Pezzutti resumed his place at the head of the field when the race resumed.

The interest also focused on the battle for third as Zac McDonald challenged Rose for a spot on the podium, but at the finish it was Pezzutti, Randall and Rose in third, with McDonald a fast-finishing fourth.

Newstead was a decisive winner of the AMCA Northern Rivers Classic.

It's NSW v Qld in ACMA Nationals Sedans Northern Rivers Classic at Lismore Speedway

Steve Price (left) with AMCA Northern Rivers Classic race winner Shane Newstead and third placed Thomas Vickery. Photo: AMCA Nationals Northern Rivers / Facebook

He held command throughout the race despite a few yellow light interruptions to the action. The race did not reach the completion of the first lap before Stuart Jeffries and Paul Reeves tangled. But once the race settled into a pattern, Newstead set a cracking pace up front and could not be caught.

His win was emphasised after he recorded a fastest lap of the race at 88.796 km/h, stopping the timer at 16.217 seconds.

Other main event winners were: Wally Rudder (National 4s), Brock Youngberry (Junior Sedans), Trent Martin (Wingless Sprints) and Brock Armstrong (Street Stocks).

The next race meeting at Castrol Edge Lismore Speedway will be on Saturday, February 15, in which all local regional area firefighters will be accorded free admission.

ARTICLE BY DENNIS NEWLYN