Young talent on show as hundreds hit the track to battle out Southern Sprint honours at Albany meeting

Hundreds of competitors hit the track for the Southern Sprint, with some of WA’s best drivers showcasing what they had to offer in Albany on the Labour Day long weekend. A mix of experienced drivers and exciting young guns, plus well performed locals all stood out across two days of fast-paced action at the Albany City Kart Club. In a thrilling final on Sunday, March 1, Beau Casagrande claimed the title in the KA3 junior light division as he prevailed in an epic last couple of laps. Casagrande had been quick all weekend but had to withstand a mighty challenge from Jack Kalbfell and Valentino Giorgella. In the end Casagrande won the 14-lap decider by 0.239sec. on the line over Kalbfell while Giorgella was 0.377sec. away in third. Albany pair Ben Keen and Brock Kinnear enjoyed strong weekends, finishing eighth and ninth respectively in the final. Sachen Smith-Wei completed a dominant weekend in the KZ2 category, blitzing the small field in the final to win by more than 10 seconds. Lewi Sutherland was too strong for his rivals in the KA3 senior championship final, beating Byron Copping by 1.097sec. Young star Cruz Priolo was brilliant in the cadet 12s, driving the wheels of his machine all weekend and then backing it up in the final with a dominant display. Priolo won by more than 3sec. over Edward Noon while Jenson Stewart was third in the final. Reef Mackin downed Joel Blackman and Harvey Cooper in the KA2 final, with the winning margin 0.311sec. Alex Barboutis capped a strong weekend of racing with success in the TaG 125 restricted medium final. Barboutis held off a late charge from Simon Minton in the concluding laps to win by 1.097sec. while Nathan King was third and Albany’s Jayden Lister ran fourth. Minton did taste victory however, winning the TaG 125 restricted masters final, beating home Albany member Nathan Terrell in a close finish. The cadet 9 final was full of drama with an early crash causing a full track yellow light and then the field stopping under red flag conditions. Several drivers were excluded from the remainder of the final and Reid Anderson crossed the line first only to be relegated post-race. Both Anderson and Knox Valli were relegated after the finish with Jamie Gwilliam officially declared the winner from Mason McNamee and Anderson. Alfie-Lee Hamer, Chips Allen, Kai Trajkovic and Will Lonsdale were all non-finishers. Ben Brajer was a clear winner of the TaG 125 restricted light final, winning by more than six seconds. Albany members Chloe Terrell and Jake Gardiner rounded out the podium. In another terrific final, Riley Currey stormed home to seriously challenge Kip Foster in the concluding stages of the TaG 125 light decider. Foster clung on by 0.153sec. in the end with Currey second and Sutherland in third. Youngster Lucas Arscott prevailed narrowly in the KA3 junior heavy final, edging out Rafael Boschiero by 0.305sec. while Cooper was third across the line. A clinical display from Jackson Mitchell-Rosenauer had him claim top honours in the TaG 125 heavy class, winning the final by more than 3sec. over Louis Rossi.