Queensland budget racer Rob Harrington has capped off a stunning weekend to claim the 2025 Gulf Western Oils Winternationals at Willowbank Raceway over the Kings Birthday weekend.
Harrington pedalled his Bad Influence Monaro to a major upset to dethrone defending Winternationals and Australian Champion Russell Taylor in front of a huge “Winters” crowd in what is easily the biggest moment in the Queenslander’s motorsport career.
“I’ve dreamed of this, but you never actually think it’ll happen,” said the new champ.
Russell Taylor came into the A-Final with his second consecutive Australian Championship secured (with an unbeatable lead still with one round to complete in Darwin) and safe in the knowledge that earlier in the semi against Ronnie Palumbo he’d run a smoking 5.61 (low ET) to set the benchmark with low ET and speed for the round.
As Harrington’s Monaro lined up alongside Taylor’s OGL Australia Camaro under a bright orange Winternationals sunset Doorslammer legend Victor Bray commentated “It’s really in Taylor’s hands, he’d have to do something wrong.”
Harrington laid down a stout .059 light against Taylor’s 0.125 to really put the pressure on and lead at 330 but just when it seemed Russell would drive by the black Camaro incredibly slowed and “Harry” ripped it through the finish with a 5.84 at 397kph.
“That’s three unpredictable races this weekend,” said Victor Bray as the Harrington team wildly embraced on the start line.
“I’ve won the Winters!” yelled Harrington as he exited the Monaro to a smiling Bennie Bishop, “I’m just a little Aussie battler with a rag tag bunch of blokes from a couple of country towns and we’re just having a go man. To run against the Australian Champion Russell Taylor and to beat John Zappia it’s just been amazing. We just won the Winters baby, are you kidding me!”
Taylor would later admit, “That was on me, it’s all on me. I had some issues clicking it into gear properly where I didn’t use the correct process and so it never got out of first gear off the line. I had to watch Rob drive off. Congratulations to him though, take nothing away from him he did a great job.”
Harrington’s win over the A1 was not the only upset of the day.
Far from it.
Harrington earlier faced John Zappia in the second round only to see the Fuchs / Dananni Monaro red light and in the process hand the shocked Queenslander his first ever Doorslammer Winters A-Final berth.
In the semi-final he faced good mate and Kiwi Nigel Dixon and the day before in Round One defeated impressive Sydney slammer debutant Salim Matta in the sleek A-Civil Shelby.
It was consistency in a car that is significantly older than many of his rivals that got Harrington through to the biggest result possible.
ROUND ONE
Round One saw Brodie Zappia defeat the red-lit Russ Pavey in the C2 Corvette (that had shown some real speed over the weekend considering how little Pavey had raced in recent years) with Zappia running a 5.86 against Pavey’s 5.84.
Nigel Dixon ran a 5.96 to send ‘the Colonel’ Pete Lovering’s Attcall Civil Shoebox home early despite Lovering being #5 qualifier in the fully subscribed 16-car field.
In a major development for the series ACT racer Jeremy Callaghan took his Luci Civil 70.5 Camaro to a critical victory defeating second place in the Championship Lisa Gregorini with a 5.72 against Gregorini’s 5.74.
Emilio Spinozzi looked racy in the Terra Civil Chevelle to send Kiwi Steve Carlsen’s Yeeha Falcon Sprint packing with a 5.78 vs 6.31.
In one of the races of the weekend Ronnie Palumbo wheeled the AC Delco Monaro to a 5.73 over Jack Danaher’s Wild Ink 57’ Corvette with the Sunshine Coaster running a PB 5.80 in response.
A timing block was knocked over during the run but it was later determined it was from Palumbo’s chute after the finish line not the car during the quarter mile run.
Russell Taylor and Daniel Gregorini faced off in one of the biggest early match ups of the weekend with Taylor taking the W’ with a standard Russell 5.67 over Gregorini’s 6.17 after Gregorini battled to overcome earlier ECU issues in the Neuro Muscular WA Camaro.
That first round surprisingly and disappointingly seeing both Gregorinis parked under their team marquee for the remainder of the weekend.
The team had certainly made an impact on the weekend however with their touching tribute to little family friend Dexter who had sadly passed away only three weeks earlier due to complications with neuromuscular disease.
The team also had a visit and a seat in the fire up by QLD senator Pauline Hanson who promptly threw on a Lisa Gregorini t-shirt and saddled up in the Camaro for photos and video.
The video currently has over 510,000 views.
John Zappia accounted for South Aussie Mick Mahoney’s stunning Reads Transport Shelby running a stout 5.66 after he earlier won the Crow Cams #1 Qualifier $1000 for his 5.67 proving he had consistency in the Fuchs Dananni Monaro.
ROUND TWO
Round Two saw Zappia’s run come to an abrupt end when he red lit against eventual Winters champ Rob Harrington.
Ronnie Palumbo and Brodie Zappia squared off in the battle of the reaction times (with a cheeky $50 wager between the pair on the line) and it was Palumbo taking the cash and the win.
Palumbo’s 0.041 bested Zappia’s 0.042 in the Max Plant Monaro with Palumbo getting the win with his 5.73 against BZap’s 5.86 – Zappia again finding himself buried in mid 3.80 territory as he headed home early.
One of the epic Camaro battles of the round was most certainly Jeremy Callaghan versus Russell Taylor and despite both cutting lazy lights (Callaghan 0.109 and Taylor 0.235) Taylor’s drive job got everyone’s attention as he ripped home with the hole shot win running a pedestrian by his own standards 5.80 against Callaghan’s 5.71.
Kiwi Nigel Dixon took on Emilio Spinozzi and with a cool 0.05 light the Terra Civil Chevelle looked to have the wood on Nigel until Spinozzi stumbled with motor issues and Dixon whistled on by with a 5.93 to head to the semis.
SEMI FINALS
The semi-finals saw Harrington defeat Dixon in a squeaker with a 5.84 against a 5.87 which was a Herculean effort from the passionate and determined Kiwis and Russell Taylor facing Ronnie Palumbo in one of the most tense and significant match ups in all of the Winternationals.
With Taylor being #2 qualifier and Palumbo being #3 – plus the weight of expectation as Ronnie raced for the last time with the Fabietti Monaro – this was expected to be a mammoth battle.
Unfortunately it wasn’t.
Ronnie red lit in the left hand lane and Russell scorched away to a smoking 5.61 to leave an exclamation point on his Championship lead and to that point unbeaten Winternationals record.
With a 5.61 in his pocket before the final it would be a brave man indeed who’d bet against Taylor in the final v Harrington.
As we’d see however, you have to be in it to win it and Harrington now has a Gold Christmas tree to prove it.
Crow Cams Australia Qualifying saw thirteen of the sixteen car field into the five-second bracket – similar to the fourteen of the fifteen-car field at the Nitro Champs in Sydney last month.
John Zappia 5.67
Russell Taylor 5.70
Ronnie Palumbo 5.77
Emilio Spinozzi 5.81
Peter Lovering 5.83
Brodie Zappia 5.841
Jeremy Callaghan 5.842
Salim Matta 5.845
Rob Harrington 5.85
Lisa Gregorini 5.89
Russ Pavey 5.91
Nigel Dixon 5.95
Steve Carlsen 5.99
Jack Danaher 6.08
Daniel Gregorini 6.16
Mick Mahoney 6.40
The final round of the Top Doorslammer Championship at Darwin’s Hidden Valley is scheduled for the weekend of August 29/30.
