Inaugural Matt Neal Award
This reflection on the 2004 Australian V8 Supercar season will feature the inaugural Matt Neal Award for driving as well as a look back at the season.
Why is it the Matt Neal Award and what do you have to do to win it? This is purely my opinion of the driver that has caused the most damage to cars or chances of success to the other drivers ands cars in the course of the season. Neal's 2000 Bathurst race effort of wrecking potential race wins and possibly altering the outcome of the championship that year when he was being lapped set the criteria for this award. It is not enough just to take some one out in a pure racing incident, it has to be big and have long term consequences. It particularly helps if the perpetrator is not in contention for a race or series win a the time of the incident. It helps if a rich father is more significant than the driver's ability in their motor racing career.
There were a couple of outstanding candidates for 2004, the first being Rick Kelly's efforts at the Surfers Paradise street race. Kelly started off by turning around Russell Ingall in an ambitious first turn passing move. This put Ingall to eh back of the field and severely hampered his weekends and Championship hopes. After repairs and a penalty from the incident Kelly rejoined the race lap down but right behind leader Marcos Ambrose and seemingly preferring to maintain close contact with Ambrose rather than unlapping himself.
Kelly's main effort came in race two when he turned championship contender Jason Bright into the wall, not only taking Bright out of the race but damaging the car so badly that for the crucial final rounds of the series Bright had to use an old car as this one could not be fixed in time.
Kelly scores well in the rich dad syndrome as Kmart racing is owned by.... his dad of course.
The award though goes to another driver who I think caused greater mayhem and disappointment and damage.
At the most important race meeting of the year, the Bathurst 1000 km event this international driver caused severe damage to two cars and ruined the race for three other drivers either in dawn or twilight of their careers.
Damaging your car and have to limp back to the pits at the last corner is the worst possible place to do it on Bathurst's 6.2 km Mount Panorama circuit as the entry to pit lane is before this corner.
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