26- 06-! Epic clash by S mith, Rad lisich tip bea By Lindsay Kerr An epic clash between New Zealand drivers, Ken Smith and Paul Radisich, is the likely result of the forth round of this year's Peter Jackson motor racing series at Ruapuna Park raceway on Sunday. With the final round only a week away, the 48-yearold Smith, a driver who does not have retirement in his vocabulary, has a 29point advantage over his rival. thanks in part to mechanical problems on Radisich's new Toyota powered Reynard. Radisich was on course to retain his lead from round two but a slipping cam belt followed by tie loss of first and second gear resulted in no points for the Manfeild meeting. Radisich will be determined to get back into a challenging position. Never before has he had such a chance at getting a drive in Europe. A win for Reynard in this series might just clinch it. While the attention in the Formula Pacifics will be on the two out in front, the battle for second place looks likely to see the youngest of the up and coming drivers, Cralg Baird in a Ford powered Swift, a dice with the two rapidly improving overseas drivers, Robbie Groff (U.S.) in a Toyota powered Swift and Filipino driver Jovey Marcelo (Ford powered Swift). Baird is second with 72 points, 9 ahead of Radisich. Groff is sixth on 37 points three ahead of Marcello. Heading the rest of the New Zealanders Palmerston North's Richard Lester in the first of the many Ralt RT4s. With 55 points, Lester is likely to cling to fourth position but an expected scrap with Barrie Thomlinson in a similar car could well be the highlight. In the support role will be further rounds of the Notorerait national For- and the national thunder= saloon championship. Christchurch's Paul Larsen returns with an unbeaten record on the three North Island tracks and a huge lead in the Formula Ford championship. But Larsen is aware of this opposition, any of his closest rivals now getting their new cars sorted out. Stiffest competition should come from Mark Pederson, a young driver who pushed Larsen to the limit last weekend, and the defending champion, Grant Campbell. The thundersaloon championship races will be a North versus South affair with the final outcome difficult to pick. Head the starters is the defending champion, Wayne Huxiora (Chev Capri), the 1988 champion Roger Freeth (Starlet Rover). Wayne Scott (Nissan 300ZX), Brett Willis (Mazda MX5), John Osborne (Mazda Chev) and Don Grindley (Mazda Buick). Also in the lineup will be Englishman Rod Birley. His Starion Cosworth Turbo does not have the power of his more fancied rivals but reliability has been its hallmark. Also on the programme will be two beats for the Agip Oils South Island Mini 7 championship and the Ray Parke Autos pre-65 Lady Close By JOHN HAWKINS Tradition will be broken this week-end when one of Christchurch's sporting institutions, The Lady Wigram Trophy Race, is contested at Ruapuna. While the debate over exactly how many times the trophy race has been held has been as hotly contested as some of the races, it is an inescapable fact that the break with the Wigram airfield will be made for the first time since 1955 when no race was held, also because of runway resealing. The : change will probably effect the fortunes of the runners at this Sunday's Peter Jackson International meeting very little however. But when the lights turn green on Sunday the competition for the top placings will surely be between the same fast drivers. Although the Wigram circuit was almost universally popular among drivers and undoubtably placed more emphasis on driving skill, Ruapuna will be more likely to give spectators value money by providing closer racing. As the formula Pacific and its nursery class, Formula Ford, have not ventured to Ruapuna for some time, none of Sunday's starters will have Wigram Trophy Meeting Ruapuna Raceway january 27-28 A "PRESS" ADVERTISING FEATURE racing pron KEN SMITH CRAIG BAIRD experience of th While the lavout i unlikely to present too man! probiems drivers of this calibre, the tight hairpin followed by the deceptive first and second "S" complex will provide a challenge. At 48 years of age, Ken Smith, for so long New Zealand's top racing driver, is in superb form and suggestions that he should retire because of his age are trite. Now armed with the latest Swift DB4 after having to play second fiddle with a now unfashionable Rait RT4 last season, Smith has the chance to run at the front and has grabbed it with both hands. Last week-end, at Manfeild. Smith's Ford BDA engine appeared to enjoy top-speed advantage over its rivais and it seemed that Smith need only pick his time to blast past the Hamilton teenager, Craig Baird, on the main straight. Not a bit of it. The wily old fox chose to nip past his young riva. on the demanding s bend section to roars of aproval from the crowd. Smith's closest challenger seems likely to be the now-experienced New Zealand international, Paul Radisich. Radisich looked the class of the fieid at the opening meeting at Baypark and again seemed to have the better of Smith in the opening nises t niden BARRY THOMLINSON race at Manfeild, but his Reynard Toyota has suffered from annoying mechanical probiems that seem to have dashed his hopes in the series. Such probiems have thwarted Radisich in the past, but he could still carve himself a successful career on the world He despartely needs a reliable run and a good result at Ruapuna on Sunday. Second place in the Peter Jackson heats will be no good to him and he alone appears to have the right blend of skill and experence to match Smith. Baird is another with the natural skill and be is gaining experience all the ume. Pole position at Manfeild was his, but while he suffered by getting ioo much wheelspin off the line in the first heat he did not make the same mistake twice and hrils drove with considerable determination to head Smith for eight laps in the second race. With the right breaks Baird could well become New Zealand's next international star. The two internationai drivers in the field both drive for the Graeme Lawrence team. Robbie Groff, from the United States, and Jovey Marcelo, from the Philippines, are not in the same league as some of the drivers Lawrence has emploved in the past, but both enjoyed a sold run in tandem at Manfeild and could well be building pace towards a surprise result at Ruapuna's penultimate Peter Jackson round. A pleasing aspect of the Peter Jackson series has been the degree of ability shown by some of the New Zealand newcomers to the class and the close racing in midfield among the now-overshadowed Ralt RI4S. Fastest of the newcomers has been the Aucklander, Barrie Thomlinson. At the age of 30, Thomlinson has past experience in Formula Ford and has enjoyed some close tussles with the more experienced Richard Lester this season. These two generally enjoy an edge over the next group which includes Dean Cockerton, Steve Richards, Heather Spurie and Ross Heffernan.