Bunbury’s Mark Cates sweeps Competition Modern category in Pemberton at Targa South West on Saturday

Pemberton hosted the 14th Make Smoking History Targa South West over the weekend with 30 competitors eyeing the title of champion. Competition Modern However, only one could reign supreme, with Bunbury’s Mark Cates sweeping the win in all 16 stages of the Competition Modern category, with his partner Bernie Webb from New South Wales, in their powerful 2018 Porsche 911 GT2 RS. The duo finished fastest in the first eight stages, Sprint 1, almost 15 seconds ahead of Dardanup’s Will White in his Nissan GTR Nismo with co-driver Steph Esterbauer, while they finished 21:17 seconds ahead of White and Esterbauer in the next eight stages. Cates said the day was full of fun, racing on the closed roads in Pemberton. “I wasn’t sure how the shortened format would suit us, but the roads the organisers chose were brilliant fun,” he said. “The first three stages were pretty gnarly, but after those, we found our groove and it was a really fun day.” He said his vehicle had performed “spectacularly well”, noting their lack of need to change their tyres or change their oil during the day. “Bernie and I are extremely pleased,” Cates said. “It was a faultless day out and an enormous effort, we’re proud to have won every single stage.” Doug Tostevin and Dan Adams finished third fastest in Sprint 2 in their Subaru Imprezza WRX, 47 seconds behind White/Esterbauer, and took third place overall. In Sprint 1, 15 seconds behind White and Esterbauer in third place was husband and wife Bill and Glenys Stagoll in their Mitsubishi Evo 9, but they were forced to retire in Stage 10 with a mechanical issue, thus not able to secure a podium finish. Three other competitors were also forced to retire through the sprints. Competition Classic Paul Moltoni in his 1972 Porsche 911 RS with co-driver Lisa Read White made a triumphant comeback to the Targa competition, winning the Competition Classic category, after winning the 2015 four-day Targa West in Perth. Moltoni explained how he gave up rallying while juggling family commitments after his win, only competing in a few circuit racing events. “I really like the team environment in Targa events, you have to rely on your navigator,” he said. “I like that events are longer than a couple of hours, they last all day and sometimes several days, and it doesn’t matter where you are from or what you do, everyone is there with a common goal – to have a good time. “The camaraderie amongst competitors and crews is what makes it so great.” Moltoni said his Porsche was running well until the second last stage where it lost power, and they limped through town to finish the event, losing 33 seconds. “The win was unexpected, and I guess the misfortune of Nathan Ellement having an off was our fortune, we were surprised but very happy with the win,” he said. Competition 165 and Competition 130 The Competition 165 category – that limits competitors to 165 kilometres per hour – was won by Ben Pang and Brandon Chin in their 1999 Honda Civic. The Competition 130 category – that has a limited speed of 130 kilometres per hour – was dominated by the electric car of Nigal Ball with co-driver Morgan Ward, their Tesla 3 taking the title.