Nov 11

Super Sedan sibling rivalry heating up at Willowbank final round

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Drag racing brothers Paul and Darren Doeblien will take the Powercruise Super Sedan championship down to the wire at Willowbank Raceway this weekend – and it couldn’t be closer with the siblings tied on points.

It’s a watershed moment for the pair, with both keen to be on top at the end of the round, the finale of the 2014 Queensland Drag Racing Championships (QDRC).

And while older brother Paul has won six Super Sedan championships, including the last three on the trot, Darren, the 2006 Super Street champion, is hoping to secure his first title in the bracket.

“To be heading to the final round for the season tied with my brother for the championship lead is awesome,” said the 46-year-old.

“Of course I want to win, but if I have to lose I would like him to be the one taking the victory. Racing with Darren is great, and we have a good relationship.

“It’s a great family sport. My father Wayne used to race and he works on our cars, and my daughter Nicole recently started racing in Street events in the XY Falcon that I started out in.

“It is not too often that Darren and I line up against each other but when you do it’s a bit different. I think you will always put in a bigger effort against your brother because you want to outdo them.

“While Darren and I are tied on points (for the title) there are still a number of racers mathematically in with a chance and with the eliminations format for the final round there is definitely some increased pressure, but I will try and not let it worry me.”

For younger brother Darren, it was crewing on his brother’s car that led to the drag racing bug biting hard once he had the chance to take Paul’s car out on the strip for the first time.

“I haven’t won a championship in Super Sedan yet, but I have won one in Super Street,” said the 44-year-old.

“Paul keeps winning them all and he has been very greedy, but hopefully things this year will change!”

“I led the points early last year, and was leading again this year before Paul caught up with me at the last event to see us on equal points heading to this weekend.

“I hope it comes down to Paul and I both making it to the final race and we can just put it all on the line to race for the title. That would be a dream come true and a real fairytale ending for the season.”

The QDRC finale, held this Saturday, should see more than 100 racers competing across a range of brackets including QDRC SuperComp, QDRC Comp Bike, Donnelly Blasting Services QDRC Outlaws, Knijff Earthmoving Modified, Prime Signs/Speed Elec Super Street, Modified Bike, Junior Dragster and Super Gas.