Jordan Pianezzola Commentary

🏁 Festival State Cup Series Round 4 at Southern Go Kart Club.

What a weekend it was! Firstly from me, a huge thank you and well done to Sam Henderson who joined me on the microphone on Sunday. Sam, you did a fantastic job and I can't wait to have you back alongside me again. Also with great weather across both days it gave us some fantastic racing on track. 🎙️☀️

🔥 4SS Senior Medium probably stole the show. Harrison Gifford's drive from P18 (last) in Heat 1 to victory in the Final was nothing short of spectacular. His speed in the Sodi was dominant all weekend and it'll be exciting to see what he can do at the final round in Mt Gambier.

Other standout results include
🏆 Mitch Burgemeister taking the win in KA3 Senior Light
🏆 Aaron Gray claiming victory in TAG Masters, significantly closing the gap to championship leader Mat Williams
🏆 Abel Dutton was once again dominant in KA3 Junior Light. Unfortunately for Abel it wasn’t enough to stay in championship running.
1️⃣ Scarlett Pittam, the talented young lady successfully wrapped up the championship one round early and is the 2026 Festival State Cup Champion.

Of course a congratulations also to all the other class winners and everyone who raced over the weekend. Round 4 was definitely another great event at SGKC
The next and final round of the Festival State Cup Series heads south of the state to Mt Gambier on September 19 and 20.

Before then, we'll be back at Southern Go Kart Club for the City of Adelaide Titles. More than 50 years this event has been running and now expanded back into a two day event. It’s ready and set to bring even more action and drama in 2026. I'll see you all there in a few weeks, so get those entries in! 👊

The 2nd Silver City Titles is done for another year what a weekend it was in Broken Hill.

What a difference having it in a different season makes. Last year's event was held in the November heat, but this year's weather couldn't have been much better. It made for a brilliant weekend of racing and helped produce the biggest event the Broken Hill Kart Club has ever hosted, with an incredible 67 entries.

A huge congratulations to all of our 2026 Silver City Title winners:
🏆 Cadet 9: Henry Dohnt (2nd Silver City Title)�🏆 Cadet 12: Chet Jones (2nd Silver City Title)�🏆 KA3 Junior Heavy: Jimmy Swatton (2nd Silver City Title)�🏆 KA3 Junior Light: Jobe Forster�🏆 KA3 Senior: Adam Slattery�🏆 4SS Senior: Jamie McCarron�🏆 TAG Restricted Light: Adam Slattery�🏆 TAG Restricted Medium: Brendan Guerin

The standout performance of the weekend belongs to Adam Slattery, he completed an impressive double by taking victory in both KA3 Senior and TAG Restricted Light.

One thing that continues to impress me about this club is how much they give back to their community. Last year they raffled off $2,500, but this year they doubled it to an incredible $5,000. It's a fantastic initiative and something everyone at the club should be proud of.

There were also a few heart stopping moments across the weekend. Jenna Hiskins was unfortunately unable to defend her Silver City Title. A scary accident that saw her kart sitting at around 75 degrees in the air before coming back down onto all four wheels took her out of contention. Thankfully she walked away unharmed. There were several other heavy incidents over the weekend that kept plenty of crews busy behind the scenes. Massive credit to everyone that managed to get karts back on track.

A thank you and well done to everyone at the Broken Hill Kart Club for once again putting together such a great event. From the volunteers and officials to the drivers, mechanics and supporters, everyone played their part in making the weekend another success.
I can't wait to be back for the 3rd Silver City Titles next year!

This weekend you'll find me at Southern Go Kart Club for Round 4 of the Festival State Cup Series. I'll even have a cheeky co commentator joining me on Sunday, so keep an eye out over the coming weeks because there'll be more news on that soon! 👀

🏁 Been a busy few weeks behind the microphone! 🎤

The biggest event was undoubtedly the 2026 South Australian State Titles at Glenburnie Kartway, hosted by the Mount Gambier Kart Club. Firstly, a huge congratulations to the club, officials and volunteers. State Titles are no small task.

⬛️ Abel Dutton was the headline act, taking home not one but two Black Plates in KA3 Junior Light and KA3 Junior. Not a bad day's work! Fighting back Pittam in the Lights and a full field of potential winners in Heavies. He showed his worth this weekend!

⬛️ Aston Tuckett produced what was, in my opinion, the move of the weekend. Cadet 12 qualifying had already shown how close the class was, with the top three separated by just 0.069 seconds and Ethan Wallis claiming pole by only 0.031. The final delivered exactly what we hoped for. Aston and Max King broke clear of the field before a small mistake from Max opened the door. Aston needed no second invitation, making a brilliant move around the outside on the final lap and racing to the line for victory.

⬛ Henry Dohnt in the Cadet 9 had a great battle all weekend against Hayden Sharp, with both drivers in the fight for the Black Plate. Sharp had some tough luck with a missing chain guard costing a win and a carby issue leaving him sidelined in heat 3. In the end it was Henry Dohnt who came out on top after a strong final to claim his first ever Black Plate.

⬛️ Shane Moreland defended home soil in Tag Restricted Light. It was great to see him back racing, but if I'm being picky, I would've liked to see someone make him work a little harder for it!

⬛️ Noah Enright overcame a very different challenge to most. Away from his usual environment, without family trackside and without his normal setup around him, he relied heavily on the people around him throughout the weekend. With his kart transported by Chapman and plenty of phone calls back to Adelaide for advice and guidance, it was a true team effort. Despite all that, nothing was stopping him from claiming the Tag Light Black Plate.

⬛️ Robbie Turmine finally broke through for a Black Plate after years of trying different combinations and chasing the dream. Sometimes things just click, and for Robbie, this was that day.

⬛️ Troy Moreland completed one of the stories of the weekend in KA3 Senior Light. The racing in that class was absolutely wild. You could make an argument for almost anyone in the field being capable of winning, but while everyone else was battling amongst themselves, Troy put himself in the perfect position and delivered when it mattered most, also retaining his Black Plate for another year is succession!

Before Mount Gambier, I was also at the Rocky Gully Showdown at the Go Kart Club of SA. The 4SS standing starts were worth the trip alone! Tim Murphy nearly wheelied down the straight on race start and Lightning Luna put together a brilliant weekend on his way to his first karting grand slam 🏆

I also made my way to Collingrove for the Collingrove Hillclimb Trophy. One thing I'm loving about Hillclimbs is the variety. An extra Torana on the entry list is always going to make me smile, but seeing everything from a Mercedes AMG C45 to a US Legend Car attack the hill was fantastic. Fun fact, Legend Cars were originally designed so they could fit in the tray of a Ford F-150, allowing drivers to throw a few tools in the back seat and go racing without needing a truck and trailer. Simple and practical

One request... can we get some non-slip mats near the Mt Gambier canteen? 😅 I absolutely stacked it while running to grab a drink and my shoulder and leg are still sore a few days later. Apparently 26 is old now.

📅 Since we’re now into July, here’s what’s ahead over the next few weeks. Sunday the 5th I’m back up at Collingrove once again to enjoy the sights and sounds of the Hillclimb. The following weekend I head out to Broken Hill for their second running of the Silver City Titles. The week after that is the states top series, Festival State Cup at Southern Go Kart Club. To round it out, I’m back up at Collingrove Hillclimb for a second time in the month.
Already looking fully booked right through until the start of October. Busy year ahead! 🏁

🏁 53rd Victorian North West Titles at Mildura Kart Club.

Thankfully there was no repeat of the "monsoon" conditions from 12 months ago, with Mildura turning on a beautiful weekend of weather for one of the best events on the calendar.

The racing was hard fought throughout the weekend, with one of the biggest moments coming in the finals. Braden Clark looked one of the favourites all weekend, only for a heavy lock up into Turn 3 to leave him stranded in the gravel and out of contention.

Standout performers included:
🏆 Ash Mitchell�🏆 Scarlett Pittam�🏆 Abel Dutton�🏆 Louie Mathers�🏆 Jordan Butters
A personal standout for me was Mason Martin. Time and time again he found himself on the back foot throughout the weekend, but never stopped fighting. No matter the setback, he kept himself in the game and refused to give up. The final may not have gone exactly to plan, but his drive back through the field was nothing short of impressive.

Thanks to Mildura Kart Club and Lenzi Fresh Table Grapes for another fantastic event. Onto NW54!

On a sad note, the karting community lost one of its great voices this week with the passing of Matt Payne. A voice many of us grew up listening to and someone who gave so much to the sport.

May he commentate in peace forever. 🎙️❤️

Next up for me is the Rocky Gully Showdown at the Go Kart Club of SA. See you trackside.

🏁 Festival State Cup Series, Round 2
📍Whyalla Kart Club, Mt Young Raceway

Plenty of fun across the weekend from all angles, especially the night time entertainment! Also volunteers putting in work for two days does not go unnoticed nor untasted, thank you!

But on track there was some great racing throughout the classes, with really strong performances right across the fields of drivers in the Steel City.
As always a bit of on track conflict. But that’s racing. The egos, the battles, the moments, it is all part of what makes the sport so exciting.

💥 Special mention performances
- Walker’s once again going 1 and 2 in Restricted Tag, continuing their strong form 🥇🥈
- Calvin Broadbent pulling off some absolutely wicked overtakes, with a few Ricciardo style divebombs thrown in there
- Aidan Grigg continuing his domination in 4SS, but with Skinner and Stephens giving him a genuine challenge this round.
- Brandon Luna taking his first ever Festival State Cup win, unsurprisingly he was excited with it as I heard him scream with excitement over the line!
- Ethan Wallis taking it right up to Max King in Cadet 12 all weekend, a great battle to watch 👊

Another strong round of the Festival State Cup with plenty to take out of it for the drivers. I’m sure there will be more action and drama to come from the FSC Series.

🗓️ Next event for me lands on Mother’s Day… keep yourself interested on that one 🤫🤐

(Anthony Polverino P2, thanks for letting me hold your trophy for the photo)

Official announcement

Due to the current costs of fuel in Australia I’ve had to downgrade my audio equipment for all future commentary gigs.

It’s an unfortunate, but ultimately final decision until further notice.

A great day here at Monarto, Go Kart Club of SA for the Club Championship.

While the sun delivered, the morning didn’t. Cool foggy conditions made for slippery conditions early on, keeping drivers on their toes for the first sessions.

Across the day, racing stayed impressively clean. Drivers largely kept to themselves, which did lead to some spread-out racing, but the quality never dropped. And it was an absolute treat to hear the KZ shifter karts back out on track again.

A big congratulations to all of today’s winners.
A standout mention goes to Abel Dutton, kicking off his 26’ campaign in style as the defending club champion and carrying that momentum straight into the new year.

Heartbreak, for Henry McPhail, whose transponder came off during Heat 3 while charging through the field in what looked set to be a brilliant comeback result.

And how about ANOTHER DRAG RACE FINISH!
Just 0.027 seconds split H.McPhail and C.Hartley in the final. That makes it four races in the span of seven days finishing within 0.075 seconds. Absolutely insane consistency at the line.

Next stop is Whyalla. Festival State Cup Round 2 on April 25–26.

Round 2 of the Southern Go Kart Club Championship done and dusted, and what a day it was.

Beautiful sunshine, massive fields, and drivers pushing the limits from the very first practice session. Plenty of karts getting picked up early on which only means one thing, everyone was sending it.

The racing today was insane to call. KA3 Junior Lights and Heavies kicked things off with chaos, four drivers out in a single incident! From there the day just kept building with some incredible performances.

Max King doing what Max King does best, winning. Simple as that.

Ben Press in the KZ was something special to watch as well. That screaming gearbox engine is pure motorsport music. Alongside him, Noah Enright and Sam Miettunen were banging gears all day putting on an awesome show.

KA3 was also unbelievable, with Abel Dutton in unstoppable form. When he’s on like that, there’s not much anyone can do.

But then came the finish…

DRAG RACE!
DRAG RACE!
DRAGGGGG RACE!

And not just one — THREE of them!

Abel Dutton vs Remy Bowyer separated by just 0.053 seconds.

Matt Brown vs Tyler Craig in an unbelievable run to the line. Brown sending it from behind out of the final corner to steal the win by 0.023 seconds.

And huge respect to Brandon Luna as well, throwing everything at it but finishing just 0.072 seconds behind the great, Aidan Grigg.

Was today even real? Because that was some of the best racing I’ve ever seen.

Massive respect to every driver out there today. I loved every second of calling it.

Bring on Round 3.