Borland Racing Developments Team National Formula Ford Review 2016
Jayden Ojeda flew the flag for the Borland Racing Developments team in the Australian Formula Ford Series, achieving some top-notch results highlighted by five front-row starting positions, including two pole positions, from the six rounds of the series.
Ojeda won a race in the opening round of the series at Sandown, and blitzed the field in tricky conditions at Wakefield Park to score another victory.
Another highlight of Ojeda’s season was breaking the lap record at Winton Raceway, and he ultimately finished fourth in the standings.
Adrian Lazzaro finished the season fifth in his privately-run Spectrum 011, the car that won the 2006 title in the hands of John Martin. It was a fine effort from Lazzaro in one of the older Duratec cars in the field.
Driving for Synergy Motorsport, Andrew Kahl chalked up four second-place race finishes in his Spectrum, while long-time Spectrum supporter Paul Zsidy also drove in all six rounds of the series.
“For Paul, Formula Ford is a good, cheap, fun way to go motor-racing,” Mike Borland said.
“It also gives him valuable knowledge on car setup and it shows that Formula Ford doesn’t always just have to be about the young drivers – anyone can get in and have a go.
Borland Racing Developments has earned a reputation for being not only one of Australia’s largest exporters of racing cars, but also one of the most successful. This reputation was strengthened throughout 2016.
The Exclusive Autosport team runs Spectrum vehicles in the USF1600 and Canadian Formula Tour 1600 championships, and driver Trenton Estep was victorious in the 2016 Formula Tour 1600 series. His season consisted of victories in 12 of the 17 races, including the two support races at the Canadian Formula 1 Grand Prix.
The Borland outfit is also in the final stages of development for the next generation Spectrum chassis – the 015 – which will be raced by Jayden Ojeda and Nic Carroll in the 2017 Formula Ford Series.
“We’ve worked on making the car more aero-efficient and reducing the effect of the slipstream for the cars behind,” Borland said. “We’ve also been doing a lot of work with the Penske shocks to fine-tune the handling.”
The Borland outfit has also been involved in building the Sabre Formula Vee chassis for a number of years and it dominated the Victorian Formula Vee Championship in 2016, occupying the top seven positions in the standings. James Dean won the series ahead of Matt Holmes and Blaine Grills.
Along with the continued national and international racing programs, Borland will again foster some of the brightest young talents from the karting scene, with Liam McLellan and Ben D’Alia set to compete in state and national-level events in 2017, enhancing Borland’s reputation as a pathway for Australian racing pedigree.
