Nowlan & Pickering claim Australian Postie Bike GP crown

2023 Australian Postie Bike GP

With Peter Baker

Brody Nowlan and Josh Pickering have now won half of the Australian Postie Bike Grand Prix events that have been staged after winning for a fourth time when the Cessnock Mitsubishi backed 2023 event took place around the rain-soaked streets of Cessnock on Sunday, November 5.

Rain added to the challenge of the 2023 Australian Postie Bike GP - Image by Gears and Wheels Photography — Rain added to the challenge of the 2023 Australian Postie Bike GP – Image by Gears and Wheels Photography

Nowlan set the fastest time in qualifying and from a front row start in their heat, along with partner Pickering, the pair recorded a decisive win finishing over one minute ahead of 2014 and 2015 winners Luke Richards and Marty McNamara, to lock in another front row start for the 90 minutes plus one lap Grand Prix race.

They became an even hotter favourite when defending champions Daniel Wicks and Boyd Hollis were hit with penalties after mistakenly using illegal tyres in their heat. Wicks and Hollis were then relegated to the last qualifying berth in the Grand Prix race, right at the back of the 36-bike field and they carried a 30 second penalty in to boot.

Daniel Wicks – 2023 Australian Postie Bike GP – Image by Gears and Wheels Photography

That decision set the stage for a most dramatic contest as Wicks and Hollis worked their way through the field to challenge Nowlan and Pickering, but their task was made even harder when Hollis incurred a further 30 second penalty for overtaking under a yellow flag.

With just a few laps remaining Hollis put the defending champions bike in the lead on the track, but ultimately not by enough time to erase the penalties incurred, meaning they were relegated to third place overall as Isaac Hawes and Caleb Clifton claimed second place for the second year in a row.

Despite the wet conditions there were surprisingly few accidents as the mixture of big name performers from various disciplines of the sport did battle against plenty of weekend racers, some of them no doubt fulfilling a ‘bucket list’ event.

Brody Nowlan & Josh Pickering – 2023 Australian Postie Bike GP – Image by Gears and Wheels Photography

The SMW Drilling Services Cessnock Cup Consolation Race was won by young dirt track guns Cody Lewis and Brayden Gay, while Ainsley Childs became the first dual winner of the SMW Drilling Services Wine Country Cup Ladies Race.