After a dream return to the Honda Cup last month, Tauranga’s Ryan MacArtney is determined to build on his success at round two in Taupo next weekend.

“It’s a bit more of a technical track but now that I’ve got winning in my system, I’m even more determined,” says mechanic Ryan, who won one of three races in the 2000cc class and came third in the other two from handicapped starts.

Ryan MacArtney is determined to keep on top of his class in the Honda Cup despite finishing the first round with a blown engine. Photo by Tracy Hardy.

“I was just amped, I couldn’t believe it,” he says of his stellar start to the season which included setting the fastest lap time of the weekend, finishing top of his class and second overall.

But Ryan, who races a 1996 Honda Civic powered by a 177kW engine sponsored by Fulton Automotive, didn’t have it all his own way, with the car losing power just before it crossed the finish line in his final race after blowing up from a dropped valve.

“It was pretty stuffed, so we’ve had to rebuild it,” he says. “Hopefully it’s going to be even faster now.”

Ryan’s ‘manager’ and mum Kris MacArtney is hoping his top performance will attract interest from sponsors after exhausting their season’s budget.

“We are truly on the hunt for sponsors now. We are down, but we aren’t out,” she says.

Anyone interested in helping out should contact Ryan or Kris at Fulton Automotive on 575 9525 or email fultonautomotive@xtra.co.nz