Top Qualifier, Tough Exit: Zappia’s Battle to Round 2 Finish at the Winternationals
- Zappia Racing
- 4 days ago
- 6 min read
WILLOWBANK, QLD — June 5–8, 2025
If there’s one event that defines Australian drag racing, it’s the Winternationals. The atmosphere. The crowd. It’s our Big Go.
Willowbank doesn’t hand out history — it demands it. Records fall, titles swing, and reputations are built wide open under full throttle.
No one knows this better than John Zappia.
He’s stood on top here before. He’s also been knocked flat — like in 2009, when he demolished the wall during a Doorslammer final at this very track. That car should’ve been junked. Instead, it was rebuilt.
And now, sixteen years later, that same Monaro is back as the MAX Plant Monaro.
This was also the first shot for Brodie at the Winternationals. And sharing a pit with his uncle—arguably the most decorated Doorslammer driver in Australian history.
The 2025 edition of the Winternationals delivered the biggest Top Doorslammer field in recent memory—17 cars deep. A return to traditional eliminations meant the pressure was real. Every run counted. No second chances.
Qualifying
On Friday afternoon, John Zappia fired the opening shot. In Q1, the Dananni Hotshots / FUCHS Monaro laid down a 5.674 at 251mph to claim the top spot. It would stand through both sessions, earning him the Crow Cams No.1 Qualifier Award.
“We came into the event with the same tune-up from Sydney,” John said. “We barely touched it between runs. The car was happy, and it showed. That first pass just went straight and clean, and we knew we had something to work with for the rest of the weekend.”
Brodie, making his first-ever pass at Willowbank in a Doorslammer, rolled out a tidy 5.848 at 245mph in Q1.
“We’d just put in a Noonan engine package that Uncle John had run as quick as 5.601 with,” Brodie explained. “It had slightly different heads, a new cam setup, and we were also testing a fresh injector hat to try and pick up some extra performance. The car felt strong off the line and I knew we had room to improve.”
Q2 wasn’t as smooth. John backed up his run with a 5.703 in the warmer conditions, while Brodie dropped a cylinder early and fell back to a 5.912.
“It was only running on seven cylinders for most of the run,” Brodie said. “We got back to the pits and found that the mag caps were completely burnt out—one had even fallen off the front of the mag, which meant it was cross-firing the entire way down. Once we found the issue, we swapped the mag cap out and got things cleaned up for Round One.”
Round One
On Saturday afternoon, John opened eliminations with a bang: a 5.660 at 253mph over Mick Mahoney, the quickest run of the round.
“The air got cooler, humidity dropped a little, and we added just a bit more to the tune-up,” John said. “The car responded exactly how we’d hoped. It was a solid pass, straight down broadway.”
Brodie faced up against Russ Pavey in his match up, the win coming at a cost.
“We put a bit more into the startline tune-up to improve the 60-foot,” Brodie said. “It carried the wheels, came down, shifted, picked them back up again—it was bouncing the front wheels all the way down. It felt good until about 1200 feet when the number six conrod let go and punched out the side of the block. That was the end of that motor for the event.”
That kicked off a Saturday night thrash. The team swapped out the wounded Noonan for their older TFX combo. But another issue cropped up.
“We also found that the trans brake solenoid on the Ty-Drive had failed,” Brodie said. “Nobody in the pits had a spare—and we didn’t either. After a bit of digging, we worked out we could modify a Powerglide transbrake solenoid to fit. We spent the whole night pulling things apart, machining bolts, and making it work. It was leaking a bit, but we filled the air bottle to the top and it held well enough to race.”
Round Two
Moving on to Sunday, John faced Rob Harrington. But just as he got on the two-step, the car lurched forward.
“As I went into stage and got on the two-step, the converter dragged me forward and I red-lit before the tree even activated,” John said. “The car launched with the best hit we’d had all weekend, I knew I’d red lit, so I lifted and saved the parts. It was a missed opportunity for sure, but sometimes that’s how this game goes. I’m working on a fix for this, so we don’t have a repeat of the situation in Darwin.”
Meanwhile, Brodie met up against Ronnie Palumbo. The MAX Plant Monaro ran 5.868 at 241mph—but Palumbo dropped a 5.73, leaving the rookie trailing by a car length at the stripe.
“We had nearly identical reaction times, but he just had more power and drove out of my life,” Brodie said. “This car has been protesting all season—no matter what we’ve changed, we haven’t really found the ET gains we’re looking for, outside of that good weekend in Sydney (Nitro Champs). Still, I made it to Sunday at my first Winternationals—eight other cars didn’t. That’s a win in my book, and I’ll take it.”
When asked about racing a Doorslammer at Willowbank for the first time, Brodie was candid.
“Everyone talks about the braking area sloping away, but honestly, I couldn’t feel it at the speed we travel,” Brodie said. “The turnoffs were the trickier part. In a right-hand drive car, turning left, you can’t always see where the grass ends. In the left lane, it just looks like you’re driving straight into a wall. I had to stop mid-turn a couple of times to make sure I wasn’t about to hit something. But overall, the track prep was solid and the surface was really good.”
John Zappia proudly welcomed Lovells Springs onboard during the event.
“Lovells been around since the 1930s and they’re Aussie-made through and through,” John said. “I want to extend a big thanks to Mike Davison and the Lovells crew for jumping on board. We’re proud to represent a company built on engineering excellence and Aussie-made toughness. Their springs and suspension components are sold all over the world, and are some of the finest quality you’ll ever find.”
John and Brodie Zappia wish to say a heartfelt thanks to their naming rights, major and associate partners who have kept the two-car team on the championship hunt this season.“From Fuchs Lubricants Australasia, Dananni Hotshots, Max Plant, Summit Racing Equipment, Crow Cams and all our associate partners - we couldn’t do this without you. There are so many people and companies behind the scenes who contribute to the success we enjoy, and the performance we’re able to extract from these Zappia Racing Monaros - we’re grateful for all the support,” John and Brodie said.
In the Top Doorslammer points chase, John Zappia remains in third overall, closing the gap on Lisa Gregorini in second. Brodie sits fourth, continuing an impressive rookie campaign.
The final round of the 2025 NDRC Top Doorslammer Championship will take place at Hidden Valley Raceway in Darwin, August 29–30.
Zappia Racing Results Recap — 2025 Winternationals
Willowbank Raceway, QLD
Qualifying:
John Zappia — 1st — 5.674 at 251mph
Brodie Zappia — 11th — 5.848 at 245mph
Round One:
John Zappia — WIN — 5.660 at 253mph
Brodie Zappia — WIN — 5.864 at 232mph
Round Two:
John Zappia — RED LIGHT — NTR
Brodie Zappia — LOSS — 5.868 at 241mph
Firstly, we thank Zotti Motorsport Media for our photos and videos at the Winternationals and Velocity Sports Design for our commentary, press releases and fan engagement.
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