Donnelly dominates 2025 Keilor Invitational – Report
Australian 4WD National Champion Lachlan Donnelly has won an action-packed 2025 Keilor Invitational. The Reedy Race of Champions-style event, now in its 9th year, brings together the top ten Modified and Stock-class off-road racers from across Australia to battle it out on the unique oiled surface of Keilor Electric Offroad RC Association in Melbourne. competitors battle it out in 5 heads-up races over two days in each of 2WD and 4WD, with only one dropped result from each class. Donnelly headlined a Modified Invite field that featured 9 of the top 10 ranked drivers in the country, driving his Team Associated buggies to the win off the back of a dominant 4wd performance. Team-mates Lachlan Munday and Jordan Isergin rounded out the podium, with Munday earlier leading at the half-way mark after 2wd was completed. It was a powerhouse performance from Donnelly, travelling to the Invitational from Sydney’s Hills Offroad RC where he will next month tackle the IFMAR Worlds Warmup event. The 2025 win marked a defence of his first Keilor Invitational victory in 2024.
Justin O’Connell made it two-from-two for Team Associated, leading young Sydney driver Lachlan Williams and Melbourne’s Andrew Selvaggi to an AE podium sweep. Selvaggi led the field through 2WD, before O’Connell put together a dream run in Sunday’s five 4wd races to finish over the top of his rivals. An emotional O’Connell named it a bucket-list win, having been ”wanting this one for years.”. In the parallel open class event, Melbourne’s Nathan Healy dominated both modified classes to win an invitation to the 10th Anniversary 2026 Invitation, with Gary Carvajal (2WD) and Seb Kounelis (4WD) winning the Stock classes. Attention now turns to the IFMAR Pre-Worlds Warmup event at Hills RC in Sydney from April 4th, where Donnelly, Munday and Isergen will join the cream of Australia’s off-road talent and a strong international contingent to continue the build-up to the 2025 IFMAR World Championships later this year.
Report by Scott Guyatt, Action RC
