Gains for local contingent in Supercup opener

Evans, Mawson, Grove and Cini with solid international campaign start

THE FOUR antipodean drivers contesting the opening round of the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup were each able to improve on their starting positions in the first race of the 10-round championship, held at the Catalunya circuit in Spain on Sunday. 

In a race dominated from lights-to-flag by Porsche Junior, Frenchman Julien Andlauer, Jaxon Evans improved two spots from his starting position to finish eighth on his Supercup debut.

Joey Mawson ran as high as 10th but ultimately finished one spot further back in the first of three Team Australia entries, another to improve two spots from his starting positions.

In Pro-Am, Stephen Grove and Marc Cini finished 4th and 5th respectively, each improving one spot from their grid positions.

The 14-lap race was dominated by Andlauer, who started from pole and led every lap en route to victory.

Evans’ made an impressive start and climbed to spots on the opening lap, gaining another position to run seventh a lap later when Dylan Periera struck dramas.

In a close battle pack headed by Tio Ellinas, Evans lost seventh to Al Faisal Al Zubair a lap later to settle into eighth.

A one-lap Safety Car mid-race saw little change in the order with Evans running in close company with Al Zibair to the line to finish first of the three entries from Fach Auto Tech – jumping teammate Florian Latorre who had qualified one spot in front of Evans on Saturday.

Starting 13th, Mawson was another big mover before the lap five Safety Car, running 11th when the race was briefly paused. He gained one spot on the restart, however was soon re-passed and finished just behind fellow Supercup rookie, Max van Splunteren.

In the ProAm battle, consistent races from Grove and Cini saw them each improve on their starting positions.

Grove immediately climbed to 23rd and remained their for the duration, while Cini spent some time behind his teammate mid-race before ultimately dropping to finish 25th after 14-laps.

They finished fourth and fifth in ProAm, respectively, to kickstart their season with a strong haul of points.

The next round of the Porsche Supercup will feature at the iconic Monaco Grand Prix in Monte Carlo on May 23-24.

Jaxon Evans, however, will race once again next weekend with the second round of Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland to be staged at the Autodrom Most in the Czech Republic.

With the opening round of the German championship held one week ago, it will make for a stretch of four-straight rounds for the reigning Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia Champion.

‘Team Australia’ set for Supercup opener

Jaxon Evans, Stephen Grove, Marc Cini and Joey Mawson prepare for Barcelona

FOUR local drivers and ambassadors of the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia will make the step into full-time international competition this weekend, when the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup commences in Spain. 

Drivers hailing from both the local Professional and TAG Heuer Pro-Am categories will take on the pinnacle of Porsche’s one-make competition this weekend (10-12 May), at the Catalunya circuit near Barcelona.

Reigning Carrera Cup Australia champion Jaxon Evans will commence his debut Supercup campaign as an official Porsche junior driver, looking to follow in the footsteps of close friend and fellow champion Matt Campbell as he climbs the ‘Porsche Pyramid’ of Motorsport.

The 22-year-old is fresh from the opening round of Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland at Hockenheim last weekend, where he stood on the podium in both races.

Meanwhile, 2018 Carrera Cup Australia TAG Heuer Pro-Am champion Stephen Grove headlines a three-car team ‘Team Australia’ outfit that includes the local series’ most experienced driver, Marc Cini, and Aussie young-gun Joey Mawson.

Grove and Cini will contest the Pro-Am category, while Mawson makes the switch from open-wheel racing for the first time this year following a successful stint in Formula 3 and GP3.

The trio will proudly fly the Australian flag on each of their cars thanks to a bold livery and Aussie branding shared across the three-car team.

Evans’ Supercup debut will come with FACH Auto Tech, the same team that helped Matt Campbell to four victories and third in the championship two years ago.

An opportunity to work with his new team owner and engineer last weekend proved positive ahead of the Supercup opener.

“Working with the Project 1 – JBR team, I was also able to work alongside my Supercup team owner and engineer Alex Fach,” Evans said.

Jaxon Evans.

“It was good to build our relationship as we launch an assault on the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup this coming weekend.

“Overall, It was a fantastic weekend and a very positive start to my campaign in Europe. It didn’t exceed my expectations but it was a relief to begin with two trips to the podium.”

Cini contested the first two rounds of the 2019 Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia, while Mawson raced at Albert Park to gain experience ahead of his Supercup debut.

Meanwhile, Grove won TAG Heuer Pro-Am at Phillip Island recently prior to heading to Europe for the official Supercup pre-season test in Spain.

“After going to Catalunya and doing the test a couple of weeks ago, there’s no doubt it’s going to be a very competitive season in Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup,” he said.

Stephen Grove.

“There are eight Pro-Am drivers in the field, so to try and get on the podium in class would be a goal I would like to set. Most of the others have been to Catalunya on many occasions, but for me, I haven’t done a lot of laps there. It’s a technical track, so I just need to make sure I push hard, get a good start — it’s about getting every aspect together.”

Following the opening round in Monaco, the Supercup tour heads to Monte Carlo for the famous Monaco Grand Prix. Grove raced their last year and said he is looking forward to returning to the principality along several other notable stops on the calendar.

“Monaco is a real highlight on the calendar with the glitz, the glamour, and all the history; it was a great event last year. Monza I’m also looking forward to and I’m pretty excited about Mexico and Silverstone.

“They’re a couple of tracks which are going to be great, so it should be an awesome season.”

With 156 rounds of experience in Porsche Carrera Cup Australia between them, Cini and Grove take extensive experience into the Supercup opener.

Marc Cini.

Though this year marks the first time each driver will have contested the full Supercup championship, both also have significant international one-make and endurance racing experience on which to draw.

Cini’s overseas experience includes two starts at LeMans, competing in a joint field of Carrera Cup cars from France, the UK and the Benelux region.

His last start at the home of the famous 24-hour race was in 2017 and came against a 61-strong field, where he was running a strong 33^rd before being taken out by another competitor.

Grove has also started the LeMans Carrera Cup spectacular, as well as significant long-distance racing experience that included tackling the FIA GT Nations Cup, with son Brenton, in Bahrain last year.

23-year-old Mawson makes the shift from open wheel racing, having been a podium finisher in last year’s GP3 series that races on the Formula One program.

Joey Mawson.

Prior to stepping up to GP3, the 23-year-old from Sydney was a race winner in European Formula 3 racing.

All four Aussie representatives completed the official pre-season test at the circuit in April, Evans and Mawson both comfortably inside the top-10 outright, while Cini and Grove proved competitive amidst the Pro-Am competition.

The opening round of the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup series commences at 8:45pm Australian Eastern Time on Sunday, May 12, with Streaming coverage available via the Supercup official website; www.racecam.de.

Schedule: Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup (Catalunya, Spain)
All times Australian Eastern Time (AET).

Practice: Saturday, May 11 (2:45am – 3:30am)
Qualifying: Saturday, May 11 (9:25pm – 9:55pm)
Race: Sunday, May 12 (8:45pm – 9:20pm)

Podium for Evans in international one-make debut

Australian champion third on debut in Carrera Cup Germany

JAXON EVANS has commenced his international career by twice finishing on the podium in the opening round of Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland at the weekend.

Racing at the famous Hockenheim circuit for the first time, the 22-year-old Porsche Junior qualified third and second for the two races, respectively, before finishing third in each to commence his overseas campaign in style.

Race one was held in wet conditions on Saturday, with Evans taking advantage of a dryer line on his side of the grid to make a superb launch and jump to second by turn one.

However he was one of several drivers caught out by the greasy conditions and ran wide at the turn six hairpin on the opening lap, dropping to third.

Luca Rettenbacher then slipped by at the same place a lap later, Evans settling into fourth.

A crash on the start-finish straight saw the Safety Car called on the fourth lap with the field held under yellow for one lap.

Evans gained a spot on the restart, as Rettenbacher ran off the road at turn six while attempting a pass for second, while behind another incident saw the Safety Car called for a second time.

After the second, two-lap Safety Car period Evans restarted in third for the dash to the flag where he remained.

Unfortunately, Evans and fellow podium finisher Jap van Lagen were both excluded from the results post-race; Evans due to his car being fitted with a non-compliant part. The team has appealed the decision.

Regardless of the post-race decision, Evans said he was proud of his debut amidst the 31-car Carrera Cup Germany field – one that includes many of his Porsche Supercup rivals.

“To finish third at my debut race in the Carrera Cup is a super start to the season,” Evans said.

“I’m not really familiar with wet asphalt in Australia, so I found the first laps a bit tricky and I found myself in the run-off zone in lap one. But the track dried up quickly soon after.”

Held in much better conditions, Evans started the second race from the front row and challenged for the lead into turn one – though ultimately was pinched for room costing him momentum and second place in the process.

Settled into third, Evans pulled away from the cars behind to retain a comfortable margin on his way to his second podium appearance of the weekend.

“At first I was a bit disappointed that I could not defend second place. But the competition is high here, so third place feels good,” he said.

Evans attention will quickly turn to the opening round of the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup, to be held this weekend (May 10-12) at the Catalunya circuit in Spain alongside the Spanish Grand Prix.

The second round of Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland will be held the following week (May 17-19) at the Autodrom Most circuit in the Czech Republic.

Campbell wins Spa Francorchamps 6-hour World Endurance Championship race

MATT CAMPBELL claimed the LMGTE-AM victory in the penultimate round of the FIA World Endurance Championship Super Season at Spa Francorchamps, while Porsche claimed an early victory in the LMGTE Manufacturers title.

In chaotic conditions that included snow, Campbell – a Porsche Young Professional – teamed with Christian Reid and Riccardo Pera to win for Dempsey Proton Racing.

It was the third-straight win for Campbell in the WEC and the fifth of the current ‘Super Season’, that concludes with the LeMans 24 Hours in June.

The result lifts Campbell and Reid to fourth in the LMGTE-Am drivers standings, despite their earlier exclusion from the Fuji round in Japan earlier this year.

“I’ve never experienced a race like this before. Sun, rain and snow made it extremely difficult in terms of strategy,” Campbell said.

“The team did a particularly great job in the tricky tyre choice. And my two teammates Chris and Riccardo drove an almost flawless race. As was the often the case this season, that was the key to success.”

Porsche, meanwhile, built an unassailable lead in the Manufacturers championship to claim the title with a round to spare.

Euro campaign to commence for Jaxon Evans

Carrera Cup Germany season starts at Hockenheim

PORSCHE PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia champion Jaxon Evans international campaign commences this weekend with the opening round of Porsche Carrera Cup Germany, at Hockenheim.

Evans will dovetail his Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup campaign with a full attack on the German series, driving with Team Project 1 – JBR.

The outfit has contested one-make Porsche racing since forming in 1993 and has more than 20 titles to their credit.

Drivers have often used the German series as extra miles to compliment a campaign in the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup, with this year no different.

Key Supercup runners including Michael Ammermuller, Julien Andlauer and Dylan Pereira will join Evans in double duties this year, while 31 drivers are entered for the opening round this weekend.

The German Championship commences at the Hockenheim circuit this weekend on the same layout used by Formula One. Round two will see the series travel to the Autodrom Most circuit in the Czech Republic for the first time, before tackling the Red Bull Ring in Austria in early June.

Street circuit experience from Carrera Cup Australia will be put into practice when the series heads to the famous Norisring in Nürnberg, a round quickly followed by a trip to the Netherlands and the equally well-known Zandvoort circuit.

The run home includes races at the Nurburgring (on the shorter, ‘sprint’ layout) and a return visit to Hockenheim, before finishing in late September at the Sachsenring – the first time the circuit in Germany’s East has hosted the season finale’.

Between eight Carrera Cup Germany and nine Porsche Supercup rounds, Evans will contest 17 events across Europe this year.

The 22-year-old will link up with FACH Auto Tech for the opening round of his Supercup campaign at the Catalunya circuit near Barcelona just one week after the Hockenheim event.

The Supercup opener will also feature the debut of ‘Team Australia’ in competition for the first time, Marc Cini, Stephen Grove and Joey Mawson to join Evans’ on the grid.

Porsche Carrera Cup Germany races can be streamed live via the official website of that series and Supercup – www.racecam.de.

Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland – Round 1 Schedule:
(All times Australian Eastern Standard Time)

• Fri, May 03, 2019, 9:45 PM – 10:45 PM Practice
• Sat, May 04, 2019, 7:05 PM – 7:40 PM Qualifying
• Sat, May 04, 2019, 11:15 PM – 11:40 PM Race (Race 1)
• Sun, May 05, 2019, 7:30 PM – 8:00 PM Race (Race 2)

Evans, Mawson in the mix in Supercup test

Marc Cini and Stephen Grove also in action as international season kicks off

PORSCHE PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia stars have made a solid start to their respective Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup campaigns at the official series two-day test in Spain.

Reigning champion and Porsche junior Jaxon Evans – driving for FACH Auto Tech – was joined by Team Australia trio Joey Mawson, Stephen Grove and Marc Cini in the only official pre-season test, held at the Catalunya circuit near Barcelona.

Evans, who finished the test seventh fastest in the final session, and Mawson both lapped within a few tenths of the fastest time, while Grove and Cini proved competitive in the Pro-Am class throughout.

“It’s an interesting track,” Evans said.

“It’s fast and flowing but it also has some tight and twisty corners, so it’s a good mixture of both and it really tests you as a driver on track limits and how fast you can really carry some speeds.

“We made a lot of progress and learned with the team at FACH Auto Tech. The car looks fantastic and we are confident we are in a good place moving forward.”

FACH Auto Tech are the same team that former Porsche Junior and Australian champion Matt Campbell drove for throughout the 2017 season.

Mawson was an impressive sixth outright in the first testing session as the test opened and continued to show solid pace throughout the subsequent sessions.

With Evans seventh in the final session, Mawson was eighth – only 0.09s behind.

Turkish driver Ayhancan Güven set the fastest time of the test overall, lapping 0.2 seconds faster than the existing qualifying benchmark set by Michael Ammermüller last year.

Norwegian driver Roar Lindland topped the Pro-Am competition, Cini and Grove just outside the top three.

The opening round of the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup will be held at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona on 10-12 May.

Team Australia Supercup squad launches liveries

Colours shown for ambitious three-car Aussie attack on Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup

THE ALL-AUSSIE team that will contest the 2019 Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup season has launched the colours they will carry throughout their ambitious attack this year. 

Designed by Melbourne-based SS Media, the three-car team features a mixture of both Marc Cini and Stephen Grove’s Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia liveries, each car also sporting a bold Aussie flag on the bonnet and roof.

The Aussie TAG Heuer Pro-Am contenders will be joined by young-gun Joey Mawson, who transitions to tin-top racing after several years racing open wheelers.

Mawson made his Porsche debut in round two of Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia in Melbourne, impressing early before dramas in race one unfortunately cut his weekend short.

All three are currently in Barcelona for the stand-alone Supercup test at the Catalunya circuit, the scene of round one next month.

On day one of testing, Mawson was an impressive sixth outright despite his relative lack of experience, while Cini and Grove placed 4th and 5th in Pro-Am, respectively.

Reigning Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia Champion Jaxon Evans made his Supercup debut with FACH Autotech and placed 13th on day one of testing, only 1.3 seconds behind the fastest time.

The teams return to the Barcelona circuit this evening (Australian time) for a second full day of running prior to the opening round, at the same circuit, on May 10-12.

Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup testing – day 1 video

Love leads the way at Phillip Island as Sonic sweeps

Talbot takes TAG Heuer Pro-Am race win, Grove the round

A DOMINANT Jordan Love has completed his best ever weekend in the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia Championship, winning the third race at Phillip Island to complete a clean sweep of the weekend.

Liam Talbot won the TAG Heuer Pro-Am race, while Stephen Grove took the round to move into a tie for top spot in the all-time winners list.

Having already won the first two races on Saturday, Love led from pole position in Sunday’s 14-lap affair and immediately built a strong lead.

He then survived a race restart and pressure from teammate Dale Wood to take his fifth straight race victory, his second round win overall and lead a Sonic Motor Racing 1-2-3 result of the round three podium.

Championship leader Dale Wood and Michael Almond completed the round sweep for the Melbourne-based team, who have now won the last seven races straight in the championship; finishing 1-2 in six of them.

“It was a good weekend; it doesn’t get much better than that!” said Love, also the Porsche Michelin Junior class leader.

“A pole and three race wins: I can’t thank the team enough. As soon as we rolled the car out of the truck on the Friday it was absolutely mega, so can’t thank them enough and hopefully we can do the same thing in a months time up in Darwin.”

Love’s stunning weekend closes the margin to leader Wood in the championship to just 21 points ahead of the next round in Darwin, this June.

Dale Wood has now finished second in the last five races and retains the series lead, while Almond’s podium was his first since Tailem Bend last August.

Behind the Sonic sweep, Nick McBride finished fourth in race three and in the round, while David Wall rebounded from a challenging Saturday to finish fifth.

In a race filled with furious battling for a spot in the top five, Tomas Maxwell, Josh Hunt, Steve Richards, Cooper Murray and Duvashen Padayachee completed the top-10.

In the battle for TAG Heuer Pro-Am, Liam Talbot completed a strong rebound from his race one non-finish by taking his fourth race win of the season in race three.

The first-year Carrera Cup racer quickly worked his way to the front of the class and chased several Professional class contenders in the run to the flag.

Talbot also secured a spot on the podium, finishing second in Pro-Am for the round, behind Stephen Grove and in front of championship leader Anthony Gilbertson.

Grove’s round victory was his 13^th in the championship, the equal most of all-time in Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup’s pro-am class to tie him with Max Twigg.

The Melbourne driver, who will commence his first Porsche Supercup season next month, said this weekend ranked as one of his most challenging.

“That was a pretty sweet win, it was tough, and we had to fight all weekend,” Grove said.

“There was a lot of passing, I don’t think I’ve done that much passing for many years now. Everybody was on their game, so to come away as the winner was fantastic.”

Regular TAG Heuer Pro-Am contender Sam Shahin and Warren Luff were early non-finishers in Sunday’s race: Shahin squeezed onto the grass at turn four on the opening lap.

Luff was in his path as the out-of-control The Bend Motorsport Park car made contact with the Pro class contender, who has earlier been forced wide at turn three and was further down the field than expected.

That incident necessitated the sole Safety Car interruption of the weekend, lasting for just one lap as the cars were quickly recovered – Shahin under his own power.

After three rounds, Dale Wood’s outright championship lead has been reduced to 21 points thanks to Jordan Love’s streak of five race wins in a row.

Nick McBride climbs back to third in the standings, with David Wall fourth and Warren Luff fifth.

In TAG Heuer Pro-Am, Anthony Gilbertson retains the series lead following the first three rounds.

With Grove to miss several rounds on account of his Supercup commitments, his closest title challenger is now Liam Talbot who sits 38 points behind the McElrea Racing driver. Roger Lago sits a further 17 points further back in fourth with Sam Shahin fifth.

Following a busy start to the season, the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia Championship takes a well-earned break prior to the next round at Hidden Valley Raceway in Darwin, on June 12-14.

Love, Sonic sweep Phillip Island Saturday

Gilbertson and Grove share TAG Heuer Pro-Am honours

PORSCHE MICHELIN junior Jordan Love continued to establish his Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia championship credentials, dominating the opening two races in the third round of the 2019 championship at Phillip Island.

Meanwhile, Anthony Gilbertson and Stephen Grove shared the TAG Heuer Pro-Am honours, Gilbertson taking a commending win in the Enduro Cup opener while Grove took race two later in the day.

Starting from pole position for the first time, Love made a perfect start at the beginning of the 22-lap Endurance Cup opener and led teammate Dale Wood and Nick McBride into turn one.

He gradually built his margin over the race, ultimately taking a more than five-second victory to commence the long-distance portion of the championship in style with Wood and McBride behind.

He then completed the same process in race two, leading from lights to flag to take his fourth straight victory and narrow the gap to championship leader Dale Wood, who was second, to 27 points.

Michael Almond completed a 1-2-3 sweep for the Sonic team, who have now won the last six straight races.

“It was good, going into that one I knew we had to get a pretty good start, Dale is really hard to race against, so the plan was to try and get him off the start which we managed to do,” said Love after his dominant Enduro Cup race win.

“After that it was a focus on trying not to make a mistake and to stay smooth and consistent to try and keep the tyre under us which we managed to do, but yeah, it was good.”

Love’s second race win came despite pressure from his teammate as the pair spent a majority of the race in close company.

“He wasn’t really letting me go then, Dale was there the whole time and so was Almond,” Love said.

“But 1, 2, 3 for the team so huge credit to them, they’ve done a mega job all weekend and it’s been awesome. So huge credit to the team and we will try to do the same thing tomorrow, but I don’t think it’s going to come easily.”

Dale Wood continues to lead the championship, finishing second in each race on Saturday behind his young teammate.

Nick McBride and Michael Almond look set to battle for the final step on the round podium in Sunday’s final race, each grabbing one third and one fourth place across Saturday’s two races.

McBride was third in the Enduro Cup opener, withstanding sustained pressure from Almond for much of the second half of the race. Roles were then reversed in race two as Almond slipped by early to complete the Sonic sweep of the top three places, with McBride finishing fourth.

With the top four in each race set, there were intense battles for the minors in each race on Saturday.

Warren Luff and Cameron Hill had a lock of fifth and sixth position, respectively, in each race while Thomas Maxwell, David Wall, Cooper Murray and Josh Hunt filled the top-10 positions in race one. Murray, Wall, Maxwell and Steve Richards completed the 10 in the second race.

The battle for TAG Heuer Pro-Am honours saw two winners in the two races, Anthony Gilbertson striking first thanks to a commanding victory in the Endurance cup opener on Saturday morning.

The Hallmark Homes driver led all the way to beat home Sam Shahin and Stephen Grove.

Liam Talbot, who had qualified on pole, failed to make the start after his car suffered a driveline issue before taking to the track.

“The car was really good, a little light in the rear around Honda in the first sort of five laps or so but I dealt with it well and it came on really well in the second half of the race, the times were pretty consistent,” Gilbertson said.

“I don’t think we really need to touch it too much for the second race so we’ll just crack on.”

Unfortunately for the race one winner, his second race unraveled early when he was slow away from the line. While working his way through the field, he and teammate Tim Miles made contact at turn one – spearing both off the circuit at high speed.

Grove, Shahin and a recovering Talbot were the main beneficiaries, the three battling furiously for much of the race.

Grove grabbed the win while Talbot passed Shahin late to grab second having started last. Gilbertson recovered to eighth in class to salvage points for his championship lead.

“That was tough, to start a fair way back on the grid in race two, to get up to third and then push on to get a win, that was really special,” said Grove, who will commence his Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup campaign next month.

“It was really hard work the boys kept coming for me and pushing and pushing me so to get that win was quite sweet. It’s a tough track here, you need to be fairly committed, so it’s fantastic.”

The third and final race of the weekend will commence at 12:45 pm (local time) at the Phillip Island Grand Prix circuit, and will be shown live on FOX Sports 506 and Kayo Sports.

Race Schedule

Sunday April 14, 2019
12:45pm – Race 3 (14 laps)

Broadcast & Streaming Schedule (local time)
Race 3 – 12:45pm, Sunday April 14

Love, Talbot claim maiden pole awards

TAG Heuer qualifying produces first-time polesitters at Phillip Island

A pair of first-time TAG Heuer Pole Award winners have highlighted qualifying for the third round of the 2019 Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia Championship, today at Phillip Island.

Jordan Love stormed to the top late in the session to beat teammate Dale Wood to the outright pole for the first time, while Liam Talbot also saved his best to last in Qualifying to score his first TAG Heuer Pro-Am pole award.

Setting his fastest lap towards the end of the 20-minute session, Love’s 1m30.7789s best edged out teammate and championship leader Dale Wood by just 0.03 seconds to secure an all-Sonic front row.

It means the Porsche Michelin Junior driver, who currently sits second in the championship, will line-up alongside the series leader in race one on Saturday morning.

“I’m pretty chuffed with that, it feels like a long time coming,” Love said.

“It’s definitely one thing we were focusing on this year and certainly going into this weekend after the last two rounds.

“So yeah, pretty happy with that: now we’ve just got to try and get the rest of the job done across the next three races.”

Round 1 winner Nick McBride utilised a risky strategy on his way to qualifying third, electing to use just one set of tyres in qualifying in order to save a set for Saturday’s endurance championship opener.

The gamble paid off and the Porsche Centre Melbourne driver secured his spot on the second row, just 0.1s from pole and the only driver in the field to complete less than 10 laps in the session.

Warren Luff qualified fourth for McElrea Racing while Michael Almond and Tomas Maxwell ensured Sonic qualified all four of their cars in the top six today.

Michelin Junior Maxwell’s sixth-place comfortably eclipsed his previous best of 11^th, achieved in qualifying in each of the opening rounds this year.

Cameron Hill, David Wall, Cooper Murray and Josh Hunt completed the top-10.

The battle for TAG Heuer Pro-Am pole position went right down to the wire, with the top spot trading hands several times late in the session.

After Liam Talbot held a strong advantage early in the session, class leader Gilbertson charged to the top in the closing minutes – only to be beaten again by Talbot on his final flier.

It was the first TAG Heuer pole award for the Wall Racing driver, in just his third round competing in Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia.

“I’m stoked, that’s a lot of effort. It’s not easy to get a pole position out there and I couldn’t be happier,” Talbot said.

“It’s our first pole position in our third race meeting so yeah – I’m stoked!”

With Gilbertson on the front row in class for the third time from three rounds this year, Tim Miles and Roger Lago qualified third and fourth in class, respectively, with Sam Shahin and Adrian Flack next.

Action continues at the Phillip Island Grand Prix circuit on Saturday with the first race of round three doubling as the Endurance Championship opener.

The 24-lap race commences at 11:20am local time and will be quickly followed by Race 2 (14 Laps) at 2:40pm.

Both races will be shown live on FOX Sports 506 and Kayo Sports.

Race Schedule

Saturday April 13, 2019
11:20am – Race 1 (24 laps)
2:40pm – Race 2 (14 laps)
Sunday April 14, 2019
12:45pm – Race 3 (14 laps)

Broadcast & Streaming Schedule (local time)
Qualifying – 3:55pm, Friday April 12
Race 1 – 11:20am, Saturday April 13
Race 2 – 2:40pm, Saturday April 13
Race 3 – 12:45pm, Sunday April 14

Volante Rosso to support Tour de Cure at Phillip Island

New look for Sydney team at Phillip Island

Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia team Volante Rosso has teamed with ABC Bullion to lend its support to Tour de Cure at this weekend’s Phillip Island round.

The partnership aims to raise awareness and funding for Tour de Cure in their quest to beat cancer – starting the initiative with a sensational $100,000 donation to Tour de Cure.

ABC Bullion has joined Volante Rosso as the team’s major partner for the Phillip Island round. This includes a change to the livery to the #15 Carrera Cup entry of Josh Hunt, showcasing both ABC Bullion and Tour de Cure branding.

Hunt says the team is excited to be contributing to a worthy cause: “We are grateful to ABC Bullion for joining with us in our philanthropic approach to motorsport sponsorship. This is more than just creating branding opportunities, but about giving back to the wider community. Tour de Cure is a wonderful cause and we are pumped to be able to contribute in this way.”

The next round of Carrera Cup will be held at Phillip Island on April 12-14, 2019.

To donate to or get involved with Tour de Cure, head to their website: https://tourdecure.com.au/get-involved/make-a-donation/

Carrera Cup to commence endurance battle at Phillip Island

Phillip Island returns to three-race format

Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia will this weekend commence its 2019 Endurance Cup as the championship lines up for its 11th visit to the Philip Island Grand Prix Circuit.

Now in its third year, the Endurance Cup will consist of six endurance races across the final six rounds of the season, starting from this weekend’s third round at Phillip Island.

The round also marks a change of race format at the Phillip island venue; this weekend sees a return to the traditional three-race format for the first time since 2012. The 4.445km Victorian circuit was the scene of multiple two-driver Pro-Am events, while last season it played host to the Endurance Cup opener, which consisted of two 45-minute endurance races.

After a sensational start to the season, Dale Wood will look to continue his Phillip Island form, claiming victory in both endurance races at last season’s Phillip Island round. Then, to start the 2019 season, the former Supercars driver has claimed seven top-three race results from as many races, including two race wins, to sit atop of the 2019 standings.

Trailing Wood in the standings is his Sonic Motor Racing Services teammate and Michelin Junior points leader Jordan Love. The Melbourne-based West Australian enters Phillip Island having won the final race at Albert Park, securing Love victory in the Michelin Super Round. The honour will therefore see Love head to Germany to attend the FIA Formula E Berlin E-Prix in late May.

Wood and Love will also look to continue Sonic Motor Racing’s winning streak, with a potential five-straight race wins in the race one Endurance Cup opener to set a new winning record for the Melbourne-based squad.

Besides Wood, only one other driver lining up at Phillip Island has won a Carrera Cup race outright at the venue – Nick McBride during the 2017 Pro-Am event alongside Dylan Thomas.

TAG Heuer Pro-Am racer Stephen Grove experienced one of his Carrera Cup highlights at Phillip Island, claiming outright round victory in the 2014 Pro-Am event when teamed with now-Supercars Champion Scott McLaughlin. This event also marks Grove’s last before he commences his 2019 Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup campaign at the season opening race in Barcelona, Spain, on May 10-12.

Grove’s departure from the series on a full-time basis will ultimately benefit points leader and round one winner Anthony Gilbertson, who currently leads Grove by 39 points in the TAG Heuer Pro-Am standings.

Meanwhile, Liam Talbot and Roger Lago aim to spoil Grove’s full-time send off, both eager for a strong Phillip Island appearance sitting just 41 points shy of the class lead. Fifth place in class is Sam Shahin, who comes off a strong performance last weekend when taking a TAG Heuer Pro-Am clean sweep at the opening Michelin GT3 Cup challenge Australia round at Tasmania’s Symmons Plains Raceway.

Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia will commence round three with two practice sessions and qualifying on Friday before the first Endurance Cup race of the season on Saturday morning followed by a sprint race on both Saturday afternoon and Sunday.

All sessions from practice two from Phillip Island will be broadcast live on Fox Sports 506 and on streaming service Kayo.

Race Schedule
Friday April 12, 2019
10:25am – Practice 1 (25 minutes)
1:25pm – Practice 2 (25 minutes)
3:55pm – Qualifying (20 minutes)
Saturday April 13, 2019
11:20am – Race 1 (24 laps)
2:40pm – Race 2 (14 laps)
Sunday April 14, 2019
12:45pm – Race 3 (14 laps)

Broadcast & Streaming Schedule (local time)
Practice 2 – 1:25pm, Friday April 12
Qualifying – 3:55pm, Friday April 12
Race 1 – 11:20am, Saturday April 13
Race 2 – 2:40pm, Saturday April 13
Race 3 – 12:45pm, Sunday April 14

Entry List
1. #4 Stephen Grove (TAG Heuer Pro-Am) Grove Group
2. #5 Thomas Maxwell (Pro) Sonic/Hosepower
3. #6 Tim Miles (TAG Heuer Pro-Am) Garage 1
4. #7 Warren Luff (Pro) MEGA/No Second Chance
5. #8 Nick McBride (Pro) Porsche Centre Melbourne
6. #12 Steve Richards (Pro) O’Brien Electrical & Plumbing
7. #13 Sam Shahin (TAG Heuer Pro-Am) The Bend Motorsport Park/HTFU
8. #15 Josh Hunt (Pro) Lory Construction/Volante Rosso
9. #19 Anthony Gilbertson (TAG Heuer Pro-Am) Hallmark Homes
10. #20 Adrian Flack (TAG Heuer Pro-Am) Agas National
11. #22 Dean Cook (TAG Heuer Pro-Am) BMF
12. #23 Roger Lago (TAG Heuer Pro-Am) Lago Racing
13. #27 Liam Talbot (TAG Heuer Pro-Am) Wash It
14. #34 Duvashen Padayachee (Pro) Hyundai Forklifts Australia
15. #35 Indiran Padayachee (TAG Heuer Pro-Am) Hyundai Forklifts Australia
16. #36 Cooper Murrary (Pro) Lodge Brothers
17. #38 David Wall (Pro) PAYCE
18. #77 Michael Almond (Pro) Sonic/Bob Jane T-Marts/PSA Australia
19. #100 Dale Wood (Pro) Sonic/Polyflor
20. #111 Cameron Hill (Pro) Seears Workwear
21. #777 Jordan Love (Pro) Sonic/Bob Jane T-Marts/SRG

Porsche signs HUGO BOSS as official clothing partner

Global partnership reaches Australian race tracks

A global partnership between Porsche and HUGO BOSS will make its way to Australian race tracks for 2019.

The Metzingen-based fashion brand is now the official clothing partner of Porsche Motorsport and extends to both Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia and Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge Australia championships.

The new partnership is part of a global agreement between Porsche and HUGO BOSS, which will see HUGO BOSS equip the entire Porsche Motorsport team worldwide, from works racing teams through to Porsche one-make series, and includes outfitting the future Porsche Formula E team.

“As we grow the partnership portfolio of both Carrera Cup and GT3 Cup Challenge series in Australia, it’s great to welcome such a brand as HUGO BOSS to both championships,” said Porsche Cars Australia Motorsport Manager Troy Bundy.

“Both Porsche and HUGO BOSS are incredibly strong, premium brands and among the leaders in their respective industries. This comes at a perfect time when both Carrera Cup and GT3 Cup Challenge have strong grid sizes with incredible on track racing.”

Oliver Blume, Chairman of the Executive Board of Porsche AG, said: “Formula E is a highly attractive race series. It offers us the perfect environment to consistently further develop our vehicles in terms of efficiency and sustainability. We are looking forward to our debut in the series in the 2019/2020 season. The renowned fashion company HUGO BOSS is a perfect partner for us as the team outfitter.”

The brand partnership of the two companies also covers other areas away from motor sports. For example, the fashion house will offer a “Porsche x BOSS” collection on both the HUGO BOSS global online shop and, from August this year, in BOSS stores throughout Australia.

“HUGO BOSS and Porsche both stand for innovation and perfection,” says Mark Langer, CEO of HUGO BOSS. “We have already cooperated successfully in the area of motor sports over the course of recent years and decades. That is why I am delighted that our cooperation will now reach a new level with the future-oriented Formula E series.”

Evans confirms German series alongside Supercup campaign

Evans to contest Carrera Cup Deutschland

Porsche Junior Jaxon Evans will contest the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland championship in conjunction with his confirmed 2019 Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup campaign.

The move makes the reigning Carrera Cup Australia Champion one of many Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup title hopefuls who use the German Carrera Cup series as a source of additional experience for the top-tier Porsche one-make Cup. The German series also races at both Hockenheim (Germany) and Red Bull Ring (Austria), providing valuable experience to Evans when Supercup attends each track later in the season.

The announcement comes at the same time as Evans’ confirmation of joining Fach Auto Tech for the 2019 Supercup season. The Swiss squad was home to both New Zealander Earl Bamber and Australian Matt Campbell during their time in the top-tier Supercup series. Evans will then join Project 1 in Carrera Cup Deutschland in partnership with Fach Auto Tech.

“2019 is shaping up to be a very busy and exciting year as I embark on my first racing season in Europe. I really don’t think I could have placed myself in a better position,” said Evans. “Through the help of Alex Fach and Fach Auto Tech’s new partnership with Project 1, I am able to run both Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup and Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland in parallel programmes to fast-track the learning process and gain valuable track time.

“It’s an exciting opportunity to be racing under the Project 1 entry, the team has all the right tools and has achieved very strong results in previous years – something I aim to replicate. They are a large Porsche team running in multiple championships outside Carrera Cup Deutschland and currently lead the GTE-Am class in the FIA World Endurance Championship.

“Carrera Cup Deutschland is very similar to Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup in terms of competition. Many of the top drivers and teams compete in both championships, so it will be good to have that consistent comparison at each race weekend. With a total of 17 race weekends between the two championships, things will be very busy – a challenge in itself.”

Evans’ Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland season will commence on May 03-05 at Germany’s Hockenheimring one week ahead of the New Zealander’s Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup debut at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Spain on May 10-12.

Porsche launches first global virtual one-make cup

Porsche announces Porsche Esports Supercup

High performance online: Porsche is expanding its one-make motorsport series to include a virtual world championship, the ‘Porsche Esports Supercup’. The name ‘Supercup’ refers to the highest category of the one-make cup family and underscores the internationality and relevance of the online race series, the sports car manufacturer is organising with iRacing. The corresponding race series has provided the battleground for the best drivers of the 911 GT3 Cup for the past 25 years.

Forty sim racers, who have successfully made their way through the global qualifying process, will compete in series of ten online races – the first gets underway on April 13 on the virtual version of the Barber Motorsport Park in Alabama, USA. The final race will take place on September 28 at Monza, Italy. The championship offers a USD$100,000 prize pool.

“By adding an esports racing competition to our established series of one-make cups, we are extending our footprint in the world of motorsport and allowing sim racers to join the global Porsche Motorsport family,” said Fritz Enzinger, Head of Porsche Motorsport.

“With the Porsche Esports Supercup, we are launching a global championship that every serious sim racer will strive to win in his career. Only sim racers with a very high skill level have made it through the qualifying process. We are going to witness some very tight races,” said Marco Ujhasi, Manager Esports at Porsche Motorsport.

Shared honors of athletes
Porsche will also recognise the champion of the Porsche Esports Supercup at this year’s ‘Night of Champions’ gala, which honours the successes of the teams and drivers in motorsport. This makes Porsche the first major car manufacturer to recognise the achievements of virtual racers at the same event as their real-world racing peers.

“Porsche’s heart beats for motorsport. We can share this passion with a much broader audience through esports and create a unique community of esport fans and motorsport fans,” said Kjell Gruner, Vice President Marketing at Porsche.

Partnership with iRacing
For running the championship, Porsche has entered into a partnership with iRacing, a leading provider of realistic online racing simulations, which has been operating as an online subscription service since 2004. The race format is designed to force close competition at every stage of the season. All ten online events have a qualifying session, a sprint race and the main race.

Keen spectators can follow all ten rounds of the Porsche Esports Supercup live on YouTube (www.youtube.com/iracing-esports-network), on Facebook (www.facebook.com/iracing) and Twitch (www.twitch.tv/iracing).

Carrera Cup Champions continue IGTC success

Nick Foster wins California 8 Hours

Two races into the 2019 Intercontinental GT Challenge season and a former Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia Champions has stood on the top step of the podium on both occasions.

Carrera Cup Australia’s 2016 Champion Matt Campbell was the first to record a race victory in the five-round international endurance series with an impressive performance at the 2019 Bathurst 12 Hour alongside German Dirk Werner and Norwegian Dennis Olsen.

The trio failed to replicate this success at last weekend’s California 8 Hours race at Laguna Seca, USA, being forced to retire from the eight-hour race due to a defective gearshift component.

“It’s really frustrating when you don’t get the just desserts when things had looked so promising,” said Campbell. “But sometimes this is just how it goes in motorsport. The important thing is that we managed to show how strong we are in the new version of the Porsche 911 GT3 R in the Intercontinental GT Challenge. We want to win the next round in Spa.”

At the front of the field, it was Carrera Cup Australia’s 2015 Champion Nick Foster who shined alongside countryman Tim Slade and Miguel Molina for Taiwanese team, HubAuto.

“This is about as good as it gets, really,” said Foster. “It’s a massive credit to our engineering group and team for slowly chipping away through the week and putting together what they needed to do. Right from the word ‘go’ we focused on the race car and with that came a bit of qualifying performance – I think that’s what really set us up for the day as we were quite good in the cool conditions compared to everyone else. I think that really set up the race for us in terms of performance.”

Both Campbell and Foster sit equal second in the Intercontinental GT Challenge Driver Standings while Porsche sits second to Mercedes-Benz in the GT3 Manufacturers Standings.

The Intercontinental GT Challenge will next race at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium on July 25-28 for the 24 Hours of Spa endurance classic.

Campbell leads IGTC into California 8 Hours

Campbell continues Intercontinental GT Challenge campaign

After a perfect opening round to the Intercontinental GT Challenge season, Porsche aims to extend its championship lead at round two of the year in Laguna Seca, USA. At the Bathurst 12 Hour on the spectacular Mount Panorama racetrack, Australian ace Matt Campbell clinched a memorable victory alongside fellow Porsche Young Professional Dennis Olsen (Norway) and Porsche Works driver Dirk Werner (Germany).

Notching up the first win for Porsche at Bathurst, the trio not only gave a perfect maiden performance on the world stage with the customer team Earl Bamber Motorsport, but also a fitting farewell to the 2018-spec Porsche 911 GT3 R. After celebrating its race debut at Daytona (USA) in January, the new version of the over 500 hp GT3 vehicle will be fielded at the eight-hour race in Laguna Seca.

The U.S. Porsche customer squads Park Place Motorsports and Wright Motorsports each run a Porsche 911 GT3 R in the race on 30 March, with Campbell, Olsen and Werner to compete with the Wright Motorsports squad.

The race
Laguna Seca Raceway is famous for its legendary Corkscrew corner. In the tight passage on top of the hill, spectacular and memorable manoeuvres have been witnessed here in the past. The 3.601 kilometre racetrack features eleven corners. Per lap, competitors face an elevation change of 55 metres. Round two of the Intercontinental GT Challenge season runs over eight hours. Several highlights are included on the event schedule: In contrast to the season-opening round at Bathurst, all pilots allocated to each car must post a fast lap time in qualifying. Competitors have only one official free practice prior to the qualifying session.

The Porsche teams and drivers
Joining forces in the No. 912 vehicle run by Wright Motorsports are the Bathurst winners Dirk Werner, Matt Campbell and Dennis Olsen. Park Place Motorsports will also field a new Porsche 911 GT3 R. Sharing the cockpit of the No. 911 car are works drivers Romain Dumas (France) and Sven Müller (Germany) with Porsche Young Professional Mathieu Jaminet (France).

The Porsche 911 GT3 R
The Porsche 911 GT3 R was newly developed for the 2019 season. Improvements in the areas of aerodynamics, kinematics, efficiency and driveability were systematically implemented from the insights garnered from the many race outings of its predecessor. The six-cylinder engine in the rear of the GT3 customer racer produces over 368 kW (500 hp). The successful predecessor has notched up victories in numerous international racing series, for example in the IMSA SportsCar Championship, the World Challenge, the ADAC GT Masters, at the Nürburgring 24-hour race and the Bathurst 12 Hour.

The schedule & live streaming
The eight-hour race at Laguna Seca takes off on Saturday 30 March at 8.30am (2.00am Sunday 31 March AEDT). The race can be watched live in Australia on live stream at https://www.intercontinentalgtchallenge.com/live

Comments before the race
Matt Campbell (Porsche 911 GT3 R #912): “I can’t wait to go racing in California. I already know the Wright Motorsports team and I really like the circuit. I’m ready and raring to race. I’m excited to see how the new Porsche 911 GT3 R does at its first IGTC outing. After our Bathurst success and the perfect farewell to the predecessor model, it would be absolutely ideal if we could continue this performance seamlessly with the new car.”

Sebastian Golz (Project Manager Porsche 911 GT3 R): “We’re delighted to contest the second round of the season with our experienced American customer teams. Park Place Motorsports and Wright Motorsports are very familiar with the quirks of the Laguna Seca racetrack. Entering the famous Corkscrew, our drivers will be able to brake very late with the two Porsche 911 GT3 R vehicles. If you’ve ever looked at onboard footage of this passage, you’ll know just how spectacular it’ll be. With our new GT3 race car, we want to continue where we left off in Bathurst.”

First Morris Finance award nominee confirmed

Morris Finance Sportsperson of the Year Award

TAG Heuer Pro-Am racer Adrian Flack is the first driver in the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia series to be nominated for the ‘Morris Finance Sportsperson of the Year Award’.

The new honour will be given to the Carrera Cup driver who best encompasses the values of Porsche and the one-make championship, with the overall winner to receive a Business Class trip to Germany to attend the 2019 Porsche Motorsport Day of Champions and Night of Champions at Weissach, Germany.

Six different drivers will be nominated for the Morris Finance Sportsperson of the Year Award throughout the season, with the ultimate winner to be announced at the 2019 Carrera Cup Awards Night.

Flack endured a difficult start to the 2019 season after a heavy turn eight incident during qualifying at the Adelaide 500 season opener. The Brisbane-based driver maintained a positive attitude and battled to repair his Porsche 911 GT3 Cup for the second round of the season at Albert Park, at which he placed seventh in the TAG Heuer Pro-Am class.

The next nomination for the Morris Finance Sportsperson of the Year Award will be announced after the series’ visit to Darwin’s Hidden Valley Raceway for round four.

Love wins Michelin Super Round, Formula E trip

Porsche Michelin Junior Programme Australia

Leading Michelin Junior Jordan Love will embark on a unique trip to Germany this May as part of his prize of winning the Michelin Super Round last weekend in Albert Park.

The Michelin Super Round concept awarded the leading Michelin Junior driver from the Albert Park round with a trip to the FIA Formula E event in Germany for the Berlin E-Prix.

The all-electric open wheeler series sports a control Michelin tyre and is also the platform for Porsche’s future top-level motor racing programme for the 2019-2020 season.

Love was the dominant Michelin Junior for the Melbourne round, placing third and second in the opening two races before winning race three and race four. Love dominant race four performance saw him take an impressive 8.0744secs victory over his Sonic teammate and eventual round winner Dale Wood, a margin just shy of the record winning margin at the Albert Park circuit of 9.6411secs for Craig Baird’s victory over second-placed Daniel Gaunt during race two of the 2011 season opener.

“Albert Park didn’t begin the way we wanted it to. After not putting a lap together in qualifying we ended up in sixth. I was then pretty happy to come away with third in the first race and then even happier to keep the forward momentum going and end the weekend with two race wins,” said Love.

Soon after the coming Phillip Island round of the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia, Love will travel to Germany for the Formula E experience, a trip he looks forward to.

“With Albert Park being the Michelin Super Round, being the top Michelin Junior for the event was also a massive bonus with the prize of attending the Berlin E-Prix. To be able to come out on top at the end of the weekend is extremely exciting and I’m incredibly thankful to Michelin Australia and Porsche Cars Australia for this opportunity,” added Love, who sits 54 points ahead of Cameron Hill in the Michelin Junior standings.

“I’m a little happier where we are now than where I was going into Albert Park for round two. Of course there is still a few areas that need to be improved on from my side, so I’m very much looking forward to the next few rounds of the Carrera Cup championship.”

The next round of the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia season will be held at Phillip Island on April 12-14, while the FIA Formula E Berlin E-Prix will be held on May 25.