Almond, Flack make it four from four in Darwin

Four rounds, four winners after dramatic Darwin weekend

FOUR FROM FOUR – that’s the statistic following victories by Michael Almond and Adrian Flack (TAG Heuer Pro-Am) in the fourth round of the 2019 Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia in Darwin.

A win in the third and final race of the weekend delivered South Australian Michael Almond the overall victory for the second time in his career, while Adrian Flack completed a sweep of all three races to win the Pro-Am round in style.

Almond is the fourth different outright winner from four rounds this year, while Flack adds his name to three other winners after four rounds of TAG Heuer Pro-Am competition.

For the second successive year Darwin delivered remarkable Carrera Cup action with three winners from the three races.

Championship leader Dale Wood won race two, beating Almond and race one winner Cameron Hill after he grabbed the lead mid-race.

That set up a winner-take-all finale’ with the three drivers tied on points heading into the last race of the weekend.

Wood led early, however a perfectly-judged move mid-race saw Almond take the lead at turn one and then hold out his Sonic Racing teammate to take an impressive race, and round, victory.

He joins Nick McBride, Jordan Love and Wood as round winners this season, while Wood (second) and Hill (third) completed the Darwin podium.

“It’s been a while, since Tailem Bend last year. I’ve had a few good results but a bit of bad luck and the consistency hasn’t been there,” Almond said.

“I got away with it there with the move in the last race. I learned with the Safety Car we had in races one and race two how to manage the front tyre and probably caught Dale out with the braking ability.

“He gave me plenty of room, but he was catching me at the end so I was glad when the flag came. We played it smart and it came out well.”

Flack’s TAG Heuer Pro-Am victory was his first since the Gold Coast last season, and the third round win of his Carrera Cup career.

He took the top step of the round podium ahead of The Bend Motorsport Park driver Sam Shahin, and Roger Lago.

“It’s been a tough year for us, having some incidents earlier in the year, so it’s great for us to bounce back from that finally. I couldn’t be happier,” Flack said.

“All the pre-work to the event paid off, we came up with a good setup out of the gate and it was on fire. To contend with the pros and hold our own, we kept out of trouble as well. To come away with the win is absolutely awesome.

“To have that confidence to give it a red hot go and we’re looking forward to Townsville.”

As is typical in Darwin, Sunday’s pair of races created plenty of drama with several key contenders enduring challenging weekends – none more so than Jordan Love.

Second in points coming into the round, Love was the biggest to fall after he was the innocent victim in a crash on the opening lap of race two.

As the field negotiated the exit of turn five, Liam Talbot’s Wall Racing entry was tagged by another car and subsequently sent spearing across the infield towards turn six.

He unfortunately collided with Love’s Porsche as the Sonic entry negotiated the corner, sending both out of the race.

Love, who won at Phillip Island last time out, was taken to Darwin hospital following the incident and diagnosed with a broken bone in his left hand.

The Porsche Michelin junior driver will return home to Perth tonight (Sunday), and will consult with a specialist on Monday.

Talbot reported soreness in his left ankle and foot, and was checked and released in the circuit medical centre.

The incident left the field behind the Safety Car, prior to a dash to the line that saw Wood take his first race win since the Grand Prix in March, while Flack won Pro-Am ahead of Roger Lago and Anthony Gilbertson.

The stage was set for a combative final race with Wood, Hill and Almond tied on points heading into a winner-take-all scenario for the round victory. A lap one, turn five drama claimed Thomas Maxwell, Nick McBride and Duvashen Padayachee.

Another Safety Car interruption saw the race restart several laps later, Almond wasting little time before passing Wood to take the lead and, ultimately, the round win.

Flack won Pro-Am for the third-straight race with Tim Miles a remarkable second – bouncing back from his massive turn one accident in race one – and Shahin third.

At the half-way point of the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia Championship, Dale Wood has extended his lead to a considerable 165 points heading into the next round in Townsville in three weeks time.

The battle for second has become increasingly tight with 52 points – less than one race win – covering second to seventh in the standings.

McBride sits seven points behind Love, while David Wall, Warren Luff, Cameron Hill and Michael Almond are all within striking distance – big weekends from the latter pair keeping them well in contention.

The Darwin weekend has also energised the fight for TAG Heuer Pro-Am, with Anthony Gilbertson holding a narrow 13-point lead over Roger Lago after four rounds.

Sam Shahin sits a further 15 points further back in third with Liam Talbot and Stephen Grove fourth and fifth, respectively.

The Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia championship will take a three-week break before continuing their Northern swing when the series returns to the streets of Townsville this July.

The championship has not raced in the North Queensland city since 2015.

Provisional Championship points – After 4 of 8 rounds.

1. Dale Wood 640
2. Jordan Love 475
3. Nick McBride 468
4. David Wall 463
5. Warren Luff 439
6. Cameron Hill 436
7. Michael Almond 423
8. Thomas Maxwell 289
9. Duvashen Padayachee 205

TAG Heuer Pro-Am

1. Anthony Gilbertson 515
2. Roger Lago 502
3. Sam Shahin 487
4. Liam Talbot 428
5. Stephen Grove 394
6. Tim Miles 393
7. Adrian Flack 392
8. Dean Cook 309
9. Indiran Padayachee 179
10. Marc Cini 155

Hill takes maiden victory in Wild Darwin enduro

Adrian Flack takes TAG Heuer Pro-Am in chaotic Hidden Valley opener

A FAIRYTALE RESULT in one of the wildest races of the year has delivered Cameron Hill his maiden Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia victory.

The 22-year-old from Canberra had never finished in the top three of a Carrera Cup race before today, but a superb pole position and then a bold pass for the lead in today’s 33-lap Enduro Cup race at Hidden Valley delivered a stunning win to the single-car team from Canberra.

Adrian Flack beat the heat to take his first TAG Heuer Pro-Am class victory of the season, finishing inside the top-10 outright.

Hill’s maiden victory was his first in Porsche competition, following an impressive junior career that delivered an Australian Formula Ford Championship and wins in Toyota 86 series competition.

Hill becomes the fourth different race winner of the season and sees his single-car team break a seven-race streak of victories by the four-car strong Sonic Racing outfit.

“That’s the toughest race I’ve ever done,” Hill said.

“It was hard to get a start from the dirty side of the track but I felt I had the pace on Mike (Almond). I was all over him and the Safety Car was just what I needed to cool my tyres down.

“I’m not sure what happened, maybe he made a mistake at turn one, but I put my head down and made sure they didn’t see me again. There’s so many people behind the scenes that have helped us out to keep us on track. We’re only a small team and we don’t have huge resources to go testing, so this was a great opportunity to show what we have on a level playing field.”

Flack attributed his first Pro-Am class victory of the season to making the right decisions following a wild mid-race restart that saw cars spread across the track as they raced towards turn five.

“I saw it all happen and had to pick left or right, decided left was it and put the foot into it!” he explained.

“It was pretty exciting. Firstly, getting away and getting through the first lap or two was key. I was able to hook onto the back of (Steven) Richards and it was good to keep that back and stay out of trouble.”

The race was a rough and tumble affair at times with a mid-race Safety car spicing up the action.

In baking sunshine and 30-plus degree temperatures, the race commenced with Michael Almond making a perfect start from the outside of the front row, leading the field into turn one. The South Australian led the first 15 laps under pressure from Hill, only to lose the lead a lap later following a Safety Car period.

The race was slowed to allow for the recovery of Tim Miles’ crashed car, after the McElrea Racing driver hit the fence on the exit of turn one.

Miles had been battling with Sam Shahin for a position on the podium in Pro-Am, however ran wide on the exit of the first corner, spinning across to the inside tyre wall. Miles emerged unscathed, with the team hoping to repair the damage in time for tomorrow.

Almond led the field back to green however, ran slightly wide at turn one which allowed his young rival to sneak up the inside and grab a lead he would never lose.

While wild racing unfolded behind him, Hill pulled away to record a comfortable three-second victory.

Almond finished second to record his best finish of the season, though had to survive a heady battle with former champion, David Wall to get there.

Wall, however, dropped back through the field after suffering damage to his radiator – limping home to sixth place before shutting his overheating car off as he crossed the line.

Attention then turned to the fight for the final step on the podium which was being waged between Sonic Racing teammates, Dale Wood and Jordan Love.

Love, second in the championship, started the race ninth however made quick work though the field to close on the championship leader on lap 29.

He then made a bold move at turn one on the final lap: locking a brake and making contact with Wood as he hustled his way past to third place.

The contact was deemed to be under investigation by race officials post-race.

Warren Luff finished a solid fifth, Wall sixth and Nick McBride got home in seventh. Steven Richards climbed into the top-10 to finish eighth place, with Adrian Flack ninth and first in TAG Heuer Pro-Am.

Duvashen Padayachee completed the top-10, while local hero Thomas Maxwell recovered to eleventh position.

Maxwell had run eighth early in the race however spun off the road on the sixth lap, dropping to last.

On the restart he made quick progress through the field to salvage a result and a solid starting position for tomorrow.

Young-gun Cooper Murray was another to slip to the back of the field after he spun down the order on lap eighteen, following the restart.

With Flack taking victory in TAG Heuer Pro-Am, Liam Talbot finished second in class while Sam Shahin worked his way through the field with aplomb to finish third.

Two sprint races will conclude the fourth round of the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia championship tomorrow at the BetEasy Darwin Triple Crown.

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

Results from race one remain provisional pending the completion of post-race investigations.

Race 1 Results – Round 4, Hidden Valley
* Results Provisional

Maiden pole for Cameron Hill in thrilling Darwin qualifying

Adrian Flack on top in TAG Heuer Pro-Am

CAMERON HILL has charged to his maiden TAG Heuer Pole Award in a remarkable qualifying session in Darwin, while Adrian Flack grabbed his first TAG Heuer Pro-Am pole award of the season. 

Hill jumped to the top of the charts on his 14th and final lap of an enthralling 20-minute qualifying session, the closest and most competitive of the year to date.

He is the fourth different pole sitter from four rounds this year, with Flack also the fourth different to secure pole in Pro-Am this season.

Hill’s 1m07.4406s best came as the flag dropped to bump Michael Almond from pole position by 0.2 seconds.

The next five cars – Almond, David Wall, Dale Wood, Warren Luff and Nick McBride – were all covered by less than 0.1 seconds.

The result came after a compelling session that ebbed and flowed throughout with several drivers taking their turn at the top of the charts.

Cooper Murray, Thomas Maxwell, Jordan Love and TAG Heuer Pro-Am pacesetter Adrian Flack completed the top-10.

Four different drivers held the fastest time in Pro-Am throughout qualifying with Flack, like Hill, leaving his run to late.

He ultimately grabbed the top spot ahead of Anthony Gilbertson and Liam Talbot, with Roger Lago fourth.

Exactly one second covered the top 16 cars in qualifying today.

The opening race of round four will commence at 2:45pm on Saturday afternoon at Hidden Valley, broadcast live on FOX Sports 506 and Kayo Sports.

Results, Qualifying – Round 4, Darwin

Title contenders on top in Hidden Valley practice

Adrian Flack tops TAG Heuer Pro-Am in Darwin sunshine

THE DRIVERS first and second in the 2019 Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia championship have topped practice at Hidden Valley Raceway in Darwin, continuing their team’s dominant form this season.

Fresh from a resounding sweep of the podium at Phillip Island during the last round of the championship, Sonic Motor Racing’s Dale Wood and Jordan Love filled the first two spots in practice today, mirroring their positions in the championship as the series reaches it’s half-way point this weekend.

2018 Darwin polesitter David Wall was third, but Sonic’s third driver Michael Almond was fourth overall today.

Adrian Flack topped TAG Heuer Pro-Am in both 25-minute sessions to set up a potentially strong weekend.

Hidden Valley was Melbourne-based Sonic Racing’s bogey track last season, however their recent Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia form stretches back to the start of round two; winning the last seven consecutive races, the last two rounds and filling the podium last time out in Victoria.

Wood’s 1m07.4912s flyer came late in the second practice session as several teams bolted new Michelin tyres onto their cars for a qualifying simulation.

He edged his teammate by 0.2 seconds with David Wall third overall based on his time set in practice one in cooler conditions earlier today.

Wood has finished first, second or third in every race so far this season while Love has won the last five straight to close to within 21 points of his teammate in the championship standings.

Wall is yet to win a round this year, however sits fourth in the championship and within striking distance of the leaders ahead of this weekend’s three races.

Friday’s practice sessions resembled qualifying as teams tried to dial in their cars ahead of setting the grid tomorrow morning.

Behind the top four, Porsche Michelin Junior driver Cameron Hill was an impressive fifth and Round 1 winner Nick McBride sixth in his Porsche Centre Melbourne entry.

Territorian Thomas Maxwell finished his first proper day of competition at Hidden Valley in seventh position, just 0.5 seconds behind the fastest time of the day.

After a challenging start to his season, Steve Richards was a strong eighth overall while young-gun Cooper Murray was ninth on his first run with new team, McElrea Racing.

Flack was fastest of the TAG Heuer Pro-Am bunch and tenth outright.

Remarkably, the Queenslander was only 0.7 seconds away from the fastest time of the day; 14 cars lapping within 1 second of Wood’s best at a circuit renowned for remarkably close margins between competitors.

Roger Lago was second in TAG Heuer Pro-Am while Dean Cook and Anthony Gilbertson were next.

Saturday will be a crucial day in the context of the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia Championship, with a 35-lap enduro cup race to follow qualifying in a busy day at the BetEasy Darwin Triple Crown.

Last year, David Wall scored pole position ahead of Nick McBride before going on to win the first race of the weekend the same day.

However, a dramatic weekend saw three different drivers win the three races with a fourth, young-gun Dylan O’Keeffe, going on to win the round without actually winning a race.

The 20-minute qualifying session starts at 11:35am local time on Saturday, with the 35-lap Enduro Cup race commencing at 2:45pm.

Both sessions will be broadcast live on FOX Sports 506 and Kayo Sports.

Results – Combined Practice times, Round 4, Hidden Valley

Home-town hero ready for Darwin debut

Birthday boy Thomas Maxwell ready for Top-End Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia challenge

NORTHERN TERRITORY fans will be able to cheer for one of their own when the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia Championship returns to the Top End this weekend.

The fourth round of the 2019 championship will be the first in Carrera Cup series history to feature a Darwin-born driver racing on his home circuit; 21-year-old Thomas Maxwell ready to make his debut at Hidden Valley this weekend.

Despite being the only local in the field, the weekend actually marks the first time that Maxwell, who drives for Sonic Motor Racing, will have raced at his home circuit.

The Berrimah-based driver has spent much of his junior racing career overseas, prior to returning to Australia to contest the nations top one-make category this season as a Porsche Michelin Junior driver.

Following the first three rounds of the championship, Maxwell sits a promising eighth – third of the Juniors – in the Carrera Cup standings with top 10 finishes in every race and a best of fifth already to his credit.

Adding to the excitement of the week, Maxwell celebrated his 21^st Birthday on Monday.

“It’s been a massive week and hopefully there’s a bit to celebrate by the end of the weekend – that would be an awesome birthday present,” Maxwell said.

“I’m super pumped to come back home and to race here. It’s special to be able to race around the world but nothing could be better than racing at your home event.

“It will be great for all the people to have helped and supported me to get me to where I am to come out and take it all in as well.”

Maxwell said that despite never having raced at the Hidden Valley circuit, it remained a familiar location.

“Growing up I think I’ve been at every single Supercars race there since I was about 5 years old,” He said.

“As a local and how close the track is to home I don’t actually know it as well as some of the others on the calendar and this will be my first race there. But I’m pretty confident I know it well and I’ve done laps in a variety of different cars practicing over the years.”

Just three rounds in to his ‘tin-top’ racing career, Maxwell has adapted quickly to the very different driving style required by the heavier, more powerful Porsche 991 GT3 Cup Car he is driving this year.

“It was always going to be a challenge but we’ve done quite well to settle in quickly and get some runs on the board,” he said.

“Our qualifying pace was a good step up last time out at Phillip Island and we want to keep moving that way in the top five or six and keep progressing forward. I’ve been slowly getting my head around re-programming my brain to drive a car with a roof, but it’s been an awesome experience.”

2019 marks the eighth visit of the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia to the Hidden Valley circuit just outside of Darwin.

It also marks the half-way point of an increasingly competitive title fight that currently has Sonic Motor Racing teammates Dale Wood and Jordan Love first and second in the championship standings, just 21 points between them.

Wood, who won Round 2 at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, is being chased by his young teammate Love, who won last time out at Phillip Island and has now won the last five-straight races in the championship.

No driver has won six consecutive races since five-time series champion Craig Baird achieved the feat in 2006 – 13 years ago.

Meanwhile, the Sonic team has won the last seven consecutive races, only one behind the existing record set way back in 2003 by racing great Jim Richards and his own team en-route to the championship.

Round 1 (Adelaide 500) winner Nick McBride remains third in the standings with each of the top three drivers in the championship having won a round this year.

David Wall sits fourth in the standings and will be hopeful of a return to his 2018 Darwin form that saw him secure pole position and win the first race of the corresponding round twelve months ago.

Supercars star Warren Luff sits fifth in the standings entering the half-way mark of the championship.

The Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup ‘race within a race’ is no less competitive than the outright battle with competition in TAG Heuer Pro-Am also fiercely competitive.

Hallmark Homes driver Anthony Gilbertson leads the standings, however margins are tight.

While second-placed Stephen Grove will miss the Darwin round due to his overseas racing commitments in the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup, third-placed Liam Talbot (Wall Racing) is just 61 points behind Gilbertson.

The experienced Roger Lago is a further four points back in fourth while Sam Shahin (- 84 points) and Tim Miles (- 132 points) are within one round of the leader.

The Darwin round will also feature several milestones for some of the series most experienced drivers.

2014 champion Steven Richards will start his 50^th Porsche Carrera Cup Australia round, just the eighth driver in series history to reach the milestone.

Rentcorp Racing’s Duvashen Padayachee will then become just the 20^th driver to start 100 Carrera Cup Australia races when he takes the starter in race two.

Meanwhile, experienced Queensland driver Scott Taylor joins the TAG Heuer Pro-Am field for the first time in 2019 aboard his #222 Scott Taylor Motorsport entry.

Jaxon Evans takes the flag to win in Darwin in 2018, while round winner Dylan O’Keeffe follows.

Following practice on Friday and qualifying Saturday morning, the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia field tackles three races across the BetEasy Darwin Triple Crown weekend.

Race 1 on Saturday will be a round of the Enduro Cup championship and contested over 35 laps, while the pair of Sunday races will each be 18 laps.

Practice 2, qualifying and all three races will be shown live on FOX Sports 506 and Kayo Sports.

Entry List – Round 4, Darwin

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

Schedule – Round 4, Darwin

Friday, June 14

Practice 1: 9:20am – 9:45am
Practice 2: 12:30am – 12:55pm*

Saturday, June 15

Qualifying: 11:35am – 11:55am*
Race 1: 14:45pm (35 Laps)*

Sunday, June 16

Race 2: 10:00am (18 Laps)*
Race 3: 12:20pm (18 Laps)*

* Denotes session live on FOX Sports 506 and Kayo Sport

Porsche Supercup to be shown Live on FOX Sports

All remaining races in 2019 season to be shown live in Australia

Corresponding with a record level of participation by Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia graduates, each remaining round of the 2019 Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup will also be shown live on FOX Sports Australia this year.

To be sponsored by Porsche Cars Australia, the 9 remaining rounds will air live on FOX Sports 506 with a majority of them in prime-time on a Sunday evening, Australian time.

Highlights of the opening round held in Spain aired on FOX Sports last week.

This year, reigning Porsche Carrera Cup Australia champion and new Porsche Junior Jaxon Evans will be joined by the full season by TAG Heuer Pro-Am champion Stephen Grove, the most experienced Carrera Cup Australia driver Marc Cini and Aussie young-gun Joey Mawson at each round.

The Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup is the pinnacle of Porsche’s global one-make program with each of the 10 rounds supporting a round of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship.

The announcement ensures Australian fans and supporters of the local contingent will be able to watch the always-competitive Supercup racing live and in HD, on the same network that shows every round of Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia.

“We are very pleased to have reached an agreement with FOX Sports to showcase the 2019 Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup live this year,” said Porsche Cars Australia Motorsport Manager, Troy Bundy.

“With the addition of Jaxon, Stephen, Marc and Joey to the grid and memories of what was achieved by Matt Campbell two years ago still fresh in people’s minds, interest locally in Supercup has never been higher.

“We are sure the addition of each round of the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup to the FOX Sports programming will offer local fans sensational racing and showcase what our fantastic Carrera Cup Australia competitors are doing on the global stage.”

The 2019 championship continues this weekend at the iconic Monaco Grand Prix in Monte Carlo, with live coverage on FOX Sports 506 commencing at 6:25pm AET this Sunday May 26. 

For more information and live timing for each round, please visit the official Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup site: www.racecam.de.

2019 Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup Calendar

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.”