ON the eve of his home event, Queenslander Bayley Hall has been confirmed as Porsche Motorsport Australia’s nomination to take on the best young drivers in the world in the 2025 Porsche Junior Shootout.

Hall comfortably leads the Porsche Michelin Junior Championship following six of eight rounds of this year’s Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia Championship.

However, nominations were based not just on on-track performance: rather, a broad spectrum of attributes required to make a complete racing car driver were included within the Michelin Junior process this year – a process that commenced with an intensive three-day training camp on the Gold Coast earlier this year.

As such, Hall was nominated as Porsche Australia’s candidate by a selection panel comprised of Porsche Motorsport category management, plus industry experts in the fields of physical and mental fitness at Focus Driver Performance and feedback on performances in the media and beyond.

Bayley follows in the footsteps of a host of talented young drivers who have tackled the Porsche Junior Shootout from Australia including Matt Campbell, Jaxon Evans, Andre Heimgartner, Nick Foster, Jordan Love, Cameron Hill and Dylan O’Keeffe.

The Shootout winner receives a significant scholarship prize to assist them competing in the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup Championship the following season – a pathway used by many rising stars in the past to a professional driving career in GT and Sports Car racing and beyond.

Hailing from Surfers Paradise, Hall long dreamed of racing professionally and started his career as a 15-year-old racing at a state level at Queensland Raceway.

With limited prior experience Hall’s Porsche debut came in the Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia series as a teenager in 2021, prior to moving to Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia the following year.

Then driving for McElrea Racing, Hall claimed his first race wins on the streets of Surfers Paradise in 2023, winning four times in 2024 on his way to fifth in the championship, scoring his first pole position along the way.

His 2025 season with EMA Motorsport has been a model of consistency that has him sitting fourth outright in the championship with two rounds remaining.

Hall has also gathered international experience across his journey, with several starts in Porsche Carrera Cup Italy and Porsche Carrera Cup Asia helping to broaden his global Porsche racing experiences.

Hall has been vocal about using his Porsche experience to potentially chase an international career in GT racing or Sports Car competition, while also keeping options open in Australia for further career opportunities.

The Porsche Junior Shootout will take place in Portugal in November this year, while the next round of the Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia Championship will be held at this weekend’s Boost Mobile Gold Coast 500 on the streets of Surfers Paradise.

Craig Nayda, Porsche Cars Australia Senior Motorsport Manager

“Congratulations to Bayley on his official nomination as our official Porsche Michelin Junior for 2025.

“Bayley’s progression through the Porsche ranks in Australia and his evolution to a front-running contender in the Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia Championship is exactly what our Junior Programme is designed to achieve.

“He now has the tools, both behind the wheel and outside of the cockpit, to be best prepared to take on whatever racing adventure awaits him.

“In this case, that adventure will be representing Porsche Motorsport Australia in the best possible way in the 2025 Porsche Junior Shootout. We are confident that he will do just that.

“Thanks to our partners, in particular our incredible and longstanding friends at Michelin for their ongoing support of young drivers in Australia and New Zealand and Focus Driver Performance for their efforts this year.”

Bayley Hall – Porsche Michelin Junior Program Junior Nominee

“It was was cool to get the call from Craig (Nayda, Senior Motorsport Manager, Porsche Motorsport Australia) and receive the official Porsche Michelin Junior nomination, which is something I have been working towards since my first Cup Car test in 2021.

“I knew I had done a good job this year to get the results on track, but I have worked harder than ever outside of the car on my fitness, on media and with my sponsors and I definitely found out a little more within myself.

“I wanted to be the best I could be to show the factory I’m the driver they are looking for.

“To know the next steps in the process, fly to Germany and then Portugal for the Shootout is exciting. My immediate focus is on doing the job this weekend on the Gold Coast but then I’ll be able to sit back and pinch myself a bit while I prepare to go and make the most of this experience.

“I need to thank my family, supporters and sponsors for their support over the journey, as well as the team at McElrea Racing who were there at the very beginning of this journey. And to EMA Motorsport, who have given me the tools this year to be as competitive as we have been.

“It’s special to be part of the group of people from Porsche Carrera Cup Australia to have represented the Porsche Michelin Junior program in the past and I’ll be doing my absolute best to represent the championship well this year.”