Porsche Michelin Junior Programme
The continued support and development of the best young drivers from around the Australasian region has been a key priority for both Michelin Australia and Porsche Cars Australia for several years now. The domestic collaboration has seen the initiative grow into benchmark driver development programme in the country and remain a vital feature of the Porsche Motorsport Pyramid.
For the 2022 season, the French tyre giant has announced that it will again support the Porsche Junior Development Programme offering eligible young drivers from the Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia and Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge series mentorship, support and training from the country’s leading sports professionals and coaches, as well as the opportunity to win their share of the $300,000 prize pool on offer.
The prize pool sees the top three Junior drivers from each series, receive a set of Michelin competition tyres every round, while the top placed Junior driver at each event will also receive a complimentary entry for the round.
The Michelin Junior Champion, which will be awarded to the leading point scorer after round 6 of the 2022 Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia season in August 2022, will receive a trip to Germany to attend the Porsche Motorsport Night of Champions Dinner in December 2022. The main prize for the Michelin Junior drivers is to be nominated to attend the global Porsche Motorsport Junior Shootout to represent the Carrera Cup Australia.
The Junior Shootout continues to play a crucial role in the development of the best emerging talent from the Australasian region and is seen as the most proven pathway for talented drivers to progress to the highest level abroad. To be eligible for nomination all Carrera Cup drivers must be born within the following time frame: 30/11/1998-01/03/2005. Further details and requirements for the 2022 Junior Shootout will be communicated at the mid-point of the season.
Points are allocated as per the Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia Sporting and Technical Regulation’s, S11.2 (e).
In the event of a tie, the final positions shall be determined by comparing the race results achieved by each tied Driver, with the Driver with the highest number of first places being awarded the higher Series position. If at this stage a tie still exists, it shall be resolved by comparing the number of second, third or fourth places (and so on) achieved by each tied Driver until all positions have been determined.
Eligibility Criteria
To be eligible for nomination, both Michelin Sprint Challenge and Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup drivers must born between 30/11/1998-01/03/2005.
All Michelin Juniors in each series must carry additional Michelin Junior branding on their racing apparel and Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars.
Training Days
The training workshop is an integral part of the Porsche Motorsport Development programme in Australia. Every year Michelin Junior drivers are invited to attend and receive professional coaching from the country's leading experts and an exciting one-of-a-kind experience is scheduled for 2022.
While Covid-19 travel restrictions prohibited the running of the 2021 workshop, in 2020 Brad Hodge, Matt Campbell, Jaxon Evans, Joshua Rogers and Scott Pye were just some of the top drivers and presenters at the 2020 Michelin Junior Driver Training, which took place via a virtual seminar due to the restrictions at the time.
The 2019 training workshop saw the Juniors receive professional coaching on sports psychology, social media, media training, branding, sponsorship as well as nutrition and dietary advice, this year the program centred around mindset, mental preparation, managing their brand, producing social media content, sponsorship, heart intelligence, resilience and coherence.
In past years drivers also received nutrition and dietary advice after completing a thorough physical assessments.
2020
Porsche Junior Shootout
The main incentive for the Michelin Junior drivers is an opportunity to represent Carrera Cup Australia at the global Porsche Global Junior Shootout. The shootout continues to play a crucial role in the development of the best emerging talent from the region and is seen as the most proven pathway for talented drivers to progress to the highest level abroad.
Cooper Murray was the Porsche Michelin Junior Australia Winner for 2021, earning PCA’s nomination to attend the Porsche Junior Shootout in Europe that year. Murray arrived prior to the Shootout to test drive the new 992 generation Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car at Portimao Circuit in preparation for the Shootout and conduct a further two-day test session with Porsche Mobil1 Supercup Team, Martinet by Almeras, at the Paul Ricard Circuit in France on the 20-21 November before contesting the final round of the Porsche Carrera Cup France Championship on the weekend of the 22 – 24 October.
Martinet by Almeras is the same team which supported 2018 Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia Champion, Jaxon Evans, to second position overall in the Porsche Mobil1 Supercup Championship in 2021.
Drivers that have progressed up the Porsche Motorsport pyramid in recent years via the Australian Junior Programme, include the likes of Matt Campbell (Porsche factory driver), Nick Foster, Andre Heimgartner, Jordan Love, Cameron Hill and Dylan O’Keeffe, who have all gone on to succeed at the highest levels of the sport both locally and internationally.
Contact
For more information on the 2022 Porsche Michelin Junior Programme Australia email motorsport@porsche.com.au
Junior Programme
About Junior Programme
Porsche Cars Australia and Michelin Australia have joined forces to launch one of Australian motorsport’s most extensive driver development programmes, providing total benefits of up to $300,000. The Porsche Michelin Junior Programme Australia supports seven young drivers across Australia’s two Porsche one-make series – Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge Australia and Carrera Cup Australia – providing all Michelin Juniors financial support by way of entry fee support and an allocation of Michelin race tyres, along with access to training, mentorship and education throughout the racing season.
The Porsche Michelin Junior Programme Australia will consist of two teams – the GT3 Cup Challenge Junior Team, consisting of three drivers, and the four-driver Carrera Cup Junior Team.
2018 Junior Drivers
Driver Bio
Ryan Suhle, 19, gradates into Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia from the Michelin Sprint Challenge, following the Porsche Pyramid like many young drivers before him.
Suhle entered Porsche competition following several successful campaigns in Formula 4 – where he placed in the top three – graduating to Sprint Challenge with McElrea Racing and immediately proving competitive.
He finished fourth in his rookie season in 2019, however lost two seasons due to the Covid-19 pandemic – though in the occasional races he did start, he was at the pointy-end.
Suhle links with the expanding Earl Bamber Motorsport team in 2022 to further his career, one that flourishes on and off the track.
Outside of racing exploits, Suhle is a successful realtor at Ray White North Lakes in Queensland, regularly ranking as one of the state’s best.
Driver Bio
Victorian Mouzouris joins the Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia championship battle-hardened following two seasons in the competitive Supercars Super2 Series.
The 2019 Australian Formula Ford Champion, Mouzouris moved into Supercars the following season with Triple Eight Race Engineering, finishing on the podium in his second season.
His move to Carrera Cup reunites him with the team in which he claimed his Formula Ford title, multiple series champions Sonic Motor Racing.
Driver Bio
Second-generation Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia racer Jackson Walls stepped up to the big time in 2021, making his one-make Porsche debut aboard an Objective Racing Porsche, run by the McElrea Racing squad.
The son of Morris Finance Pro-Am class regular Tony, 19-year-old Jackson has plied his trade in junior open-wheel racing, completing two years in Australian Formula 4 before tackling the Formula Renault Eurocup and the Toyota Racing Series.
He’s since shifted his focus to Porsche racing and made his debut in the non-championship Porsche PAYCE and Michelin event at Sandown in late 2020, impressing by being on the pace immediately.
His first ‘full’ season in 2021 saw him finish 10th in the championship, with a best finish of sixth at Mount Panorama in the final round of the season.
Driver Bio
Following in the footsteps of fellow Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia champions Matt Campbell and Jaxon Evans, Harri Jones is the next discovery to rise through the Porsche Pyramid with the help of McElrea Racing.
Skipping the traditional starting-point in Karting, Jones began racing Formula Fords in 2015 before moving into ‘wings and slicks’ competition in 2018, winning the Australian Formula 3 title on debut. The following year he moved to the Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge series, winning the title on debut and also sealing the Jim Richards Endurance Trophy along the way.
Harri made his debut in Carrera Cup in the final round of the 2019 championship on the Gold Coast, and was set to contest the full 2020 championship with McElrea Racing. Though the series was ultimately stopped, he did impressively win the season-ending Porsche PAYCE and Michelin Cup event at Sandown – his first in the ‘big’ class of Aussie one-make Porsche racing.
He landed strongly in 2021, however, and finished third in the five-round championship in a season that included a pair of runner-up round results, two pole positions and his first Carrera Cup race win, on the Mountain in the final round of the year.
When not racing, Harri splits his time working at McElrea while also studying a bachelor of Civil Engineering and Maths at the University of Queensland.
He also races competitively in an array of historic racing cars prepared by his father, Peter, and their family racing firm.
Driver Bio
Another incredibly fast Kiwi from across the Tasman, Callum Hedge, 18, is following in the footsteps of a host of quick New Zealanders to come and race Carrera Cup.
Like most, Hedge started his career young and was a multiple karting champion before he moved into racing cars.
He won the 2018 NZ Formula Ford title and the one-make Toyota 86 championship the following year before switching his attention to racing in Australia.
The recipient of a Porsche New Zealand Scholarship, Hedge linked with Earl Bamber’s team and made his debut in the ultimately abandoned Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge in 2021 – winning a race before the season was cut short due to the Pandemic.
He steps up to Carrera Cup in 2022, again with Bamber’s guidance, following his debut in the series at Mount Panorama late last year.
Driver Bio
A graduate from the competitive world of Hyundai Excel Racing, Bayley Hall’s two most recent seasons may have been interrupted by the Pandemic, but he’s still shown plenty of speed in his brief appearances at a National scene to prove he has what it takes at a high level.
Fresh from success in Queensland state-level competition, Hall expanded into national-level racing via the MARC Cars Australia program, including making a start in the Bathurst 12 Hour.
He finished sixth in the Bathurst 6 Hour in 2021 and also made his Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia debut with McElrea Racing that year, scoring one podium finish from two round starts in the pandemic challenged season.
He steps to Carrera Cup this year with the same team.
Driver Bio
The 20-year-old from Adelaide is another to have followed the Porsche Pyramid through the ranks to ultimately end up in the Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia Championship.
The 2017 Australian Formula Ford Champion, Vidau joined the Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge (GT3 Cup Challenge) in 2018, driving for Sonic Motor Racing Services with backing from Bob Jane T-Marts.
Vidau was instantly effective, finishing third in his debut season. He was even more competitive in his second and though he finished in the same championship position, he was a regular contender for race and round victories along the way and won more races than any other driver.
After Covid-19 saw his 2020 and 2021 Carrera Cup seasons interrupted, Vidau has forged a new relationship with brand-new team TekworkX Motorsport and will drive and work for the team full-time in 2022, driving a car sponsored by Tyrepower.
His brief Carrera Cup career of six rounds has already seen him finish fourth outright at The Bend in 2021, with a top-three race result at the same venue.
Outside of Carrera Cup racing, Vidau has been racing on the dirt tracks of South Australia in his 800hp Sprintcar.
Driver Bio
Christian started in karting, racing karts from 2012 till 2017, winning numerous Regional and State championships and Australian championship rounds. He went on to race in two international championship racing events in Daniel Ricciardo’s race team.
His first move to main circuit was straight into Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge in 2018, where he won the class B championship and impressed by racing with the Pro cars in class A.
In 2019 Christian stepped up again, this time to Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge Pro class, where he saw highlight performances including a qualifying pole position, two podiums and a lap record.
In 2021 he joined McElrea Racing, racing in both Sprint Challenge and Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup campaign prior to a full championship tilt with the 992-generation car in 2022.
His early rounds showed plenty of promise, including several front-running performances and a best finish of 6th on three occasions.
Driver Bio
Runner-up in the 2019 Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge series, Aaron Love made the step to the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia in 2020 as a Michelin Junior – impressing immediately with his raw speed.
He follows in the footsteps of his older brother Jordan, who won the 2019 Championship and Junior prize.
Love, 17, started his career in karting before stepping into open-wheel racing in Formula 4 competition. From there he graduated to Porsches, coming close to winning the 2019 Sprint Challenge title for Sonic. After making his Carrera Cup debut on the Gold Coast at the end of the 2019 season, Love’s immediate impact in the shortened 2020 season saw him finish on the podium at the Adelaide season-opener, and at the season-ending (non-championship) Porsche Payce and Michelin Cup event, proving his title-contending abilities.
Driver Bio
Two years out of the seat are unlikely to phase Simon Fallon, who returns to one-make Porsche racing in 2021 as the 2018 Porsche Michelin Sprint Cup Champion.
After a funding shortfall sidelined him for two seasons, Fallon re-grouped for 2021 and reunited with the same team with which he won the Sprint Challenge title – beating Cooper Murray in the process – in Sonic Motor Racing.
The young Victorian took over the famous #777 entry for the Melbourne based team, who technically remain the defending champions thanks to their success with Jordan Love (in the same car) in 2019.
He follows in the footsteps of the champion Love, Nick Foster and Andre Heimgartner to have steered the #777 car.
Fallon graduated to Sprint Challenge from open-wheel racing, where he was a regular contender in the Australian Formula 4 Championship.
He contested all five rounds of the 2021 season held, with a best finish of 11th overall at The Bend.
