THE PORSCHE Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia Championship bursts back into life this week at the betr Darwin Triple Crown, following a nearly 100-day break between rounds. 

The third round of the 2025 championship will get underway a full 96 days following the most recent race, held at the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne in March.

Incredibly, it’s an identical number of days between the final race of the 2024 season and the first of the 2025 season – meaning teams have essentially had another entire offseason to prepare for a return to racing.

Since the Grand Prix, three rounds of the Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge have been contested, as have nine Repco Supercars  Championship races, four rounds of IMSA Sports Car Championship competition – three of them won by Porsche Penske Motorsport – and three rounds of the FIA World Endurance Championship including the Le Mans 24 Hours.

This weekend marks the 12th visit by Australia’s top one-make championship to the Northern Territory, with history dating back to 2003.

Defending champion Harri Jones will lead a 20-car field to the Top End this weekend, the Queenslander’s #1 Jones Motorsport Porsche holding a narrow 15-point Equity-One Professional class lead over perennial contender Dylan O’Keeffe’s Dexion GWR Australia entry.

Bayley Hall (EMA Motorsport), Marcos Flack (Sonic Motor Racing) and Oscar Targett (Earl Bamber Motorsport) complete the top five in the Equity-One Pro standings, with five different teams represented.

Jones’ won in Darwin twelve months ago on his way to his second Carrera Cup title and, after winning round 1 this year, will be keen to return to the top of the standings after a challenging weekend at the Australian Grand Prix that ate into his early championship lead.

Another Darwin contender could also be Jackson Walls, who claimed Round 2 of the championship in Melbourne as he embarks on a part-time campaign this season amidst his commitments in the Super 2 championship. Walls’ finished third overall in Darwin twelve months ago.

Returning to the Top End will be another driver with strong local form – in fact he’s the most successful Porsche driver the Hidden Valley circuit the event has ever seen.

Dale Wood’s Connected Spaces Porsche finished runner-up in 2024, backing up round victories scored in 2023 and 2022. The Victorian has won six times in the Top End, as well as claiming the TAG Heuer Pole Award on two occasions. Wood also retains the Hidden Valley Qualifying and Race lap records for Porsche Carrera Cup Australia.

The Pro-Am battle heads to Darwin wide open, with defending Darwin winner Adrian Flack on the sidelines for this round.

That clears a pathway for current championship leader Rodney Jane (Bob Jane T-Marts Sonic Motor Racing) to potentially extend his series lead, while Brett Boulton will be looking for a strong Darwin debut aboard his stunning Lightning Macqueen-inspired car from McElrea Racing.

Matt Belford sits third in the Pro-Am class while Matt Slavin will look to rebound from a challenging round at the Grand Prix that saw him leave Melbourne with zero points.

Five drivers will make their respective Darwin debuts this weekend: Porsche Michelin Juniors Oscar Targett, Caleb Sumich, Clay Osborne and Hamish Fitzsimmons and Pro-Am frontrunner Brett Boulton.

The Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia Championship field hits the track on Friday for a pair of practice sessions ahead of qualifying and race one on Saturday.

Two further races, including the 45-minute Enduro Cup race, complete the program on Sunday.

Practice 2, qualifying and all three races will be broadcast live on Fox Sports and Kayo, while races one and three will also be shown on the screens of Seven.

Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia Championship, Round 3
betr Darwin Triple Crown, Hidden Valley Raceway, Darwin, NT.

No.	Class	Car #	Sponsor Name	Driver		State
1	Pro	1	Jones Motorsport	Harri	Jones	QLD
2	Pro	2	Hire a Hubby / TekworkX Motorsport	David	Russell	NSW
3	Pro	3	EBM Australia	Oscar	Targett	QLD
4	Pro	7	McElrea Racing	Caleb	Sumich	WA
5	Pro	11	Objective Racing	Jackson	Walls	NSW
6	Pro-Am	14	I.D Land	Matthew	Belford	VIC
7	Pro	15	Power and Earth.com	Clay	Osborne	NZ
8	Pro	16	Melbourne Performance Centre	Hamish	Fitzsimmons	QLD
9	Pro	23	McElrea Racing	Lockie	Bloxsom	QLD
10	Pro	28	EMA / Vacationer Caravans	Bayley	Hall	QLD
11	Pro	66	Team Porsche New Zealand / EBM	Marco	Giltrap	NZ
12	Pro-Am	77	Sonic Motor Racing Services / Bob Jane T Marts	Rodney	Jane	VIC
13	Pro	81	McLennan Motorsport / TekworkX Motorsport	Tom	McLennan	QLD
14	Pro-Am	85	Ares Group	Matt	Slavin	VIC
15	Pro	88	GWR	Dylan	O’Keeffe	VIC
16	Pro-Am	95	MyConstruct.com	Brett	Boulton	QLD
17	Pro	777	Sonic Motor Racing Services / Bob Jane T Marts / Rosche Paper	Marcos	Flack	QLD
18	Pro	911	Embrey Attachments / EBM	Glen	Wood	VIC
19	Pro	992	Connected Spaces / EBM	Dale	Wood	VIC
20	Pro	999	Sonio Motor Racing Services / Bob Jane T Marts / Pitbox	Angelo	Mouzouris	VIC