Porsche unveil 2020 Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia calendar

Porsche unveils 2020 calendar for the rebranded Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia series 

Porsche unveils 2020 calendar for the rebranded Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia series 

Following the announcement that the Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge series will be rebranded to Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia from the start of the 2020 season and that the French tyre giant has again reaffirmed their support for the series for next year as Title partner, Porsche has revealed their race calendar for the 2020 season.
The six-round series, which caters for the previous generation Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars will again feature as a highlight of the Shannons Motorsport Australia Championships program for 2020.

Having celebrated the series 200th race in 2019, the 2020 schedule sees the series start in late March at the Sydney Motorsport Park in NSW, before heading south to Winton in early May and continuing onto The Bend Motorsport Park a month later.
The second half of the season sees the series travel north to Morgan Park in Queensland before returning to Victoria for the last two rounds at the Phillip Island and Sandown Raceway circuits respectively.

As a feeder category for Australia’s premier one-make championship, Porsche PAYCE Carrera cup Australia, Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge forms the first domestic step for Porsche enthusiasts and many young, talented racing drivers wishing to climb the Porsche Motorsport Pyramid with the successful Porsche Michelin Junior Program.
The series’ Pro-am class – won by The Bend Motorsport Park owner Sam Shahin in 2019 – is equally popular with amateur Porsche drivers, hosting some of the best on-track racing at Shannon’s rounds last year.

The 2020 calendar is tailored to offer not only the best value but cut costs for all drivers and teams. Care was also taken that the dates do not conflict with any of the 2020 Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia Championship rounds, which again feature on seven main marquee rounds of the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship as well as the Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park.
As in 2019, the series will again include endurance races as part of the Jim Richards Endurance Trophy, with the opening five rounds featuring an endurance-style race, followed by two sprint races. The season finale, to be held at Sandown raceway, will remain as a sprint format across all races.

“Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia certainly experienced its strongest year to date in 2019 and we look to build upon this success in 2020,” said Porsche Cars Australia’s Head of Motorsport, Troy Bundy.

“With the Shannon’s Motorsport Australia Championships enjoying record: crowd attendance, social, online and live stream audiences in 2019, we feel this provides our teams, drivers and series partners with an incredible platform from which to start the 2020 series.”

“There is already great interest from those looking to race in Michelin Sprint Challenge next season and we expect to see a similar number of drivers and cars, if not more, on the grid in 2020.”

2020 Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia calendar
Round 1 Sydney Motorsport Park                27-29 March 2020
Round 2 Winton Raceway                              1-3 May 2020
Round 3 The Bend Motorsport Park            12-14 June 2020
Round 4 Morgan Park                                     3-5 July 2020
Round 5 Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit  21-23 August 2020
Round 6 Sandown Raceway                           11 – 12 September 2020

Michelin renew as Title Partner of the rebranded Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia

GT3 Cup Challenge to be renamed Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia from 2020

GT3 Cup Challenge to be renamed Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia from

2020 

Porsche have announced that their popular GT3 Cup Challenge national series will be renamed to Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia from 2020 onwards. The decision to rename the series is to align to the global rebranding of the category by Porsche AG ensuring the product is consistent in every market it is conducted.

Porsche Cars Australia’s Head of Motorsport, Troy Bundy made the announcement to drivers, teams and partners at the 2019 Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge Awards dinner at the final round at The Bend Motorsport Park.

“The Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge is an integral part of our motorsport program in Australia, which is the first step in our Porsche Motorsport pyramid, and is fortunate to currently enjoy its strongest ever levels of support from its competitor’s teams  and it’s commercial partners.”

“2019 has been a break out year for the category in all measures but the exciting news is that the 2020 season is looking just as strong with an exciting calendar, extensive broadcast package, great prizes and support package and of course a comprehensive junior programme for the best young talent wanting to develop their career.”

“Aesthetically, all fans will notice is the change in the series logo and the corporate identity of the new Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia name.”

The second big announcement of the night was that French tyre giant, Michelin have again resigned as the title partner for 2020.

On the announcement, Bundy said, “We have had a fantastic group of partners on board this year and we would look to continue that in 2020 with discussions well underway and positive interest from all partners. It gives me great pleasure to announce that Michelin have secured the title partner rights for Porsche Sprint Challenge Australia for 2020.

“Michelin has been a key strategic partner globally for Porsche for many years now. They extended that partnership last year in Australia by securing the title partnership rights to the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge. This partnership has been a great success for both parties this year and it’s great to be able to continue the relationship into 2020, cementing the partnership between Porsche and Michelin.”

“Partners like Michelin are incredibly important to us and share our vision in this development pathway, we just couldn’t deliver the level of programme we do without their support,” he continued.

Swaroop Tulsidas, Marketing Manager for Michelin Australia said, “Michelin has a strong relationship with the team at Porsche, both here in Australia and across the globe, and to continue our series support in 2020 with the Michelin Sprint Challenge is really exciting news for us.”

“It’s fantastic that we are able to announce the renaming of the series at the culmination of another extremely competitive race season. We have no doubt that the Michelin Sprint Challenge will continue to provide highly-contested fields, door to door racing, and importantly a pathway for the junior drivers to develop their skills through the elite Porsche Motorsport pyramid.”

Jones, Shahin & Greig clinch Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge titles

Harri Jones, Sam Shahin and David Grieg are the Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge Champions for 2019

Harri Jones, Sam Shahin and David Grieg are the Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge Champions for 2019

As the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge teams lined up on the sun-soaked Bend Motorsport Park for the last time in the 2019 season, just three races remained and all three titles were still up for grabs.

At the sharp end of the Pro field, it was again an age-old battle between Sonic Motor Racing (Aaron Love and Max Vidau) and McElrea Racing (Harri Jones and Ryan Suhle).

Sonic has dominated the Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge’s top class in recent years with champions such as Simon Fallon and Jordan Love among that list. An outright Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge victory had always alluded McElrea Racing by contrast and the Queensland team were hoping that Jones could get the job done at The Bend.

With only a 92 point margin between Love and Jones, the Helimod backed driver, needed to just stay clear of trouble and show that finish among the leading Michelin Juniors in each race to win the overall title.

But it wasn’t going to be easy as Love and Vidau jumped passed pole-sitter Ryan Suhle into turn 1, with Jones opting to follow behind his teammate in fourth.

Further back disaster struck The Bend Motorsport Park owner Sam Shahin when his clutch pedal stuck off the line. The TAG Heuer Pro-Am series leader must have seen his fairy tale finish to his championship slipping away, but managed to get his HTFU Porsche 911 GT3 Cup started and pulled away just before the recovery vehicle looked to remove him. Shahin was now almost 15sec behind the last car in the field though, setting the stage for a mammoth recovery drive from far behind the entire field.

TAG Heuer Pro-Am Pole sitter Brett Boulton meanwhile had pulled out a strong lead at the front of the class, while Andrew Goldie again found himself embroiled in a massive fight with David Greig in Class B.  Goldie would depart the track on lap 5 though, handing Greig the advantage and the class lead to the finish line.

The high level of competition and raw pace shown by the Michelin Juniors at the front of the field this year, was again shown in the Friday qualifying when the pole time of Suhle would have put him fifth in recent Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup field. An incredible performance when you consider the GT3 Cup Challenge Cars cater for the previous-gen 2 Porsche 911 Cup cars that last raced in the premier class three years ago.

Love and Vidau soon proved to be the fastest on the track in Race 1, with South Australian overtaking his Sonic Racing teammate on lap 4. Vidau would also set a new lap record of 1:51:4875 in the process. Love fought him to the last corner and crossed the line only a tenth behind Vidau, with Suhle, Jones and Christian Pancione completing the all Michelin Junior top 5.

It was Vidau’s ninth win of the season, in what has been an impressive year despite the sporadic mechanical issues he suffered at crucial stages of the season.

Boulton was followed home by Ross McGregor and Michael Loccisano in the Pro-Am battle, with Sam Shahin recovering incredibly to ninth overall and fourth in class. Heading into Race 2, Shahin’s  Buick Motorworks team did an amazing job to replace slave cylinder between sessions and by the end of lap one, he had already repaid them, passing both McGregor and Boulton for the TAG Heuer Pro-Am lead.

At the front end, Harri Jones put all the Porsche’s 460hp to good use off the line, but opted to stay well clear following the front trio of Vidau, Love and Suhle through turn one.

The first five cars were covered by less than a second as the race progressed before Vidau ran wide and understeered off on lap 5. He would recover to third behind Suhle and eventual race winner Love.

Jones would finish fourth, giving him a 62 point buffer into the overall standings. With only 60 pints on offer Jones was now the outright Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge champion for 2019, handing McElrea Racing their first outright trophy.

Shahin would finish just behind the Pro leaders in sixth, clinching TAG Heuer Pro-Am title at his home track from Brett Boulton. Andrew Goldie did what he could to take the Class B, but the ever consistent David Greig’s second place ensured he would take the Class B title.

With all three championships wrapped up, teams lined up for the final race of the season. Although the track temperatures had risen to 37 degrees, 11 degrees warmer than Race 2 at midday, the racing remained fierce and Sam Shahin now found himself dicing amongst the leading Juniors at the front of the field.

By the end of the shortened 8 lap race, Aaron Love took the final race win and with it the round victory followed by Max Vidau. Ryan Suhle would take his third podium of the weekend and occupy the last step of the podium.

Brett Boulton’s consistency saw him take the round win in TAG Heuer Pro-Am ahead of round (and series) winner Shahin, while Graham Williams put in one of his best performances of the year to finish the round and year in third.

Suhle and Boulton on top in Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge Qualifying

McElrea Racing tops the timesheets in Pro and Pro-Am Cup Challenge finale

McElrea Racing top the timesheets in Pro and Pro-Am Porsche finale

Ryan Suhle has saved his best to last in qualifying for the final round of the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge, taking his first pole position of the season today in the Grand Finale’ at The Bend Motorsport Park.

His teammate Brett Boulton made it a double delight for McElrea Racing, taking pole position in TAG Heuer Pro-Am as he attempts to overhaul local favourite Sam Shahin for the class championship.

In the dying laps of the 20-minute qualifying session, Suhle’s second-set of Michelin tyres worked superbly as his 1m50.9918s flying lap jumped him to the top of the charts on his penultimate lap of the session.

His lap was 0.2 seconds faster than the next best, Sonic Racing’s Aaron Love, and was so fast that it would have placed him fifth outright on the grid for the recent Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia round at The Bend.

After having already scored a pair of front-row starts this year, a breakthrough pole position came as a relief to the open-wheel graduate

“For me, it’s awesome to come out and do the job. We haven’t really shown our pace this year. We’ve been really fast but I’ve just made a few mistakes which means we’re not where we should be in the championship, in my opinion,” he said.

“I’ve never run here on new tyres. The first set I didn’t maximise the grip but the second set I put the lap time in and it was really good.”

Suhle said he was taking a measured approach to the final round off an often challenging season, as he looks ahead to a title tilt in 2020.

“I think this year I’ve tried to get involved a little bit too much which has meant I’ve had a few DNFs along the way, which has hurt my championship, so I’m trying to dial it down, get some good points and get some practice at that sort of mentality for next year – because next year I want to win the championship.”

Love was second, two spots ahead of championship leader and nearest title rival Harri Jones.

The pair were split by the second Sonic entry of local hero, Max Vidau, who qualified third.

Jones carries a 92-point lead into the final round of the season and while fourth place may not have been an ideal result for the title leader, it’s the third time this year the Queenslander will have started from that grid position.

Jones still retains a perfect podium finishing record this season with a series of solid top four results likely enough to see him crowned champion tomorrow.

Christian Pancione was fifth, less than a second from pole, while fellow Michelin Junior Tom Taplin qualified sixth.

In just his second-ever Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge round, Oliver Shannon qualified seventh and will start alongside TAG Heuer Pro-Am polesitter Brett Boulton.

Boulton trails class leader Sam Shahin by 76 points heading into tomorrow’s three races: his chances aided by The Bend Motorsport Park entry of Sam Shahin completing just one lap in qualifying after the car spun a belt on his out-lap.

As a result, Shahin will start race one from 16^th position while Boulton’s hopes for a come-from-behind victory gained momentum.

“It’s going to be massive – I need a good sleep tonight,” Boulton said.

“I got a bit lucky because he had a few dramas, but you never know in this business so we’re going to come out all guns blazing tomorrow and see how we go.

“It’s unreal, it’s definitely a drivers track and perfect for these cars. I’ve had a fair few offs here trying to find the limit but it’s great fun, awesome.”

Andrew Goldie, who trails class leader David Grieg by just 18 points in the Class B battle, qualified on pole in his category and also an outstanding ninth outright – Grieg two places back in 11^th.

Matt Belford rounded out the top 10 with second in TAG Heuer Pro-Am, one of the best performances of his season.

Ross McGregor – celebrating a record-breaking 35^th GT3 Cup Challenge round this weekend – was 12^th while Graham Williams, Rob Woods, Michael Loccisano, Shahin, Nathan Murray, Marty Ewer, Jonathan Glicksten and Tony Martin completed the field.

The three final races of the 2019 Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge series will be held tomorrow (Saturday) at The Bend Motorsport Park; all three to be streamed live via thenationals.com.au.

For more race information throughout the weekend, follow the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge social pages: Instagram – @CupChallengeAus / Twitter – @CupChallengeAus / Facebook.com/CupChallengeAus

Schedule – Round 6, The Bend

Saturday, 16 November

09:00-09:20 Race 1

11:45-12:05 Race 2

15:40-16:00 Race 3

TV Broadcast details

All three races will be streamed live via www.thenationals.com.au website

The Bend to decide Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge class titles in series finale

The Bend Motorsport Park to host the final round of the Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge

The Bend Motorsport Park to host the final round of the Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge

The sixth and final round of the 2019 Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge series gets underway this weekend in Tailem Bend in South Australia with all three class titles up for grabs. The fast and flowing turns of the 4.95km circuit that characterize The Bend Motorsport Park are tailor-made for the Porsche 911 GT3 cup cars and traditionally very hard on the Michelin control tyres.

The track is also the longest of all the tracks on the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge calendar and a favourite among both Pro and Pro-Am drivers due to its fast, but technical nature. With the outright, TAG Heuer Pro-Am and Class B titles all still to be decided, fans are likely to see the titles to go down to the wire in the final race on Saturday.

The Queensland based McElrea Racing team is leaving nothing to chance, having recently conducted test sessions at the circuit with their leading Pro and Pro-Am drivers including series leader Harri Jones and Ryan Suhle as well as TAG Heuer title contender Brett Boulton.

Jones sealed the Jim Richards Endurance Trophy in the last round at Sandown Raceway, ahead of Aaron Love and Christian Pancione. With three races (180 points) available over the weekend, the Helimods backed driver will be hoping to extend to stay out of harm’s way and maintain his 92 point advantage over Sonic Racing’s Aaron Love in second.

Both Love and teammate Max Vidau (who trails Jones by 142 points) still have a mathematical chance of clinching the Pro title and come off strong form leading into the event after dominant race victories in Sandown. Others in the hunt for race wins will be Christian Pancione, Tom Taplin and Ryan Suhle who have all showed good qualifying pace and consistency in the second half of the 2019 season.

The ultra-competitive Pro battle will again welcome the GWR Australia run entry of Oliver Shannon after his debut in the series in Sandown. With the third-most starts in series history, Sam Shahin will be looking for a fairy tale ending to his 2019 campaign by clinching the TAG Heuer Pro-Am series title at his own track.

Shahin comes off an amazing Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia performance in recent weeks, after winning all three Pro-Am races on the final round on the Gold Coast. The South Australian has a 73 point lead over Brett Boulton in second in the TAG Heuer standings for Michelin GT3 Cup challenge and the battle between the pair will be one of the highlights of the race weekend.

The Southern Star Windows entry of Ross McGregor sits a strong third in the Pro-Am championship standings, with a small, but mathematical chance (157 points adrift of Shahin) of taking the class title should the front runners have misfortune. McGregor is well clear of Rob Woods, Michael Hovey and Graham Williams in the points table, who are locked in their own battle for fourth and fifth position in the series.

After Sandown, McGregor is now the record holder for the highest number of race starts in the series’ history at 101, a record previously held by John Goodacre. Round 6 will also see the return of experienced Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge campaigner Michael Loccisano in the Porsche Centre Melbourne prepared Hallmarc entry, after missing the Sandown round due to work commitments abroad.

The closest class battle to be contested this weekend, will not be at the sharp end of the field, however, but rather toward the rear in the Class B category. The 2019 Class B season has witnessed a season-long tussle between Andrew Goldie and David Greig, with only 30 points separating the pair heading into this weekend, every race will count. With Tony Martin injuring his hand earlier in the season, Nathan Murray is assured of third in the Class B classification.

After a pair of practice sessions and a late afternoon qualifying session on Friday, all three races will be held on a busy Saturday and streamed live via the Shannons Nationals website.

For more race information throughout the weekend, follow the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge social pages: Instagram – @CupChallengeAus / Twitter – @CupChallengeAus / Facebook.com/CupChallengeAus

Entry list – Round 6, The Bend

Car #    CLASS      DRIVER            SURNAME     SPONSOR

1          3          Pro-Am      Jonathan          Gliksten           Cure FA

2          5          Class B       Nathan              Murray             Garage 1

3          7          Pro              Ryan                   Suhle                 Ryan Suhle Racing – Ray White

4          9          Class B      Tony                    Martin              TM Motorsport / The Triffid Bar. Venue

5          10         Pro-Am    Michael              Loccisano        Hallmarc

6          12         Pro             Harri                  Jones                 Heli Mods

7          13         Pro-Am     Sam                    Shahin               The Bend/HTFU

8          14         Pro-Am     Matt                   Belford              ID Land

9          22         Class B      Andrew            Goldie                Woodford Trailers

10         26         Pro            Tom                   Taplin                Taplin Real Estate

11         29         Pro-Am     Rob                   Woods               GWR/Commercial Interior Projects

12         38         Pro             Oliver               Shannon

13         76         Pro              Christian        Pancione          VCM Performance

14         77         Pro               Max                  Vidau                 Sonic Motor Racing

15         78         Pro               Aaron              Love                   Sonic Motor Racing / SRG Global

16         84         Pro-Am      Brett                Boulton             Bold Living

17         87         Class B         David              Greig                  Daikin Air Conditioning / DW Motorsport

18         93         Pro-Am      Marty               Ewer                   Dr Marty Ewer

19         99         Pro-Am      Ross                  McGregor         Southern Star Windows P/L

20         131      Pro-Am      Graham            Williams           Sonic Motor Racing / Williams Racing

LAP RECORD – THE BEND MOTORSPORT PARK

Cooper Murray – 1m53.9778s – (2018)

Schedule – Round 6, The Bend

Friday, 15 November

08:45-09:15 Practice 1

11:00-11:30 Practice 2

15:35-15:55 Qualifying

Saturday, 16 November

09:00-09:20 Race 1

11:45-12:05 Race 2

15:40-16:00 Race 3

TV Broadcast details

Qualifying and all three races will be streamed live via www.thenationals.com.au website

Vidau dominates Race 3 in Sandown while Jones takes Jim Richards Endurance Trophy

Max Vidau takes victory in Race 3 of Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge

Max Vidau takes victory in Race 3 of Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge

Race 3 of the penultimate round of Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge saw Aaron Love and Max Vidau dominate from the start to finish. Harri Jones’ consistent run of form also saw him claim the Jim Richards Endurance Trophy.

Clear sunny skies greeted the drivers as they lined up for Race 3 early on Sunday morning. The conditions were near perfect for close racing and a welcome sight from the cloud, wind and rain that characterised the previous days.

Max Vidau made a great start from the third row of the grid, immediately leapfrogging Harri Jones and slotting in behind Love into Turn 1. The Sonic Motor Racing teammates then pulled a small gap on the chasing field in the early laps, before contact between Nathan Murray and Jonathan Gliksten forced the NSW driver over the grass and into the side of luckless Matt Belford.

The first of two safety car periods bunched the field. Love then lead Vidau, Christian Pancione, Ryan Suhle and Harri Jones onto the pit straight as the green flag waived on Lap 6.

Sam Shahin too had made a strong start as he did in Race 2 to move ahead of championship rival, Brett Boulton in the TAG Heuer Pro-Am battle. Andrew Goldie lead the Class B battle from start to finish with David Greig consolidating a strong weekend by following him to the line in second and clinching the round victory.

A second safety car period came about after Matt Belford dived up the inside of Rob Woods into turn 9. Woods would spin and beach himself in the gravel trap while attempting to re-join the race.

The green flag waved with 23 laps remaining. In the fight for the Jim Richards Endurance Trophy, even if Love held his lead to the line, Harri Jones only needed to finish sixth or better to claim the Trophy. Ryan Suhle and Christian Pancione would then tangle onto the pit straight, leaving Jones to slot into third place.

Vidau would eventually pass Love for the lead at the mid-point of the race, while Ryan Suhle proved to be the fastest man on track for the second day in succession, breaking the lap record yet again with a time of 1:09.955.

Vidau grew his advantage over Love in the last laps and would hold onto take the race win.

After the race Sonic Racing Team Owner, Micheal Ritter spoke on the dominating performance of his two drivers, “We’ve had good results here and certainly had good speed this year, but not necessarily good results everywhere.”

“At the end of the day, the boys are racing each other no different to racing anyone else… other than a little bit more respect between them as teammates. In the end, I’m happy for Aaron to get the round win and a bunch of points as I am for Max to bounce back as he did for today’s win.

Jones would finish in third position over 9 seconds adrift of the leading pair. The McElrea Racing driver hasn’t been out of the top three this season and now holds not only the Jim Richards Endurance Trophy but the overall Championship lead with an advantage of 92 points heading into the final round.

Jones was followed home by Pancione and Suhle, while Sam Shahin would take a strong sixth overall and the round win in TAG Heuer Pro-Am. The South Australian built a gap of over 6secs to Brett Boulton, with Michael Hovey in third.

After the race, Shahin revealed he had been nursing the car to the finish, “I’m absolutely thrilled the way I drove that last race. I did my best lap in that third race on a used set of tyres. I knew the pace was there I just had to get it together. “

“But I kept getting a water pressure alarm as we had a hole in the radiator from about halfway through and I was really praying that the car was going to make it to the finish line. It gives me a lot of confidence and a lot of things have to go right over a race weekend for everyone to leave with a smile on their face.”

Shahin then pondered the prospect of clinching the Pro-Am title at his own circuit at the final round in November, “I don’t really want to think about it, but I can’t get it out of my head at the same time. I’ve finished second in Pro-Am in Cup Challenge in the past, so I just hope it goes well.”

The final round of the 2019 championship will take place the Bend Motorsport Park on 15-16 November.

Love wins Races 1 & 2 of Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge

Aaron Love takes victory in Races 1 & 2 of Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge

Aaron Love takes victory in Races 1 & 2 of Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge

Thanks to some long hours by the mechanics, the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Australia field was back to full strength after Friday’s incidents with a 19-car field rolling out for Race 1 on Saturday morning.

As the lights went out, Harri Jones made the perfect start, launching past the Bob Jane T-Marts / Sonic Racing entry of Max Vidau into the lead in Turn 1. Vidau’s sluggish start also saw him get passed by Aaron Love, Christian Pancione and Tom Taplin on the first lap with Suhle making up one spot to sixth – after a pit lane infringement saw him starting seventh.

Brett Boulton would jump from tenth overall to seventh and lead the TAG Heuer Pro-Am field from Sam Shahin and Danny Stutterd.

Despite light rain and drizzle characterizing the early laps, the conditions didn’t hinder the early pace, with Jones pulling out a 2.278sec gap over Love in second. Andrew Goldie mechanical issues continued from his Friday accident and Jones would catch the Class B competitor just as the West Australian limped back to the pit lane.

Jones lost his early 2-second advantage as a result and Love quickly seized the opportunity to make his move taking the lead at the end of the back straight.

Meanwhile, Ryan Suhle was setting a blistering pace, breaking the lap record on more than one occasion and eventually passing Max Vidau. Vidau would then spin while attempting to retake the position on Lap 9.

At the front of the field, the pace of Jones’s Helimods 911 GT3 improved as the race went on allowing him to challenge Love toward the back end of the race. In a thrilling final few laps, Jones would get held up while lapping Graham Williams, while Suhle would spin challenging Love for the lead. Love too, would run wide on the final corners but hold onto his advantage over the line and take the Race 1 win.

By the time the flag fell, the times set by the top six cars were all below the existing lap record – with the fastest lap of 1:10.012 of Suhle a testament to the grip of the Michelin tyres throughout the race.

Brett Boulton would take TAG Heuer Pro-Am line honours, 2.5secs ahead of Danny Stutterd and Sam Shahin, while David Greig would go unchallenged in Class B

As the teams lined up for Race 2 on Saturday afternoon, Harri Jones consistency through the first five rounds meant the McElrea Racing driver held 110-point championship advantage.

Race 2 started with the leading quartet spread four-wide into turn 1. Suhle made the best stat from the second row, but out braked himself heading into turn 1, leaving Christian Pancione to take the early race lead.

Further down the field, Danny Stutterd would spin out of contention while Tom Taplin would make contact with Vidau onto the back straight, earning him a drive-through penalty from the race stewards. Class B Championship rivals, Andrew Goldie and David Greig would also spin after contact in turn 1.

At the front Love would take lead in a tenacious high speed move into the infamous turn 6, forcing Pancione to run wide, damaging his front splitter and relegating him to third just ahead of Jones. The championship leader got a good run on Pancione down the pit straight, passing him on outside into turn 1.

Meanwhile, Vidau had fought his way back to fifth with 3 laps to go, with teammate Love ahead of Suhle, Jones and Pancione at the head of the field.

Unlike the first race, the backmarkers didn’t alter the result and Love held off the chasing pack taking his second victory for the weekend.

After the race, Love said, “It was a really hard-fought race, but I’m absolutely stoked to get the win by getting passed Christian and holding off Ryan to the end of the race.”

Sam Shahin would finish sixth behind the five Michelin Juniors, making it a win apiece in TAG Heuer Pro-Am ahead of the round’s final race on Sunday.

After the race, the Bend Motorsport Park owner said, “I got squeezed out being a little too courteous in Race 1, so the Race 2 start was good and once I was in the lead, no one was going to pass me.”

David Greig would again take the Class B win from Murray and Goldie, while debutant Oliver Shannon continued to impress in seventh from eleventh on the grid, in only his first Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge event.

Tomorrow’s final race will also decide the Jim Richards Endurance Champion for 2019. The race starts at 09:40 and will broadcast live on the Shannon’s Nationals livestream

Schedule – Round 5, Sandown

Sunday, 4 August

09:40-10:00am: Race 3

Lap records tumble as Jones and Shahin set the pace in Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge

Harri Jones and Sam Shahin top the Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge timesheets at Sandown

Harri Jones and Sam Shahin top the Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge timesheets at Sandown

Blustery grey skies greeted the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge teams and drivers as they arrived at Sandown Raceway for the Friday practice sessions for Round 5 of the 2019 championship.

A new section of freshly laid asphalt on the infamous track saw drivers struggle for consistency in the day’s first session. Sonic Racing teammates Aaron Love and Max Vidau would set the early pace on their home circuit.

With 15mins left in the session, Vidau’s pace was electric and he held over a second advantage over the chasing Pro field. But as the session continued, the chasing drivers slowly came to grips with changeable surface.

The gap between Vidau and the pack shortened to only a tenth of a second by the end of the session with championship leader Harri Jones improving to second, followed by McElrea Racing teammate, Ryan Suhle.

Danny Stutterd set the early pace on his return to the TAG Heuer Pro-Am class, posting a time over a second clear of Sam Shahin in the early session, while David Greig held the early advantage in Class B.

Just as the times continued to fall through the day’s second practice, the session was red-flagged. The timesheets reaffirmed that 2019 will go down as one of the most competitive in Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge history. Vidau, Jones, Suhle and Love had all gone under the 2018 lap record time of 1:11.1226 – set by Vidau – in 2018. The four Michelin Juniors drivers also followed by TAG Heuer Pro-Am Championship leader, Sam Shahin in fifth.

The Bend Motorsport Park owner’s time was good enough to split the Pro field with a sizable 0,7sec gap to Stutterd and 0,9sec advantage over championship rival, Brett Boulton, heading into qualifying.

Andrew Goldie would also make his intentions clear finishing the day’s second session with a healthy advantage over Class B arch rival David Greig by the time the session was red-flagged – due to a turn 4 collision between Michel Hovey and Rob Woods.

Goldie’s fortunes would change in qualifying though. The West Australian out braked himself on his third flying lap skidding through the gravel trap into the fence at turn 1. This put pay not only to his session but brought out another red flag.

With 5 minutes remaining, the pace at the front of the field was intense. Vidau was first to post a time of 1:10.3259 – almost 0,8secs under his own lap record – only to topped by Harri Jones in the dying minutes. Vidau’s last lap edged him closer again to the top, but Jones too would improve his advantage again in the final minute, posting a blistering time of 1:10.0670.

After qualifying a relieved Jones said, “That was an awesome session, it was shortened due to a red flag but when we got back on track I decided not to mess around and get the job done. I left it to the dying moments to put in my best two laps, but I’m happy with the result and can’t wait for tomorrow.”

Jones and Vidau were followed by Suhle, Love, Pancione and Tom Taplin, with Sam Shahin lining up seventh overall – over 0.5secs faster than his nearest rival in the TAG Heuer Pro Am Class.

Shahin said, “The day started off very ordinary, I just couldn’t get a read on the car in P1. But P2 and qualifying was good and the track just kept getting better. It was a shame for the red flag, but I’m very happy and absolutely thrilled.”

Race 1 starts at 10:45 on Saturday and all three of the weekend’s races will be streamed live via www.thenationals.com.au website         

Schedule – Round 5, Sandown Raceway

Saturday, 21 September

10:45-11:05: Race 1

15:05-15:25: Race 2

Sunday, 22 September

09:10-09:55: Race 3 (Jim Richards Endurance Trophy)

Sandown to crown Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge Endurance Champions

Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge battle intensifies at Sandown

Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge battle intensifies at Sandown

After a six-week break, the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge teams head to Springvale, 25km to the south-east of Melbourne’s CBD to the historic Sandown Raceway for round 5 of the 2019 Championship.

The 3.1km track – which has played host to the likes of Jack Brabham, Jim Clark, Juan Manuel Fangio and Jean-Louis Schlesser in its illustrious past – will be a fitting host to the finale of the Championship’s prized Jim Richards Endurance Trophy.

Named in honour of the Australasian racing legend, Jim Richards, the Trophy was first held in 2011 as a series within the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge Championship. Past victors have included the likes of Roger Lago (2011); Fraser Ross (2014); Jaxon Evans (2016); Jordan Love (2017) and Cooper Murray (2018) to name but a few.

Only three drivers have a mathematical chance of claiming the 2019 Jim Richards Endurance Trophy in the final race at Sandown on Sunday. Among those in contention is current championship Pro class leader Harri Jones (228pts), followed by the SRG Global/Sonic Motor Racing entry of Aaron Love (198pts) and Melbourne resident, Christian Pancione on 180pts.

Jones, Love and Pancione are also among the leading protagonists for Pro class round honours this weekend, together with fellow Michelin Junior drivers Ryan Suhle and Max Vidau. Vidau will be hungry to get his championship fight back on track after he was forced to retire while leading Race 2 in Queensland Raceway.

Vidau broke the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup Challenge lap record at the Sandown circuit in 2018 with a time of 1m11.1226s and will be a strong favourite for victory this weekend, thanks in part to the local knowledge of his Sonic Motor Racing Team.

With 60 points on offer per race, the championship is still wide open with Bob Jane T-Marts driver lying third in the overall championship, 8 points adrift of Sonic teammate Aaron Love and 24 points behind the Heli Mods entry of series’ leader Harri Jones.

Cameron Crick will hand over the reins to the GWR Australia entry in Sandown to Oliver Shannon from the NSW Production Touring series, after a successful test session for the talented junior under the guidance of team owner Garth Walden at Wakefield Park last Saturday. Shannon will race under the Race for a Cure banner and promises to be one of the most exciting additions to the competitive Pro field.

In the TAG Heuer Pro-Am battle, Sam Shahin holds a healthy 76 point advantage over Brett Boulton after dominating the class in the first two rounds of this season in Tasmania and Sydney Motorsport Park. Boulton then returned serve with four victories (and a second-place) from the last six races.

Shahin will be doing all in his power to maintain his point’s buffer, but Boulton looks to have the momentum and is working well with his McElrea Racing team.

The Southern Star Windows entry of Ross McGregor sits third in the Pro-Am championship standings, well clear of Rob Woods and Graham Williams who are locked in their own battle for fifth position. McGregor will equal the highest number of round starts in the series’ history this weekend, a record currently held by John Goodacre.

Sandown will also see the return of experienced Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge campaigners, Danny Stutterd and Jonathan Gliksten to the TAG Heuer Pro-am field. While Michael Loccisano will miss this round due to business commitments abroad.

In the hotly contested Class B championship, it remains a two-horse race between David Greig and Andrew Goldie, the 997 pair sharing every race win this season… Sandown should be no different. Tony Martin has injured his hand is out for the rest of the season, which leaves his third place in the championship in jeopardy from Nathan Murray.

After a pair of practice sessions and late afternoon qualifying on Friday, two races will be held on a busy Saturday. The final Jim Richards Endurance Trophy completes the round on Sunday morning, with all three races streamed live via the Shannons Nationals website.

Car #    CLASS                         DRIVER          SURNAME        SPONSOR

3          TAG Heuer Pro-Am         Jonathan           Gliksten               Cure FA

5          Class B                                Nathan               Murray                Garage 1

7            Pro                                     Ryan                    Suhle                  Ray White

12          Pro                                     Harri                    Jones                 Heli Mods

13          TAG Heuer Pro-Am       Sam                      Shahin               The Bend/HTFU

14          TAG Heuer Pro-Am       Matt                      Belford              ID Land

22         Class B                               Andrew                 Goldie               Woodford Trailers

23         TAG Heuer Pro-Am       Danny                    Stutterd            CB – Living

26         Pro                                     Tom                        Taplin               Taplin Real Estate

29         TAG Heuer Pro-Am       Rob                          Woods             Commercial Interior Projects

73         TAG Heuer Pro-Am       Michael                   Hovey              Triffid Bar

76         Pro                                     Christian                 Pancione         VCM Performance

77          Pro                                     Max                         Vidau                Sonic Motor Racing / Bob Jane T-Marts

78         Pro                                      Aaron                      Love                  Sonic Motor Racing / SRG Global

84         TAG Heuer Pro-Am       Brett                         Boulton            Bold Living

87         Class B                              David                       Greig                 Daikin Air Conditioning / DW Motorsport

99         TAG Heuer Pro-Am       Ross                         McGregor         Southern Star Windows P/L

131        TAG Heuer Pro-Am       Graham                   Williams            Sonic Motor Racing

222       TAG Heuer Pro-Am       Scott                         Taylor                Scott Taylor Motorsport

TBC      Pro                                     Oliver                       Shannon           Race for a Cure

Schedule – Round 5, Sandown Raceway

Friday, 20 September

12:10-12:40: Practice 1

14:55-15:25: Practice 2

17:40-18:00: Qualifying

Saturday, 21 September

10:45-11:05: Race 1

15:05-15:25: Race 2

Sunday, 22 September

09:10-09:55: Race 3 (Jim Richards Endurance Trophy)

TV Broadcast details

Qualifying and all three races will be streamed live via www.thenationals.com.au website

Harri Jones extends Championship lead with victory in Race 3

Jones takes victory in the final race of Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge in QR

Harri Jones takes victory in the final race of Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge in QR

As a blanket of early fog lifted from the Queensland Raceway on Sunday morning, all eyes were on the front row-pairing Harri Jones and Christian Pancione for the final race of Round 4 of the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge.

The pair had traded blows the whole weekend and with championship rival, Max Vidau starting from the back of the field, Jones would be looking to extend his lead overall. Pancione, by contrast, would be hungrier than ever for his first win in Porsche GT3 Cup Car – having finished behind Jones in third and second respectively for the weekends’ first races.

Race 3 literally started with a bang near the back of the TAG Heuer Pro-Am class, with Matt Belford and Graham Williams coming together off the start line. Belford’s car would pivot into the newly-reinforced Queensland Raceway pit wall, while Williams’ car would limp on to the outside of Turn 1.

With both cars stranded, a lengthy safety car period ensued. Jones backed up the field before the restart as he had done successfully in Race 2 and was closely followed by Pancione, Aaron Love, Ryan Suhle and Tom Taplin.

Sam Shahin had got the jump on Brett Boulton in the TAG Heuer Pro-Am class after the Race 2 winner struggled off the start. Andrew Goldie and David Greig meanwhile, resumed where they had left off and continued their weekend-long tussle in Class B.

The safety car period removed any concerns the drivers might have had regards tyre conservation for Race 3 and it would be an intense finish to the line.

Jones executed the perfect restart as the cars emerged onto the pit straight with 7 laps remaining. Pancione slotted into second but challenged Jones for the lead down the back straight.

Jones took a defensive line into Turn 2 and retained his slight advantage, while McElrea teammate, Ryan Suhle was held up behind Aaron Love in the battle for third.

Suhle had better tyres and race pace than Love, causing the Bob Jane T-Marts driver to defend aggressively for a number of laps. Suhle eventually lost patience and dove up the inside of the left-handed turn 3 in the dying laps.

The contact relegated Love to fifth behind Sonic Racing teammate Max Vidau, who had made an impressive recovery from the back of the grid. After the race, the stewards would hand down a 15sec post-race penalty to Suhle, dropping the McElrea Racing driver to 11^th in the final classification.

Jones would hold off Pancione for the race (and round) win, while Sam Shahin and Goldie would take line honours in their respective classes.

After the race, Jones thanked his team and sponsors, “It’s been an awesome weekend, with two victories, a second and the round win, all in front of my support team and Heli Mods sponsors. The car was unreal and I can’t thank McElrea Racing team enough.”

“Taking the series’ 200th race yesterday afternoon, was one of the best races of my life and my season so far. With such a long race, it was probably one of the biggest challenges for myself and the team, as it’s easy to produce a car that’s quick in the first 10 laps, but producing a car that’s quick over 30 laps is just awesome.”

The Queenslander extends his lead in the overall Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge Championship, as the teams now head south for Round 5 at Sandown Raceway on the 20-22 September

For race interviews, pictures and videos, follow the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge social pages: Instagram – @CupChallengeAus / Twitter – @CupChallengeAus / Facebook.com/CupChallengeAus

Full Results: https://gt3cup.wpengine.com/results/    

Next race: Round 5, Sandown Raceway

20-22 August 2019

Vidau and Jones share the victories in Races 1 & 2

Vidau takes Race 1 victory in Queensland, while Jones wins Race 2

Vidau takes Race 1 victory in Queensland, while Jones wins Race 2

The battle at the sharp end of the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge field has never been tighter between the categories leading teams and drivers, with lap times thus far being the fastest ever recorded at the Queensland Raceway for this generation Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car.

While McElrea Racing drivers Harri Jones and Ryan Suhle topped the Friday practice sessions, it was the turn of Christian Pancione from Ashley Seward Motorsport (ASM) to set the pace in qualifying on Saturday morning.

After a strong performance behind the McElrea pairing the previous day, Pancione set the early pace in Saturday’s qualifying and gradually got quicker through the morning session. After the trio of leading Michelin Juniors all pitted for fresh tyres with 5 minutes remaining, Pancione would emerge to post the fastest time of the weekend, narrowly edging out Ryan Suhle for pole position by a mere 0.040secs. Harri Jones and Max Vidau meanwhile would qualify in third and fourth respectively.

After the session, Pancione credited the pole position to the work of his ASM team, “Overnight the team and I went through the data and we saw where I could improve. The team did an amazing job with the car and I can’t thank the ASM guys enough.”

After a disappointing Phillip Island Round, Pancione also underwent development work with Paul Morris at his Norwell Motorplex in Queensland and together with the ASM team, looks to have found some good form at the mid-point of the 2019 season.

Brett Boulton would continue to set the pace in TAG Heuer Pro-Am class, as he had done all weekend, taking pole position ahead of Sam Shahin and Michael Hovey. Andrew Goldie would continue his season-long tussle with David Greig in Class B, out-qualifying the Victorian by just under 0.4secs.

The West Australian also credited the ASM team to his improved performance this season, “The biggest difference from last year, is that this year we are running with Ash Seward Motorsport. As privateers, we didn’t have access to data previously, but the coaching and assistance I’ve received from Ash this year, has really made all the difference with me going faster.”

But as the red lights went out for the start of Race 1, so too did the hopes of the ASM teammates. Both Pancione and Suhle got jumped off the line by the Bob Jane T-Marts entry of Max Vidau. The Sonic Racing driver drove from fourth to first around the outside of Turn 1, with Harri Jones slotting into second and Pancione into third.

Under braking for Turn 3 Ryan Suhle was squeezed to the outside and made contact back of Pancione. The incident bent the young Queenslander’s steering rack and forced him into early retirement, unravelling all the hard work he had put in the previous day.

At the front of the field, Vidau was making the best job of leading pack on his Michelin tyres, and the leading trio soon pulled a 4.5sec gap on Cameron Crick in P4.

Tony Martin would then spin under breaking into the final corner. The resultant safety car would see Vidau, Jones and Pancione lose the advantage they had built up to the chasing field.

After the restart, the leading trio again looked to escape the pack, but on this occasion, Crick kept pace holding onto a strong fourth. Brett Boulton meanwhile, led the TAG Heuer Pro-Am battle in fifth. He was chased by Sam Shahin for most of the race, until contact with Tom Taplin with 6 laps remaining, saw Shahin retire with a puncture.

The last three laps were a masterclass performance by the leading Pro trio demonstrating hard, but fair racing. Vidau defended his lead from Jones who in turn came under intense pressure from Pancione. After some doorhandle-to-doorhandle passes and tit-for-tat exchanges, it was Jones that would cross the line second behind Vidau.

After the race, an ecstatic Vidau remarked, “Our cold tyre pace was great in the beginning, but that unfortunately hindered us at the end of the race as I killed the rear tyres. That meant I had to block very aggressively at the end, but I was happy to hold on for the race win.”

The final session of the day marked not only the 33 lap Jim Richards Endurance Trophy race for the 4^th round but also the 200^th race milestone in Porsche Michelin GT# Cup Challenge history.

Vidau started in the same fashion that he finished the first, narrowly edging out Harri Jones for the lead into turn 1, but Jones undercut the Sonic driver to take inside line onto the back straight and head the field on the opening lap.

After his dramas in the Race 1, Ryan Suhle would start from the back of the 19-car grid, but soon pass six cars on the opening lap on his way through the field.  By lap 10, a slight gap had emerged between the leading trio of Jones, Vidau and Pancione to the chasing pack. But a lapse in concentration exiting the ‘paperclips’ left-hand turn 3, would see Jones run wide and offer Vidau the opportunity to take the lead.

Further back in the Class B battle, Andrew Goldie would overtake David Greig for the lead and proceed to extend his advantage to the line. Brett Boulton would continue to dominate the TAG Heuer Pro-Am class pulling out a 6 sec advantage over Sam Shahin.

At the sharp end of the field, Vidau had controlled the pace for two-thirds of the race, until suddenly starting to slow on lap 21. Vidau’s mechanical issues caused Jones to take evasive action and hand the lead to Pancione. Vidau’s retirement dealt a devastating blow to the young South Australian and his Bob Jane T-Marts team.

Jones would then retake the lead from Pancione with a gutsy move around the outside of Turn 1, while teammate Ryan Suhle had made his way through the field to fifth. After a safety car in the dying laps bunched the field once more, it was all to play for with 5 laps remaining.

The restart would allow Suhle the opportunity to get passed Crick for fourth and pass Aaron Love around the outside turn 3 for third, mark an amazing recovery drive from the back of the field.

Jones would hold off Pancione in the last laps to take the historic 200^th Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge race win and further extend his lead in the Championship. The battle resumes on Sunday morning for the final race of the weekend.

For more race information throughout the weekend, follow the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge social pages: Instagram – @CupChallengeAus / Twitter – @CupChallengeAus / Facebook.com/CupChallengeAus

Full Results: https://gt3cup.wpengine.com/results/    

Schedule – Round 4, Queensland Raceway

Sunday, 4 August

09:40-10:00am: Race 3

TV Broadcast details

Qualifying and all three races will be streamed live via www.thenationals.com.au website

Jones and Suhle leverage home advantage in Queensland Practice

McElrea drivers set the early pace in Practice 1 and 2 of Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge

McElrea drivers set the early pace in Practice 1 and 2 of Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge

Clear, sunny conditions welcomed the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge teams and competitors to Round 4 of the 2019 Championship at the Queensland Raceway in Ipswich on Friday.

McElrea Racing teammates, Harri Jones and Ryan Suhle put their hometown advantage to good use, taking turns to top the timesheets in the Pro Class in the day’s practice session. Jones grabbed a last-minute advantage over Suhle in the dying moments of the morning session, with Christian Pancione and Phillip Island round winner, Jordan Love also showing good pace throughout the session in third and fourth respectively.

Jones and Suhle are both Queensland based and are thriving under the experience of the McElrea team, whose resume of developing future stars has included the likes of Matt Campbell, Jaxon Evans and Cooper Murray in recent years.

In the TAG Heuer Pro-Am class, Scott Taylor set the early pace in Practice 1 but was soon demoted down the order by first Sam Shahin and then Brett Boulton, while Andrew Goldie was unchallenged in Class B.

After the day’s first session Jones remarked, “It’s been a good start to the weekend, we struggled on the first set of tyres, the Supercars rubber that went down last week has changed the track a fair bit, but we made a few tweaks and finished off P1.”

“I love Ipswich, it’s my home track and I’ve not only driven here for a few years but its where I started my racing career. It’s probably not the most exciting circuit in Australia, but definitely produces some exciting racing.”

Fellow McElrea teammate, Brett Boulton would also find his home town advantage beneficial despite the slippery conditions, “We were fortunate with this being our home track and to have had a test day here last weekend. While the track was slippery early on, I’m happy we could carry good momentum into this weekend.”

By the time the day’s second practice session commenced later in the afternoon, the sky was littered with rain threatening clouds but the session thankfully stayed dry allowing most teams to finalise their set up for the Saturday’s early qualifying.

After Jones again grabbed the early advantage in the second session, it was Max Vidau’s turn to join the party, bettering the 1m11.615 lap time Jones had posted in the morning session by a full tenth.

But as the session wore on, the times continued to fall with Pancione being the first to drop under the 1m11:4 mark. Suhle, Pancione and Jones then all dropped into the 1m10.6 sec bracket in quick succession with 5 minutes remaining.

New sets of Michelin rubber for both Suhle and Jones, finally saw the McElrea teammates round out the session with the days’ quickest times. Suhle’s final 1m10.561 lap was over 0.4secs faster than the 4-year-old lap record previously held by Ryan Simpson in 2015.

Boulton and Goldie again proved the pick of their respective classes and look likely to repeat the feat going into tomorrow’s qualifying. Tomorrow’s two races, along with Sunday morning’s final sprint race will all be streamed live via the Shannons Nationals website.

For more race information throughout the weekend, follow the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge social pages: Instagram – @CupChallengeAus / Twitter – @CupChallengeAus / Facebook.com/CupChallengeAus

Schedule – Round 4, Queensland Raceway

Saturday, 3 August

09:25–9:45am: Qualifying

12:55–13:15pm: Race 1

16:05–16:50pm: Race 2 (Jim Richards Endurance Trophy)

Sunday, 4 August

09:40-10:00am: Race 3

TV Broadcast details

Qualifying and all three races will be streamed live via www.thenationals.com.au website

Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge celebrates 200th race

Queensland Raceway to host the 200th race of Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge this weekend

Queensland Raceway will host the 200^th race of Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge this weekend

As the primary feeder category for the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia, the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge provides a home to not only seasoned racing enthusiasts but future stars.

This weekend will mark the 200th race in the series history, a significant milestone for the category and the Australian motorsport landscape. Created as a series for Porsche enthusiasts – by Porsche enthusiasts – its catered for 991, 997 and 996 models that had previously raced in the Porsche Carrera cup Australia.

The first-ever race was held at Mallala Raceway on 28 May 2008. Graeme Cook won all three races from Sven Burchartz that weekend, with the latter going on to claim the inaugural 2008 championship.

Commenting on the 200 milestone for the series, Burchartz said, “I’m really proud to see how the category has evolved and flourished over last years. It’s found its true home now, as an integral step within the Porsche Motorsport pyramid.”

The series would extend from 4 races to 6 for 2009, with Matt Kingsley taking the 996 class and outright championship ahead of Burchartz, while Roger Lago would become the first 997 class champion. The 997 cars were permitted to run with the series one year earlier than expected, as Carrera Cup went on hiatus for 2009 and 2010 seasons.

These 997 cars raced for points in their own class but were not awarded outright points, and thus, were not credited with outright race wins, poles or podiums in the record books. Burchartz along with John Trend and Jodi Zylstra were all instrumental to the creation of the series in 2008.

Zylstra explains how the category first came about, “GT3 Cup Challenge started as there was a need for drivers at the time – who didn’t want to race in the Australian GT Championship – to establish their own category as many of the Porsches were already eligible, as well as others that could be accommodated within the class under the technical regulations. Sven (Burchartz) and Jon Trende approached Porsche Cars Australia in December 2007 and immediately got the support from Jamey Blaikie and Michael Winkler.”

After the foundation was laid, Zylstra – who was Operations Manager for Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge at the time – was approached by Porsche Cars Australia to oversee the running of both categories, when Porsche Carrera Cup Australia was reintroduced in 2011

There were no real issues or obstacles in those early years recalls Zylstra, as Trend and Burchartz infused a mantra among competitors of ‘Race with your mates.’ Basically, anyone who had a Porsche and wanted to race, could come away and compete with series for the weekend.

“We always tried to keep the competitor costs down and at the time, it was as much about the comradery among the drivers, as it was about the action on the track. There was always a lot of laughs and fun on Friday and Saturday nights. None of the guys took themselves too seriously in those days, but of course, all that changed as soon as they got on the track the next morning.”

This sense of community prevails in the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge paddock until today, although the make-up of the grid has evolved. While still providing a home for the enthusiasts of the German marque, in recent years Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge has become the country’s most proven launchpad for talented youngsters to climb the Porsche Motorsport pyramid.

The series has witnessed many of today’s top-level drivers cut their teeth in national competition, giving rise to the likes of Matt Campbell, Jaxon Evans, Fraser Ross, Roger Lago, Michael Almond, Brenton Grove, Dylan O’Keeffe and Tony Quinn, to name but a few.

Since 2008 there have been 67 rounds of the series and a total of 199 individual races held at those rounds. Of these 199 races, only two have been declared as ‘no results’. The first was in 2008 at Phillip Island, when Race 3 was cancelled after a barrier was damaged on the warm-up lap, with the resultant repairs forcing the cancellation of the race.

2009 at Eastern Creek, Race 2 was also declared a ‘no result’ after a multi-car accident on the opening lap caused a Safety Car and ultimately a red flag with the race declared.

As both races had started (a warm-up lap is considered a start under CAMS NCRs) the record books reflect that Queensland Raceway will host the 200^th race this weekend, a huge milestone in the category’s history.

The records also reflect that Matt Kingsley holds the record for the most pole positions (9); the most round wins (8) and the most race wins (24) in the series history. While Jeff Bobik holds the record for the most outright podium finishes (13) and John Goodacre the record for the most round starts (34)

Qualifying and all the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge races from Queensland Race this weekend will be streamed live via www.thenationals.com.au website

For more race information throughout the weekend, follow the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge social pages: Instagram – @CupChallengeAus / Twitter – @CupChallengeAus / Facebook.com/CupChallengeAus

Harri Jones leads Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge battle into QR

Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge teams head to Queensland for Round 4 of the 2019 Championship

Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge teams head to Queensland for Round 4 of the 2019 Championship

Forty kilometres south-west of the Brisbane CBD lies the City of Ipswich, a historic mining settlement founded in 1827. Along with the city’s more than 6000 heritage-listed sites and 500 parklands, many of its 200 000 residents are ardent motorsport fans and huge supporters of the local race track, the Queensland Raceway.

The 3.12km circuit – dubbed the ‘paperclip’ for its unusual layout of four right and 2 left-hand turns – plays host to Round 4 of the 2019 Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge Championship this weekend, the premium one-make category of the Shannons Nationals series.

The Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge Championship has always been a feeder category for the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia, catering for both experienced Porsche enthusiasts as well as up-and-coming stars of the future.

This weekend, Race 2 will mark the 200th race in the series history, a significant milestone for the category and the Australian motorsport landscape. The first-ever race was held at Mallala Raceway on 28 May 2008. Greame Cook won all three races from Sven Burchchartz that weekend, with the latter going on to claim the inaugural 2008 championship.

From 2008 to 2018 there have been 67 rounds of the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge Australia series and of these 199 individual races, only three have been declared ‘no races’.

Over its history, the series has witnessed many drivers cut their teeth in top-level national racing and given rise to the likes of Matt Campbell, Jaxon Evans, Fraser Ross, Roger Lago, Michael Almond, Brenton Grove, Dylan O’Keefe and Tony Quinn.

The category is also the launchpad for talented youngsters to climb the Porsche Motorsport pyramid. After successful campaigns in Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge, Jordan Love and Cooper Murray have looked to emulate Campbell and Evans’ progression up the ladder thanks to dominant performances in the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia season thus far.

Love’s brother Aaron, was the pick of the Michelin Junior contenders in Round 3 of the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge Championship in Phillip Island. But with three different winners from three different rounds this season, anyone can take line honours in Queensland, with all seven Michelin Junior drivers occupying the first eight positions in the overall standings.

Harri Jones’ pace and consistency through every round sees him head the Championship into Queeensland with a 58 point lead over Max Vidau and Aaron Love. The Sonic Motor racing teammates are tied for second position with Ryan Suhle and Christian Pancione fourth and fifth, respectively.

Sam Shahin continues to lead TAG Heuer Pro-Am class, although his earlier comfortable margin has been reduced to 42 points with Ross McGregor in second and ever-improving Brett Boulton in third.

David Grieg retains the lead Class B however his margin too was reduced last time out, thanks to Andrew Godie’s clean sweep at Phillip Island.

The Ipswich round will also see the Jim Richards Endurance Trophy decided across all four classes. After a pair of practice sessions on Friday, qualifying and two races will be held on a busy Saturday – the second race the longer, Jim Richards Endurance Trophy affair.

A final sprint race completes the round on Sunday morning with all three to be streamed live via the Shannons Nationals website.

Schedule – Round 4, Queensland Raceway

Friday, 2 August

11.25-11:55am: Practice 1

15:50-16:20pm: Practice 2

Saturday, 3 August

09:25–9:45am: Qualifying

12:55–13:15pm: Race 1

16:05–16:50pm: Race 2 (Jim Richards Endurance Trophy)

Sunday, 4 August

09:40-10:00am: Race 3

TV Broadcast details

Qualifying and all three races will be streamed live via www.thenationals.com.au website

For more race information throughout the weekend, follow the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge social pages: Instagram – @CupChallengeAus / Twitter – @CupChallengeAus / Facebook.com/CupChallengeAus

Porsche celebrates one-two victory at Spa endurance classic

Porsche dominates the 2019 24 Hours of Spa

Porsche dominates the 2019 Total 24 Hours of Spa in Belgium, the world’s biggest GT3 sportscar race.

The GPX Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R crewed by the current FIA WEC Sportscar World Champions Kévin Estre (France), Michael Christensen (Denmark), and Austria’s Richard Lietz finished first at the Belgian long distance classic after 363 laps, securing Porsche its seventh Spa 24 Hour overall win.

The 500+hp Porsche 911 GT3 R fielded by Rowe Racing (#998) rounded off the one-two victory of the Porsche teams at the marathon in the Ardennes. Five of the six Pro-cars from Porsche finished the 71st running of the 24 Hours of Spa in the top ten.

Right from the start, the rain played the leading role at the 24-hour classic in Belgium. In the early hours of Sunday morning, the race had to be stopped for almost six hours due to heavy downpours. But even this interruption couldn’t end the victorious drive of the number 20 Porsche 911 GT3 R. The crew with Estre, Christensen, and Lietz, which had been relegated down the field by a drive-through penalty in the evening, put in an impressive charge through the field.

When the race was halted, the driver trio had made it back to eighth place with a series of flawless and constantly fast stints and made up more positions after the race was restarted. With two hours to go, the GT3 R driven by Kévin Estre took the lead, which the Frenchman held driving the slick-shod car on a damp track surface. After nine years, it was time to celebrate again for Porsche at the prestigious endurance classic in the Ardennes.

The Rowe Racing #998 Porsche 911 GT3 R also had a race of mixed fortunes on the 7.004 kilometre storied circuit. Patrick Pilet (France), Frédéric Makowiecki (France) and Nick Tandy (Great Britain) also lost many places due to a drive-through penalty and caught up to the frontrunners in the night with a strong performance in the rain. During the closing stages of the race, rain specialist Tandy conquered second place with several skilful overtaking manoeuvres to secure the one-two win for Porsche.

Scoring three more top ten placings, the Porsche customer teams crowned their strong and unified showing at the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps. The #98 and #99 Porsche 911 GT3 R fielded by Rowe Racing finished fifth and seventh. KÜS Team75 Bernhard brought its identical #117 911 GT3 R home in ninth place.

Fritz Enzinger, Vice President Porsche Motorsport: “Congratulations to our customer teams at Spa. The effort of the engineers, strategists, the pit crews, and the drivers impressed me deeply. They all co-operated with our support crew from Weissach in the best possible way. We’ve scored this victory together. And the Porsche 911 again proved to be the car to beat at sportscar races.”

VIDEO NEWS: https://vimeo.com/350594959

Result
1. Estre/Christensen/Lietz (F/DK/A), Porsche 911 GT3 R, 363 laps
2. Pilet/Makowiecki/Tandy (F/F/GB), Porsche 911 GT3 R, 363 laps
3. Engel/Buurman/Stolz (D/NL/D), Mercedes-AMG GT3, 363 laps
5. Müller/Dumas/Jaminet (D/F/F), Porsche 911 GT3 R, 362 laps
7. Olsen/Campbell/Werner (N/AUS/D), Porsche 911 GT3 R, 362 laps
9. Bernhard/Vanthoor/Bamber (D/B/NZ), Porsche 911 GT3 R, 362 laps

248 drivers took up the 24 hour classic at Spa-Francorchamps in 72 cars. Eleven marques were represented at the 71st running of the Ardennes marathon, which is also Round 3 of the 2019 Intercontinental GT Challenge. Porsche also won the opening round of the 2019 IGTC at the Bathurst 12 Hour in February.

Bathurst winning Porsche 911 GT3-R set to return to Australia

Matt Campbell's Bathurst winning Porsche 911 GT3-R set to return to Australia

The triumphant Bathurst12-Hour Porsche 911 GT3-R of Dennis Olsen, Dirk Werner and Porsche Junior Driver, Matt Campbell is set to return home.

The same Porsche 911 GT3-R that made a heroic charge from fourth to the lead of the 2019 Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12-Hour in the final hour, will return to Australia later this year.

Porsche Carrera Cup Asia racing driver, Paul Tresidder has purchased the winning car piloted by Dennis Olsen, Dirk Werner and Porsche Junior Driver, Matt Campbell. The historical victory marked Porsche’s first outright win in Australia’s International Enduro, adding the iconic endurance event to their trophy case.

A long-term exponent of the famous German marque, Tresidder was competing in the race with team Porsche Carrera Cup Asia – eventually finishing second in Class B and 19th outright.

As the race built towards its thrilling climax, the Sydney resident was watching from his own pit garage as Matt Campbell hauled the Earl Bamber Motorsport-prepared car through the international field. Following the Bathurst triumph, the car was flown to Germany and placed on display in the Porsche museum.

However, Tresidder’s purchase of the 911 GT3-R from Porsche Motorsport last month, means the car will ultimately return to Australia.

“I was there in our pits watching the last hour of the race unfold. Whilst all three drivers contributed to the end result, for me the stand out drive of the day was Matt Campbell with three overtaking moves in the last hour of the race, the best I have ever seen,” Tresidder explained.

“I was also competing in the same race with the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia team, so there are great memories associated with this epic win. As an Australian, I wanted to bring the car back home.”

Tresidder was presented the car last month in the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart, with Campbell on hand to ‘hand over the keys’ to the car. Despite his long relationship with the Porsche brand, Tresidder said he initially didn’t think he would be able to purchase the black GT3R, which features the iconic Silver Fern along its flanks.

“I thought I wouldn’t stand a chance of being able to secure the car, having won the 12-Hour,” he explained.

“However after the race I caught up with Alex Gibot (Head of Porsche Motorsport in the Asia-Pacific region) and told him I would like to buy it. Alex knows my history with Porsche Carrera Cup Asia and my love of Porsche, plus the car would be coming home to Australia and properly looked after.

“Alex started the process by contacting Porsche in Stuttgart and got the ball rolling, and fortunately we were successful.”

Currently still in Germany, the 911 GT3-R will begin a long journey home later this year via a stop at the Porsche Sports Cup China in October – a significant event in the region which will also feature several Porsche Museum cars on show on and off the track.

After driving the car for the first time in Shanghai, the car will return to Australia where Tresidder plans to race it as it was designed.

“I will race it lightly, probably the first event will be Bathurst at Easter 2020,” he confirmed.

“The now-famous livery will also stay, the only change will be to wipe off the sticky remains of Matt’s Champagne!”

With multiple starts to his credit in the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour, Tresidder says the 12-Hour is well established as one of the world’s great races and the victory for Porsche had great significance for the brand and for him personally.

“This was Earl Bamber Motorsport’s first attempt running two factory cars and for him and his team to get a first time victory – and a first victory for Porsche – it doesn’t get much better.”

Bamber and Campbell, along with their Porsche GT team mates, will defend their 24-point lead in the Manufacturers standings of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in Lime Rock (USA) this weekend.

The race over 2:40 hours takes off on Saturday, 20 July and can be viewed live outside the USA and Canada on www.imsa.com.

Love joins the party with round 3 victory

Three rounds, three winners after teenager claims classic Phillip Island battle

TEENAGER Aaron Love has become the third winner from three rounds in the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge Australia, sweeping to victory at the Phillip Island Grand Prix circuit in Victoria.

In a winner-take-all finale, Love entered the final race of the weekend tied on points with teammate Max Vidau and Championship leader Harri Jones, but won the start and fended off his rivals in a stunning 11-lap sprint to score his second race win of the year – and take the round overall.

Harri Jones finished second overall to extend his title lead, while Max Vidau completed the podium.

Brett Boulton won TAG Heuer Pro-Am in race three, while Shane Barwood won a highly competitive round in the Pro-Am class. Andrew Goldie swept all three races to win Class B.

Love, however, was the star as he won the start and fended off Jones and Vidau before gradually pulling away from the battle for second, ultimately recording a three-second victory aboard his Sonic Motor Racing Porsche.

His results mirror the efforts of older brother Jordan, who won the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia round at Phillip Island earlier this year.

As such, the Love brothers now each sit second in their respective championship standings heading into the second half of the year with Aaron now right in contention for the GT3 Cup Challenge title.

“A lot of hard work goes in to it. There’s something about this track and (brother, Jordan) and I that mix with this track really well,” Love said.

“I’m absolutely stoked, thanks to the Sonic boys this weekend. The team pushed me along though the last few races which has really helped and it’s great to come away with the win. It was a close fought battle between each of us this weekend in every race and that makes it even sweeter to come away with the round victory.

“It looks really good in the championship now and we will be pushing harder than ever for the championship coming into the second half of the season.”

The race was yet another thriller and while Love found himself with a margin late in the race, the battle behind was furious.

Jones and Vidau battled for the duration with the pair side-by-side on multiple occasions. The fight for second became a three-way battle late in the race when Ryan Suhle joined the fun, after he diced with Christian Pancione earlier on.

Tom Taplin charged to sixth place while Brett Boulton was seventh and first in TAG Heuer Pro-Am.

He and class leader Sam Shahin battled early in the race however the latter was forced out when his car stopped with damage at turn eleven at half-race distance.

Cameron Crick, Michael Hovey and Shane Barwood completed the top-10. Barwood sealed the TAG Heuer Pro-Am round victory thanks to a trio of consistent results as all three of the title contenders had issues throughout the weekend.

While Boulton and Shahin each had non-finishes this weekend, Ross McGregor was pinged five seconds for a start line infringement in the final race – costing him positions.

Michael Hovey finished second in class at Phillip Island while McGregor completed the podium.

Goldie won class B over Grieg and Tony Martin.

After the first three rounds, Harri Jones now leads the standings by 58 points as the series heads into a winter break, prior to the next round at Queensland Raceway in late July.

Vidau and Love are now tied for second position with Ryan Suhle and Christian Pancione fourth and fifth, respectively.

Sam Shahin continues to lead TAG Heuer Pro-Am, though his earlier comfortable margin has been reduced to 42 points. Ross McGregor remains second in class with Brett Boulton closing on each of them in third.

David Grieg retains the lead Class B however his margin has been reduced thanks to Andrew Godie’s clean sweep at Phillip Island.

After a busy start to the season, the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge field takes a well-earned break prior to the second half of the season commencing at Queensland Raceway on August 2-4.

The Ipswich round will also see the Jim Richards Endurance Trophy decided across all four classes.

Championship Standings – After 3 of 6 Rounds.

1. Harri Jones 480
2. Max Vidau 422
3. Aaron Love 422
4. Ryan Suhle 366
5. Christian Pancione 310
6. Tom Taplin 259
7. Sam Shahin 249
8. Cameron Crick 238
9. Brett Boulton 185
10. Ross McGregor 184

Race 3 Results

Tied at the top as Aaron Love scores maiden Porsche win

Winner-take-all battle set for Sunday at Phillip Island

A THREE-WAY tie for round honours will be broken in the final race of Round 2 of the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge at the Phillip Island Grand Prix circuit.

A dramatic Saturday at the iconic Victorian circuit set up tomorrow’s decider that has Aaron Love, Harri Jones and Max Vidau tied on 108 points each after two of the rounds’ three races.

Starting from pole, Max Vidau won a wild race one after a three-way fight with Jones and Love – that saw each of the three drivers lead the race on the opening lap.

If that was the entrée then the main course delivered even more as another Jim Richards Endurance Trophy classic added a new winner to the list this year.

Love starred in the 26-lap race later in the afternoon in another pitched battle with Jones and Vidau that saw intense battling from start to finish.

Jones jumped from second on the grid to an early lead in the trophy race and then spent much of the first half defending attack after attack launched at his McElrea Porsche by race one winner Vidau.

After several attempted moves for the lead, the Sonic driver then survived a wild, high-speed off at turn four mid-race after he and Jones caught lapped traffic – Vidau dropping back to sixth position before slowly recovering through the field.

That left Jones defending from Love, who finally worked his way past on lap 18.

The 16-year-old then edged away in the closing laps to record a stunning victory, becoming the fourth different winner in the eight races contested so far this season.

Jones finished second and Vidau third – after a heady battle with Christian Pancione and Ryan Suhle – to set up the three-way tie for the round results ahead of tomorrow’s finale.

Love, the younger brother of Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia title contender Jordan, was thrilled to record his maiden victory in the series after graduating from open-wheel racing this year.

“It can’t get much better than that,” he said. “I was nice and consistent and tried to let the race come to us at the start.

“We were on the back of Harri and it was a long fought battle from there. I ended up getting past him at turn two and I was really proud of that. I tried really hard for that. After that it was keeping my eyes forward – being calm with no mistakes.

“It will be a really good race tomorrow with the three of us close together on points. It will be all out tomorrow to see who comes out on top so we’ll see how it goes.”

Pancione finished fourth – just behind Vidau – while Suhle was also in the mix en-route to fifth place.

With Cameron Crick sixth, Brett Boulton came from the back of the field to win TAG Heuer Pro-Am and claim maximum points in the Jim Richards Endurance Trophy class fight.

The McElrea driver had started from the back of the field after failing to finish race one due to damage from an altercation on the opening lap (for which he was penalised), but charged through the field – and survived a spin at turn 12 – to take the class.

Tom Taplin finished eighth and Sam Shahin ninth – second in Pro-Am. Ross McGregor completed the top-10.

Love finished third in the earlier sprint race, won by Vidau after a pitched battle with Jones at the front of the field in the eight-lap dash.

Suhle and Pancione completed the top five, while Shane Barwood scored his first TAG Heuer Pro-Am victory of the season after title contenders Brett Boulton and Sam Shahin made contact at turn two – both spinning.

Andrew Goldie won both races in Class B to further close the margin to Class B leader David Grieg.

The final race of Round 3 commences at 9:10am on Sunday morning and will be streamed live via the GT3 Cup Challenge website and Shannons Nationals social media accounts.

Championship Standings – After Race 2, Round 3

1. Harri Jones 426
2. Max Vidau 374
3. Aaron Love 362
4. Ryan Suhle 324
5. Christian Pancione 274
6. Sam Shahin 249
7. Tom Taplin 227
8. Cameron Crick 212
9. Ross McGregor 172
10. Brett Boulton 156

Race 1 Results

Race 2 Results

Sunday, 9 June

9:10–9:30am: Race 3

TV Broadcast details

Qualifying and all three races will be streamed live via www.thenationals.com.au