THE FIGHT for the Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge will continue at Sydney Motorsport Park this weekend, the series to feature a strong 23-car field as title battles intensify in the second round of the 2019 series.
While the seven Porsche Michelin Junior drivers continue to fight for Professional class honours, both the TAG Heuer Pro-Am and Class B categories will also take another step up in competitiveness.
Fresh from winning the opening round at Symmons Plains Raceway early last month, South Australian teenager Max Vidau will head to the 3.9km Sydney circuit filled with confidence aboard his Sonic Motor Racing Porsche 991 GT3 Cup Car.
Vidau narrowly missed pole position at the Tasmanian circuit however stormed to three consecutive victories to open his title account in style.
As a result of his Tasmanian sweep, Vidau edged out a 18-point margin over runner-up Harri Jones, who scored pole position and finished second in each race at Round 1.
The open-wheel champion and his McElrea Racing teammate, Ryan Suhle, completed the podium in the opening round.
Aaron Love, the younger brother of recent Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia round winner Jordan, finished fourth in Tasmania while Tom Taplin will look to build on his consistent opening round, the young Adelaide teenager finishing sixth overall in the series opener.
Christian Pancione and Cameron Crick each rebounded from incidents to show their potential in Tasmania and will look forward to trouble free weekends in Sydney.
Fifth outright and first in TAG Heuer Pro-Am was Sam Shahin, who will continue to do ‘double duties’ as he splits his 2019 campaign between Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup and GT3 Cup Challenge.
As well as winning all three races in Pro-Am, Shahin recorded finishes of sixth, sixth and fifth outright in the opening round and will be hoping to mix it with the young-guns at the front of the field once again this weekend.
The experienced Ross McGregor sits second in Pro-Am while Sergio Pires completed a successful step from Class B in 2018 to finish third in the opening round this year.
After being involved in a race one start-line incident in Tasmania, Brett Boulton charged his way through to finish fourth overall in the opening round thanks to a pair of second-placed finishes in races two and three, respectively.
Sydneysider Marcel Zalloua finished fifth with continual improvement across each race.
The TAG Heuer Pro-Am battle is anticipated to be just as competitive as the outright fight thanks to the addition of several key runners this weekend.
Michael Hovey, who finished third in the class last season, makes his first start of the season while Adelaide racer Marty Ewer and Victorian Matt Belford make their debuts this weekend.
David Grieg will look to defend his class lead in Class B following a successful opening round, however is expected to fact stiff competition from Tony Martin, Nathan Murray and Andrew Goldie this weekend.
The Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge will tackle three races at Sydney Motorsport Park this weekend.
For the first time all three races will be shown live on the Shannons Nationals live stream which extends to include coverage of Saturday races for the first time.
Following practice and qualifying on Friday, the series will contest two sprint races on Saturday prior to the second round of the Jim Richards Endurance Trophy to be contested over 25-laps on Sunday.
Race Schedule
Friday, May 17
12:00pm Practice 1 (60 Minutes)
3:40pm Qualifying (30 Minutes)
Saturday, May 18
11:35am Race 1 (10 Laps)
3:10pm Race 2 (10 Laps)
Sunday, May 19
10:25am Race 3 (25 Laps – Jim Richards Enduro Trophy)
Television and Streaming Schedule
Shannons Nationals Live Stream
www.thenationals.com.au
Race 1 – 11:35am Saturday, May 18
Race 2 – 3:50pm Saturday, May 18
Race 3 – 10:25am Sunday, May 19
Entry List
| No. | DRIVER | STATE | CLASS | SPONSOR NAME |
| 5 | Nathan Murray | VIC | Class B | Garage 1 |
| 7 | Ryan Shule | QLD | Pro | Ryan Suhle Racing – Ray White |
| 9 | Tony Martin | QLD | Class B | TM Motorsport / The Triffid Bar. Venue |
| 10 | Michael Loccisano | VIC | TAG Heuer Pro-Am | Hallmarc |
| 12 | Harri Jones | QLD | Pro | Heli Mods |
| 13 | Sam Shahin | SA | TAG Heuer Pro-Am | The Bend/HTFU |
| 14 | Matt Belford | VIC | TAG Heuer Pro-Am | ID Land |
| 17 | Marcel Zalloua | NSW | TAG Heuer Pro-Am | Valmont Racing |
| 21 | Shane Barwood | VIC | TAG Heuer Pro-Am | Melbourne Orthopaedic Group |
| 22 | Andrew Goldie | WA | Class B | Woodford Trailers |
| 26 | Tom Taplin | SA | Pro | Taplin Real Estate |
| 29 | Rob Woods | NSW | TAG Heuer Pro-Am | GWR/Commercial Interior Projects |
| 55 | Sergio Pires | NSW | TAG Heuer Pro-Am | Valmont Racing |
| 73 | Michael Hovey | QLD | TAG Heuer Pro-Am | Triffid Bar + Venue |
| 76 | Christian Pancione | VIC | Pro | VCM Performance |
| 77 | Max Vidau | SA | Pro | Sonic Motor Racing / |
| 78 | Aaron Love | WA | Pro | Sonic Motor Racing / SRG Global |
| 84 | Brett Boulton | QLD | TAG Heuer Pro-Am | Bold Living |
| 87 | David Grieg | VIC | Class B | Daikin Air Conditioning / DW Motorsport |
| 93 | Marty Ewer | SA | TAG Heuer Pro-Am | Dr Marty Ewer |
| 99 | Ross McGregor | VIC | TAG Heuer Pro-Am | Southern Star Windows P/L |
| 131 | Graham Williams | VIC | TAG Heuer Pro-Am | Sonic Motor Racing / Williams Racing |
| 777 | Cameron Crick | NSW | Pro | GWR/Plus Fitness Racing |
