Jensen Marold and Jackson Culver have been crowned the 2026 AU4 Championship’s Gen2 and Gen1 champions respectively after a dramatic Round 5 finale at Queensland Raceway.
Marold arrived six points behind Marco Manson in the Gen2 standings but reversed the deficit across three races to finish the season six points clear.
Culver, meanwhile, entered the finale just one point ahead of Koby Wilson and secured the Gen1 crown with the third-place finish he needed in the final race.
Marold began the weekend strongly, taking Race 1 pole with a 1:09.448, just 0.163 seconds ahead of Manson.
Manson initially took the lead in Race 1 before Marold fought back to claim victory by 1.95 seconds, setting the fastest lap in the process. Joe Imbrogno completed the overall podium.
Wilson took Gen1 honours in Race 1 after moving ahead of Lewis Gotch, with Culver finishing third in class.
Manson responded in Race 2, taking another victory over Marold, while Luca Cosolo finished third.
The race was interrupted by an extended red flag after Angus Baills became stranded in the gravel following contact with Xavier Babbage-Hockey, requiring a Manitou and flatbed to recover the car.
The Gen1 battle went down to the final corner, with Wilson crossing the line just 0.06 seconds ahead of Culver. However, a technical infringement removed Wilson’s Race 2 points and handed the victory to Culver, leaving the championship open heading into the final race.
Marold controlled the decider from pole, taking the lead at Turn 1 and keeping William Beck behind to win by 3.68 seconds. Marco Manson recovered to finish third overall, but it was not enough to overturn the championship deficit.
In Gen1, Wilson took the final-race victory ahead of Gotch, while Culver secured the third-place finish required to seal the title.
Marold finished the round with 71 points to Manson’s 59, while Gotch led the Gen1 round with 58 points ahead of Culver on 55 and Wilson on 51.
AU4 will now move to the Australian Formula Series at The Bend Motorsport Park in South Australia from December 3-20, 2026.
The series runs three rounds on three circuit configurations, each with an official practice day and four races for 12 championship races in total.
Entries are now open to Australian and international teams.
2026 Championship standings (top three)
Gen2
- Jensen Marold — 320 points
- Marco Manson — 314 points
- Luca Cosolo — 144 points
Gen1
- Jackson Culver — 284 points
- Koby Wilson — 279 points
- Lewis Gotch — 274 points
