Sydney stage set for Aussie Racing Cars battle to continue

Wednesday 28 April, 2021
Photos: Darin Mandy
The Battery World Aussie Racing Cars Super Series resumes this weekend at Sydney Motorsport Park with the first of its three Shannons Motorsport Australia Championships rounds.
 
The series has already held two rounds in 2021 with the category’s season opener taking place at Bathurst in February and the second round at Symmons Plains earlier this month – the category part on an impressive Repco Supercars Championship support line up on both occasions.
 
It may be only two rounds old, but this year is already shaping up to be one for the ages, as the battle at the top of the standings sees four drivers in early title contention – just three points the difference.
 
At the peak of it all is series leader Joshua Anderson, who enjoyed victory in Tasmania. The New South Welshman currently has a two point buffer over Craig Woods, while Kody Garland and round one winner Nick Simmons sit equal third just one more point adrift.
  
While all eyes are likely to be on the top four, there are still many individuals amongst the healthy 24 car field worth watching, many of them hoping to jump start their seasons this weekend.
 
One of those drivers is 2018 Battery World Aussie Racing Cars Super Series champion, Joel Heinrich.
 
After enjoying such a successful season in 2018, the series’ sole South Australian has been unable to replicate that same form and consistency since, having finished seventh in 2019 and fourth in last year’s only round.
 

Heinrich started this season on a high, grabbing a round podium before a disastrous outing in Tasmania saw him end the round 14th. Although he had such a forgettable round – he still remains slightly in the hunt, rounding out the top five a further nine points off Garland and Simmons.

Outside of Heinrich, the top four all reside in New South Wales, the largest representation for the round as two thirds of the field are from the state - the next biggest being the four from Queensland.
 
Of those Queenslanders, three of them all come from a familiar family name in the Australian motorsport industry - Tony, Kent and Ryder Quinn.
 
Continuing his longstanding career in the series, Tony has been everywhere as of late, racing in the Motorsport Australia Targa Championship, the RSEA Safety Motorsport Australia Rally Championship and the Motorsport Australia GT Championship.
 
While his son Kent has also been racing in the series for a long time, grandson Ryder is running in just his second round ever after debuting in Tasmania as a result of turning 16 at the start of the month.
 
Other notable competitors include one of the three Victorians in Jeff Watters, who is second behind Kent Quinn in the 2021 Masters Cup, gun rookie Tom Hayman and Charlotte Poynting.
 
Friday will see the category have three sessions on track, including qualifying under lights, before one race on Saturday and two on Sunday.
 
No tickets will be available at the gates, with all fans encouraged to pre-purchase their tickets before they arrive at Sydney Motorsport Park to save time.
 
Fans will also be able to watch a large portion of the action live and free on 7plus and 7mate with Saturday and Sunday to be broadcast, while New Zealand viewers can tune into the round via Sky New Zealand and overseas fans can watch via Motorsport.tv.
 
The Shannons Motorsport Australia Championships and Battery World Aussie Racing Cars Super Series takes place at Sydney Motorsport Park on 30 April – 2 May.