Supercheap Auto TCR Australia Series
Josh Buchan picked up his maiden Supercheap Auto TCR Australia Series victory after beating James Moffat to the chequered flag by almost three seconds.
Having secured a front row start next to polesitter Dylan O’Keefe thanks to a solid qualifying performance in the morning, Buchan’s job to the lead was made much easier when O’Keefe was forced to start to the race from pit lane for breaching regulations and opening his bonnet on the grid pre-race.
While Buchan surrended the lead to John Martin at the start of the race, the Hyundai pilot showed plenty of pace to take out the victory as Martin dropped down the order.
O’Keefe on the other hand had a brilliant run up the field following the disappointment at his penalty, climbing 12 places to finishing the race in 10th.
The series has two races tomorrow, the first of which is at 10:05am and will be broadcast via 7mate.
VHT S5000 Australian Drivers Championship
Joey Mawson continues to edge closer and closer to the prestigious Motorsport Australia Gold Star title as he claimed a runner-up finish and top five finish during today’s two races.
Mawson’s rival in Thomas Randle wasn’t able to close the gap completely, finishing fifth and third across both races, but still remains a chance to take the title if Mawson is unable to finish.
With 60 points on offer for the final race and just over 48 points between the two, all Mawson is required to do tomorrow is finish and be classified.
The final race of the 2020/2021 VHT S5000 Australian Drivers’ Championship takes place at midday tomorrow.
Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia
Christian Pancione made it two wins from two races, securing the edge over series leader Ryan Suhle all day.
Suhle was the better of the two on Friday, but after taking out the lead early in the category’s first race today, Pancione never looked like losing his lead.
It was an unchanged top five in both races as Callum Hedge and Bayley Hall fought it out in what was an intriguing battle, while Courtney Prince continues her smooth transition into the category, twice rounding out the top five.
In Pro-Am, Sam Shahin asserted his dominance over the 14-car class, comfortably beating Sergio Pires in both races, first by five seconds and then a mammoth 20 seconds in the second.
The one-make series has just one race tomorrow at 2:05pm.
Battery World Aussie Racing Cars Super Series
The Battery World Aussie Racing Cars Series had just one race today - a reverse grid, which was won by Kody Garland.
Motorsport fans would have been thoroughly entertained throughout the race as just one and half seconds separated the top five by the time they reached the chequered flag, with Garland edging out race runner-up Nick Simmons by three tenths of second.
A further three tenths behind was Craig Woods, while race one runner-up Ton Hayman finished fourth, half a second behind, and just three tenths ahead of Reece Chapman.
The biggest story to come out of the category’s second race for the weekend was the early retirement of series leader, Joshua Anderson - his clutch basket exploding on just the second lap of the race.
The series returns tomorrow for its final race of the weekend at 9:30am.
RA Cup
Chris Perini won the RA Cup’s opening race by more than 50 seconds, a strong win for the Radical SR3 pilot after securing pole late on Friday.
Perini looked unstoppable in the 50 minute race, beating out Sid Fuhrmeister and Peter Clare who ended the category’s first race in Sydney in second and third, respectively.
Stephen Champion and Susan Esselmont rounded out the category’s top five.
The RA Cup returns with one final race on Sunday at 3.10pm.
Australian Prototype Series
Blake Purdie has secured his first ever Australian Prototypes Series win, overcoming a stall on the start line to salute at Sydney Motorsport Park.
Purdie started on the front row alongside John-Paul Drake, who earlier in the day secured the Jam Motorsport Shop pole position prize.
But it wasn’t a smooth start for either Drake or Purdie, neither of the pair could get their cars going when the lights went out, leaving them both swamped by the field and with a fair challenge ahead to claw back lost time.
But 16-year-old Purdie showed he is a talent on the rise, racing through the field and charging ahead to win by more than 18 seconds.
2018 Series winner Jason Makris was second, while Paul Trengove rounded out the podium in the category’s sole Saturday race.
National Trans Am Series
The National Trans Am Series has once again delivered one of the most entertaining race battles with Aaron Seton and Nathan Herne once again putting on a show for fans.
Heading into this morning’s first race of the weekend, just two points separated the duo on the outright standings and after two races, just two points remain the difference.
In the morning, Seton finished race one behind only Owen Kelly, who secured his second win for the season, while Herne crossed the line one place behind in third, meaning Seton’s lead was extended to four points.
In the afternoon, Seton once again finished in second place, only this time Herne added another win to his growing tally, reducing the gap back to two.
The series will be back on track at 11:30am tomorrow for the final race of its weekend.
Gulf Western Oil Touring Car Masters
It was a mixed bag of results today in the Gulf Western Oil Touring Car Masters with two completely different top threes for each race.
In the morning, it was Ryan Hansford who took out top honours over Steve Johnson, just one and half seconds separating the two, while Jamie Tilley rounded out the podium.
The victory gave Hansford plenty of momentum for a charge up the standings, however it didn’t last long as the Holden Torana A9X driver finished sixth in the category’s trophy race.
Taking out honours in that race was another Holden Torana A9X driver Jim Pollicina, who beat series leader John Bowe by just three seconds, while Adam Bressington rounded out the top three less than a second behind.
The category has two races tomorrow, the first at 10:55am and the final hit out as part of their adventures in Sydney at 12.45pm
MRF Tyres Australian Production Cars
A pair of sprint races made up a busy Saturday for the Production Cars, with Shane Smollen keeping his perfect start to 2021 alive – two race wins from two starts notched up for the Bathurst 6 Hour winner who is enjoying a purple patch in his BMW M4.
Cem Yucel claimed back-to-back second place finishes, while James Keene secured P3 in the day’s opening race. Jake Camilleri, who came home in race one in fourth, managed to go one better in the race two – crossing the line in third.
Production Cars will conclude proceedings at Sydney Motorsport Park, with back-to-back races to also finish off the category’s weekend on Sunday afternoon.
No tickets will be available at the gate, with all fans encouraged to pre-purchase their tickets before they arrive at Sydney Motorsport Park to save time.
Fans will 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 Sport, and the rest of the world can watch via Motorsport.tv.
There will also be a live blog for fans to keep to date with all the live results and news from the weekend, which will be available via the Shannons Motorsport Australia Championships’ website.