It’s always a big moment in a driver’s career when they make the step up from one level to another in a series and for 2019 Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge winner Harri Jones, it’s no different.
After a refreshing summer break, Jones has finally begun his preparation for the 2020 Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup series, recently heading into testing with his team McElrea Racing.
With 2018 Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge runner-up Cooper Murray also part of the team’s 2020 Carrera Cup charge, Jones is currently loving life as he looks to continue his journey of climbing the popular Porsche Pyramid.
“I am loving the transition to Carrera Cup. I have Cooper Murray in my team here, so it’s a good benchmark to work off,” Jones said.
“We are slowly getting there but there are obviously little things still to work on. I am just excited to get in amongst a new category and take on more competition.
“I am working with Cooper and getting some advice from him. We work well together and we have been bouncing a lot of ideas off each other so far. I feel it will be a good partnership between us this year.”
In last year’s Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge, Jones led for much of the season and ended up being the only driver to finish every race inside the top five.
While he only finished the year with three race wins – though the least of the top three in Aaron Love and Max Vidau - his numbers were still very impressive thanks to podium finishes in every race leading up to the final round.
Jones raced hard yet was super consistent and the Queenslander put it down to him piling a lot of pressure on himself, which he is sure to do again for this year.
With the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup to kick off as part of the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship at next month’s Superloop Adelaide 500, Jones is excited to get a new chapter in his life underway.
“There is definitely a little bit of pressure to do well in Carrera Cup, but not much. It’s mainly me putting it on myself to perform as well as I can,” Jones added.
“Ultimately this year we have to have realistic expectations for where we want to be.
“We would like to be winning races by the end of the year but we know we will not be in the deep end to start off with, and not really challenging for any good positions.
“I am also very excited to race with Supercars as there are a lot of street circuits that I haven’t driven at.
“We did the Gold Coast round last year in the Carrera Cup just to get a taste for the series, and that was my first time at a street circuit. I am really excited to have some challenges for the new year.”
The Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup’s first round takes place as part of the Superloop Adelaide 500 on 20-23 February.