With seven Motorsport Australia Gold Star titles to their name – the most recent being the 2021 S5000 Australian Drivers’ Championship – the team has cemented itself as one of the most decorated in the category.

 

This year saw the South Australian based outfit secure a one-two in the Championship with Joey Mawson edging out Thomas Randle in the fourth and final round at Sydney Motorsport Park earlier this year.

 

The team also helped another of its drivers in Kaleb Ngatoa secure a race win throughout the season with the Kiwi competing in three of the four rounds and finishing ninth respectively. 

 

While a driver line up is yet to be confirmed, Team BRM chief Mark Rundle was also open to fielding new and returning drivers for the seven race, two round competition. 

 

“I’m very confident with where we sit and the level of early interest around the Tasman Series,” Rundle said.

 

“FORM700 and ALABAR, who supported two cars throughout the Gold Star championship his year, are back on board and their support means we are in a really good place to pick up where we left off in May.

 

“We’re a long way down the road with Joey (Mawson) and continuing what we started during the Gold Star earlier this year, it’s just a matter of pinning down the details and getting him locked in, which is really exciting.

 

“He did such an awesome job and even though there is a long gap between the final Gold Star round and the Bathurst event, we all want to continue that momentum and keep on pushing.

 

“Kaleb is keen to return and we’d obviously love to have an Aussie and a Kiwi in the team both trying to win the Tasman Cup. He’s a massive talent and while there are still some things that need to fall into place, including making sure the Kiwi border is open, given time hopefully that will sort itself out.

 

“There’s also some really interesting prospects in place for the third car which would add a lot to the grid, so we’re working very hard on getting that seat filled.”

 

Another option on the table for Team BRM is the opportunity to potentially field international drivers, pending the reopening of borders later this year.

 

With four of the team’s previous Gold Star winners being English and Ngatoa still keen to compete, Rundle admitted that both local and international options were being assessed.

 

“There is a lot of interest from overseas in racing these cars at Bathurst and the Gold Coast, in particular. People know both circuits around the world because of their heritage and their profile,” Rundle said. 

 

“With two events, the official test day and other testing opportunities as well it’s a lot of seat time in not a massive amount of days so there are benefits involved for those drivers coming down to race, so much so that some will consider a two-week quarantine very worthwhile.

 

“In the long-term running the Tasman Series over summer is absolutely the way to go, but there is a good shot at getting some international talent here this year, even in the current environment.” 

 

Taking place in November and December, the 2021 edition of the series will feature seven races and will be contested in S5000 cars over two consecutive national race meetings - the Supercheap Auto Bathurst International and the Boost Mobile Gold Coast 500.

 

Both rounds will include live TV coverage with Australians able to tune in via the Seven Network and Kiwi fans through Sky Sport New Zealand.

 

The first round of the series will be at the Bathurst International on 26-28 November.