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VERSTAPPEN’S DESIRE IS DOMINATION MAX VERSTAPPEN’S UNRELENTING QUEST FOR DOMINATION LED TO A SEASON THAT REWROTE THE RECORD BOOKS ...

Max sat down for an exclusive one-on-one with our man Luis Vasconcelos ...

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IN A Formula 1 season marked by dominance, Max Verstappen has etched his name in the annals of racing history, securing his third consecutive World Championship with an unyielding desire to dominate rather than merely race.

In the next issue of Auto Action, the Dutch driver discusses the relentless pursuit of excellence that shattered records in an exclusive interview with Auto Action’s Luis Vasconcelos. Here is a teaser as to some of the things that the now three-times world champion had to say ...

VERSTAPPEN’S 2023 campaign was an exhibition of sheer dominance, clinching an unprecedented 19 victories out of 22 races, setting a new benchmark for the highest number of Grand Prix wins in a single season. This astonishing feat accounted for an astonishing 86.36% of race victories, showcasing his determination to leave no room for rivals.

What distinguishes Verstappen’s feat is not just the number of wins but his audacious record of leading for more than 1000 laps in a season, spending an astounding 75.54% of his time in the coveted P1 position.

Beyond the numbers, Verstappen’s pursuit of domination is evident in other remarkable milestones. He achieved an unrivalled 10 consecutive Grand Prix victories, stood on the podium an astonishing 21 times in a single season, and clinched victory in 12 races from pole position.

This level of domination culminated in a new points record for a single year, totalling an impressive 575 points.

While Verstappen acknowledges the “crazy numbers,” he attributes the success to a strategically aggressive approach.

His focus remains unwavering on the future, expressing eagerness to face new challenges and maintain the momentum in the upcoming season. The desire to

dominate is not just about winning races; it’s a relentless pursuit of excellence that leaves no room for competitors to catch up. “ I really like to dominate the race. I mean, I’m always fighting with myself, I’m not always looking at the competition.

I’m trying to do the best I can inside the car, because I can always optimise things more,” he told Auto Action.

“What’s important at the end of the day is that you win the championship – it doesn’t matter how. Ideally you win it in the best possible way, by winning every single race, but that also, of course, is not realistic.”

Pointedly, he says he doesn’t miss racing hard with Lewis Hamilton.

“I’m happy with how the season has gone on. I appreciated also the fights that we had, but I also like the car we had, the team we have, the way we are operating – this is where we want to be.”

During the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix weekend, Verstappen offered insights into his mindset, emphasising a desire for dominance over a mere desire to race. From singing “Green, green grass of home” on the car radio to discussing the importance of blunt communication with his team, every action reflects a calculated strategy to assert dominance on and off the track.

Verstappen’s openness extends beyond the racing realm, offering glimpses into his personal life.

From discussions about his family, team dynamics, to potential wedding plans, Verstappen reveals a multifaceted persona driven by an unrelenting quest for dominance.

The full interview with Max Verstappen, focusing on his pursuit of domination, will be featured in the next issue of Auto Action on sale January 25.

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UP NEXT: ENGINE PARITY WITH AERO PARITY ALL BUT AGREED, SUPERCARS ATTENTION IS NOW TURNING TO THE ENGINES AND THE MUCH TALKED ABOUT TRANSIENT DYNO TESTINGG... BUT IS IT HAPPENING? ANDREW CLARKE REPORTS ...

FORD APPEARS to have hit a hurdle, with Supercars’ long-awaited transient dyno testing put on hold while the automotive giant explores some other potential changes for its engines.

Engines from both Ford and Chevrolet have been in the United States awaiting the test program, but Ford is believed to be exploring some physical changes to the Coyote engine which has scuppered those plans, including sourcing parts to match the smaller throttle body adopted earlier in the season, aimed at improving transient performance.

Ford and its engine supplier, Dick Johnson Racing, has also investigated other hardware as it tries to deal with what it sees as inertia issues with its engines prior to any transient dyno benchmarking.

Transient dyno testing in the States with the transaxle in place was seen as the panacea of engine testing and it was hoped this would provide benchmarking and comparative testing that would lead to engine parity between two engines of completely different architecture, but Ford and Supercars feels a few more things are needed to be locked down before that happens.

Ford’s Coyote engine is a 5.4L dual overhead cam V8 with Twin independent Variable Cam Timing, and the challenge has been tuning the engine to match the Chev V8 which retains the use of pushrods and fixed cam timing.

Transient dyno testing is a sophisticated method of measuring engine outputs that goes beyond traditional static dyno testing. While static tests focus on steady-state conditions, transient dyno testing simulates real-world scenarios by replicating the dynamic and unpredictable nature of on-track performance.

This technique involves rapidly changing the engine speed and load to mirror the fluctuations experienced during gear changes.

It is hoped that most issues can be resolved with engine mapping, and some different hardware and DJR is working closely with Motec and Cragsted.

It is not known when or if the transient dyno testing will now take place.

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FORD WANTS ANOTHER DAY IN THE WIND TUNNEL FORD WANTS AN EXTRA DAY IN THE WIND TUNNEL TO CONFIRM THE FINAL AERO PACKAGE FOR 2024. THAT DAY IS COMING SOON. ANDREW CLARKE REPORTS ...

AFTER THREE days of wind tunnel testing at Windshear in North Carolina, Ford, Chevrolet and Supercars have agreed to at least one final day of testing to confirm the final packages in manufactured form.

The 7th Generation Ford Mustang used more than three-quarters of the time in the wind tunnel as Ford Performance and Dick Johnson Racing (Ford’s homologation team) worked on matching its car to the Chevrolet, which also had minor changes.

As expected by everyone, except for a couple of outspoken Chevrolet teams, the Mustang was confirmed to have been racing for most of the season with aerodynamic deficiencies.

Known as V1 (from the start of the season), V2 (from Townsville) and V3 (from the Gold Coast) for testing purposes, the first two variations of the Ford’s aero package showed less rear downforce and, in one case, less drag and the other slightly more.

The final version of the Ford, which won four races out of four, had a slight advantage over the Camaro, but in Ford’s eyes the damage was done with the championship over for its teams before the halfway point

of the season and Bathurst requiring a bit of luck for a run at the podium.

Ford went to Concord with a DJR car and plenty of pre-manufactured bits to change the aero of the car, but also 3D printed parts on the run as the data came to hand. By the end of three days, it was agreed that parity had been gained, but Ford wanted extra testing to confirm the results with the final manufactured product.

“In the weeks prior to testing at Windshear, Ford Performance and DJR prepared a comprehensive selection of parts with a multitude of adjustment options,” said Brendan McGinneskin, Australian Motorsport Engineering Lead, Ford Performance, who was at the Windshear for the testing.

“However, even that vast array of components could not cover every eventuality.

“Both cars developed in a direction that required creation of makeshift aero devices to enable Mustang to meet target. On that basis we requested Supercars afford us the time to produce production ready parts which meet both aerodynamic and aesthetic requirements.

“The additional day at windshear will serve as the platform to prove those parts meet

Most of the aero changes were made to the Mustang, to match it to the ‘Camaro baseline’.

the requirements set out by Supercars.”

It is believed the data showed Ford V1 was lower in rear downforce and drag than the Camaro which led to it cooking its rear tyres. V2 had slightly more downforce but still showed a deficit to the Camaro while the drag was now more than the Camaro.

V3 had around 8% more downforce at the same drag.

While getting the numbers right was part of the process, Ford also explored ways of expanding the set-up window and creating fewer issues for the cars on-track. Variations were also explored to the leading edge of the front splitter (which in 2023 featured a sharper edge than the Camaro and was believed to have led to the dramatic shifts in balance under brakes and a narrower set-up window), to desensitise the Mustang package.

Ford, Chevrolet and Supercars are expected to sign off on the final aerodynamic packages soon so manufacturing of the new components can begin.

There has been little word about the transient dyno testing, but no manufacturing likley to be required that is not as time critical as the aero.

EVANS LANDS FINAL SUPERCARS SEAT GLOBAL KIWI Jaxon Evans is the final piece of the 2024 Supercars silly season puzzle, securing the SCT Logistics Brad Jones Racing Camaro seat.

Evans is no stranger to Supercars having been Jack Smith’s co-driver over the last two seasons and will now take over main game duties of car #4 with the latter stepping down after four years at the top level.

The pair’s best result together was 18th at the Sandown 500, where Evans showed decent pace as co-driver, climbing from 22nd to 15th.

This year’s troubled journey to 21st was their only finish at the Great Race, having retired in 2021.

Evans knows the challenge ahead, but it is one that greatly excites him.

“Very excited for the opportunity to join the Supercars grid full time. Having started my racing career here, returning to Australia at some stage has always been an aspiration,” the 27-year-old said.

“Supercars produces some of the closest and most exciting racing – a massive attraction for any driver here or overseas.

“Of course it’s a big change in scenery, but an exciting one – I think the challenge of something new is a situation I thrive in, so I can’t wait to get going.

“I have to extend a massive thank you to SCT logistics, the Smith family and Andrew Jones for placing their trust in my ability to perform both on and off the track.

“There are many moving parts in the background, so a big thank you as well to my support network here in Australia.”

In addition to Supercars, Evans has a mountain of international racing experience.

He first arrived in Australia with McElrea Racing in 2015 where he took part in the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia and Australian GT Championship.

But it was over the next three years where he made a name for himself.

After runner-up finishes in the 2016 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia and 2017 Australian Endurance Championship, plus five wins and a top five result in his maiden Porsche Carrera Cup Australia season, Evans was ready to unleash himself at the top one-make title in Australia in 2018.

The Kiwi did just that, winning six races on his way to a comfortable Carrera Cup title with McElrea Racing.

The result gave the youngster a chance to attend the Porsche Junior Programme Shootout, where he was selected over 11 other drivers from around the world to be promoted to the ‘Porsche Junior’ squad for the 2019 season.

This launched his career beyond Australia, taking him to the esteemed Porsche SuperCup and Porsche Carrera Cup Germany.

In 2020 he secured the French Carrera Cup title whilst also getting a solid fourth in the SuperCup. Evans then turned his attention to the FIA World Endurance Championship and came third in the GTE Am standings, at the same time of winning a mighty three-way fight for second in the 2021 SuperCup. After a quiet 2021, Evans managed to drive a small amount of GT races when his Supercars journey started and, this year, he raced three IMSA races and six ADAC GT Masters races in addition to his co-driving duties.

He also finished fifth in GTE Am alongside Matt Campbell and Christian Reid at the 2021 24 Hours of Le Mans and has three Bathurst 12 Hour starts behind him with a best result of 11th overall and second in class in 2020.

With the 2024 Supercars calendar being only 12 rounds, Smith revealed he will still be able to fulfil select overseas commitments.

“This opportunity gives me the chance to expand my profile as a complete driver and still engage with the GT and

Image: BJR endurance racing I have been doing for the past four years in Europe and the USA,” the Kiwi said.

With so much experience in Australia and overseas, and especially performing as a co-driver, BJR owner Brad Jones believes Evans has the tools to perform in Supercars.

“We’re excited to welcome Jaxon fulltime to the team in 2024,” Jones said.

“We all know each other quite well and

Jaxon has always been a pleasure to work with.

“He has shown potential as a co-driver and has a lot of speed at hand. He’ll be one to watch next year, that’s for sure.

“What Jaxon achieved overseas is the envy of most drivers and he’s an amazing asset with his breadth of experience across so many professional categories.

He’s a natural fit for us.”

Thomas Miles

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THE MOVERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP

THE DUST HAS SETTLED ON THE 2023 SUPERCARS SEASON, AND NOW WITH NINE DRIVER CHANGES AHEAD OF THE 2024 SEASON, AUTO ACTION HAS A LOOK AT WHO’S IN THE POTENTIAL BOX SEAT AMONGST THOSE NINE SEAT MOVERS. TIMOTHY W NEAL RUNS THE SLIDE RULE OVER THE DRIVER MOVES …

OF THE nine drivers spread across eight teams – which includes five full-time seat jumpers, the full-time return of Richie Stanaway, and the three rookies – which of them is in the best environment or position to succeed in 2024? Who’ll be the top movers’ mover, or the top rookie?

Breaking the 2024 movers into two classes: the seat jumpers (Jack Le Brocq, David Reynolds, Will Brown, Nick Percat, James Courtney, and Richie Stanaway), and the rookies (Aaron Love, Jaxon Evans, and Ryan Wood), who will be the standouts, taking team, machinery, situation and environment into consideration?

Having dominated the championship in recent years until Erebus took out the battle of the fizzy energy drinks, Triple Eight welcomed Brown as its replacement for a once-in-a-generation driver, Shane van Gisbergen, with Le Brocq going the other way. And they’ll be the top two.

The championship holders are buoyant about their new/old recruit from MSR, with Barry Ryan more than pleased about the replacement.

On paper, and in top performing ZL1 vs ZL1, Le Brocq’s clean and workmanlike driving style could give him the quiet edge over Brown, who has far more expectation on his shoulders. Brown joins the most dominant team of the modern era as replacement for the most dominant driver of the modern era.

It’s hard to say whether Brown’s stark dip in form at the back end of ’23 was due to leaving the team that nurtured him for its main title rival, or the pressure of keeping SVG and Broc Feeney at bay for a championship one-two … pressure being the operative word. He’ll have it in spades this year.

On the other hand, Le Brocq will partner the driver champion as second fiddle in a title-winning team. He has nothing to lose, a great car, and has been dealt a well-deserved career step up after winning an unlikely Sprint race with MSR in 2023 and occupying the top-10 in the championship for much of the year in a battlers garage. Also, Brown’s new teammate is hungry and more than capable of being a young title winner, and he’s also out of the SVG shadow!

Don’t be surprised if the new #9 Erebus driver tops Brown … one-two in that order on the movers front.

Expect new Penrite Racing driver Richie Stanaway to shake it for the third best mover/main-game returnee, though if Penrite do get it right, he has the potential to go higher than both Le Brocq or Brown. The Kiwi performed

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Will Brown

Richie Stanaway beautifully as a Bathurst 1000-winning co-driver and podium-getter at Sandown with SVG, and often outpaced the three-time champ and the field in those practice sessions.

Penrite will be strong this season after a good year against the initial odds, as Reynolds finished with three podiums and a win, and rookie Matt Payne got a sensational win of his own in the Adelaide 500 finale.

A Mustang GT more on par for a whole year will yield results for Penrite, and Stanaway is a much more assured driver than he was back in the day, now driving for the Ford team most likely to shake the Chevrolet tree in ’24.

Of the remaining movers, Reynolds will make Team 18 better, but that’s about

Jack le Brocq

David Reynolds

all. He needs a high-functioning and operative environment to perform well, and whilst Team 18 will improve with him, he won’t factor like he did at Penrite.

Reynolds at four.

It’s a toss up between Percat and Courtney for the last places but, between the two, Percat has the bigger performance ceiling over BRT’s newly acquired veteran, who will be carrying the brunt of the pressure as rookie teammate Aaron Love finds his feet in a newly expanded two-car garage. Percat to top Courtney in the cellar part of the building.

On to the rookies: BJR have acquired a very good driver, who’s a Supercars rookie by name, but has experience in IMSA, WEC in top level GT racing.

The 27-year-old Evans should be the best performer of the rookies by a clear margin.

And by virtue of better machinery, Walkinshaw Andretti rookie Ryan Wood should be expected to outperform Love.

WAU will be a revitalised, surer, and better performing outfit in ’24 and, alongside Chaz Mostert, a capable and confident Wood – who has a bit of the argy bargy about him – showed good signs in Super2 last year.

Love showed in the ’23 enduro’s that he needs more time. He’s a good driver and was irresistible to watch in the 2022 Carrera Cup but, considering BRT’s newly expanded environment and status against WAU, Wood has all the tools to better him in 2024.

SVG ‘ALL IN’ FOR AMERICAN DREAM THE NEW year means a new home for Shane van Gisbergen, who is Stateside and ready to give it everything in his first full NASCAR season.

A massive 2024 lies ahead for van Gisbergen, who will take part in a full NASCAR Xfinity Series campaign with Kaulig Racing alongside three-time Cup Series winner AJ Allmendinger and 30-year-old Josh Williams.

In addition to the 33-race season, van Gisbergen will also take part in seven Cup Series races with Trackhouse Racing, resulting in a huge 40-race schedule in NASCAR alone.

With only two – memorable – Cup Series road course races and one Truck Series event on a small oval under his belt, it will be a massive leap for SVG. But it is one that excites the determined Kiwi, who has high ambitions including the target of securing a Playoffs berth on debut and a Cup Series berth in 2025.

For context, Marcos Ambrose finished an impressive eighth in his maiden full-time second tier series season albeit with an entire year of Truck Series racing up his sleeve.

“What Justin (Marks) and the team have put together is really exciting. It is about building experience,” van Gisbergen said.

“I have a lot of learning ahead but I think it is the best way to do it to prepare myself for a 2025 Cup opportunity.

“Hopefully I get to experience the pressure of the (Xfinity) playoffs. That is the goal.”

But there is still an extra hurdle to clear before van Gisbergen gets to race the #97 WeatherTech Camaro.

To gain the necessary approval to make the Xfinity Series debut, he must also contest an effective fourth division ARCA Menards Series race at the famous Florida super speedway just hours earlier with fellow Chevrolet squad Pinnacle Racing.

This is due to SVG having never taken on a Superspeedway before, which is what he is “most anxious” about.

Superspeedways such as Daytona and Talladega are wild, producing ultra fast racing with cars drafting two to three wide on fiercely steep banking.

With the first of the Kiwi’s seven Cup Series races at Talladega, he knows he must adapt to the unique challenge quickly.

“Superspeedways are what I am most anxious or unsure about,” he said.

“It will be a tough first race. I don’t really know how to approach it or what to expect.

“We will get a little bit of practice to get a feel for the car and the cars around me at speed, but that style of racing is so far removed from anything I have ever done.

“I am trying to study them as much as I can but watching it is like a high speed chess

match that can also be a lottery.

“I have been doing as much as I can on the sim and iRacing and have crashed a lot!”

To help with such a learning curve, van Gisbergen continues to reach out to the other Supercars champion, who took on America and won, Ambrose.

The Kiwi, following a similar path, said he aims to at least matching Ambrose’s achievement of graduating to the Cup Series full time.

“I know it will not be an easy transition and there will be lots of learning and growing pains this year,” he said.

“Marcos has been really helpful for speeding up my learning progress, sending me lots of advice and how to do things. I would love to emulate what he did by getting into the Cup Series and being successful.

“He had a great time here with some unreal achievements and I would love to be like that.”

In terms of his new life, van Gisbergen admitted there have already been many eyeopening things he and Jessica Dane have encountered.

“It has been full-on, with myself and my partner Jessica and the dog, packing up our whole life and moving from Australia to America,” he said with a smile.

“Finding a house in Charlotte with a fence has been difficult and the VISA side of things,

getting a personal security number and driver’s licence and everything set up to start a whole new life from scratch ... “(But) the team has been really helpful and made everything so easy for us. It is pretty exciting.”

Van Gisbergen’s big day at Daytona will be Saturday, February 17.

Thomas Miles

A full Xfinity series with Kaulig Racing beckons for SVG, along with selected NASCAR Cup races for Trackhouse Racing.

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GO TIME FOR VIDAU AT JUST 22, Max Vidau has packed a lot into his career, but in 2024 he has an opportunity to prove he is one of the rising stars of Australian motorsport.

This year Vidau will jump from the Porsche Carrera Cup Australia to the Dunlop Super2 Series in the hope of igniting his Supercars dream.

The three-time Carrera Cup race winner has landed the hot seat at Anderson Motorsport, which was a front-runner throughout the 2023 season only to fall narrowly short of the title at the hands of Zak Best.

Both Vidau and the team have high hopes in 2024, with the squad hoping to go one better and a driver keen to get himself into the Supercars shop window.

“Obviously being a kid from Australia you always aspire to race a Supercar, so to jump into the Anderson Motorsport car is a dream come true,” the South Australian told Auto Action “I thank the team massively for the opportunity and everyone along the way that has helped me get to this point. I am just happy all the hard work has paid off.

“Supercars is my goal and however we will get there, we will see.”

Vidau has followed his own path to the Dunlop Series, originally starting in dirt karts in addition to performing in sprint karts.

He then took on Excels before graduating to Formula Ford where he shone, winning the Victorian state crown in 2016 and prestigious national title in 2017, both with Sonic Motor Racing Services.

It was at this point where Vidau turned to the Porsche pyramid and started in the Sprint Challenge, finishing third in 2019, which led to a promotion to Carrera Cup. Across the next three seasons the South Australian has stood on the podium 15 times and scored three special wins last year, at Albert Park and Townsville.

During this period, Vidau also had a crack at Sprintcar racing and did some work in the TA2 Muscle Car Series with Brad Gartner inside the garage and behind the wheel, while he has also completed some Gen3 ride days with PremiAir Racing.

Coming from the competitive environment of Carrera Cup, where

Vidau takes over from Zak Best (below) as an Anderson Motorsport Super2 challenger. Images: MARK HORSBURGH

former and current Supercars drivers such as Dale Wood, Dylan O’Keeffe, Fabian Coulthard, Alex Davison, David Wall, David Russell, Chris Pither, Garth Tander and Luke Youlden all raced in 2023 alone, Vidau believes he can use the skills acquired fighting at the front for TekworkX to good use in Super2.

“Both championships are extremely competitive. I have missed out on (Carrera Cup) pole multiple times by half a tenth which kills me,” he said.

“But the main difference is between the competitiveness is the Super2 tyre only really lasts one lap so you have nail your first flyer, while in Carrera Cup there is more of a longer program to it.

“In terms of driving style I have not driven the Gen2 Supercar yet but, in a way, the Supercar still has that Cup Car feeling on the brake pedal.

“You have to trail the thing nice and hard, get it on the nose to rotate it.

“It is a bit of a mix of things I have already driven and I should be able to hit the ground running.”

Vidau being plucked from Carrera Cup is the beginning of a growing trend of Supercars and Super2 teams turning to the Porsche pyramid for talent.

Former Carrera Cup drivers Cameron Hill and Matt Payne both made their Supercars debuts in 2023, Aaron Love was plucked from BRT following impressive exploits in a Cup car domestically and globally, while Ryan Wood went straight from the second tier Porsche Sprint Challenge to Super2 and did so well WAU has promoted him to the main game.

Vidau believes this shows the Porsche system is becoming a bigger talent factory each year.

“Realistically a few years back the Carrera Cup was put off to the side and

the drivers were not really thought of,” he said.

“But we can see over the last three years really that the Cup Car route is getting more and more popular as a way to get into Supercars.

“Cameron Hill has proven it and Ryan Wood has come straight from the Sprint Challenge and won more Super2 races than anyone else last year.

“It shows that it does not matter what pathway you chose, if you are a good enough driver you are a good enough driver.”

Given Anderson Motorsport’s recent form and his personal expectations, Vidau is determined to at least be fighting at the front in 2024.

“100 percent (I want to win). I got a text message from Michael saying that he needs that championship so, at the end of the day, we have the same plan,” he said.

“We are not going to go there just to make up the numbers that is for sure.”

Vidau has signed a one-year deal and will enjoy a two-day test before the Bathurst opener on February 23-25.

Thomas Miles

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MONDAY START FOR MONZA UPGRADES RED DAWN COMING Glamorous Ferraris – coming down under ...

BETTER LATE than never, as they say, as the urgent upgrades Monza needs to be complete in order to negotiate a new deal to keep the Italian Grand Prix beyond the end of its current contract with Formula 1, got under way on Monday of this week.

Formula 1’s CEO had made it patently clear that, unless some serious upgrades were made to the historic circuit, the current contract would be the last one, with Imola getting the Italian Grand Prix, at least for the next three years, as the contract between the sports’ commercial rights holder and the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari is valid until the end of 2026.

After the end of last season, the Italian confirmed that, “I am in good contact with the motorsport federation in Italy, but the work at Monza was supposed to start after the Grand Prix and still hasn’t

started in December. It should now start in the near future.”

Asked if he felt putting pressure on the local authorities to get the work done was the best course of action, when politics seemed to be the reason for the delay in the project, Domenicali defended that, “my pressure is constructive, but internal bureaucracies should not be able to stop certain projects. We must move ahead with the times or risking losing out to those who do.”

And making it clear that Monza had to do the work required, he concluded that, “it’s all about understanding the desire to invest in F1 as a racing platform. Entertainment and business can no longer be on a private level. It is our country that must make a precise choice.”

It was announced that Domenicali was to attend, remotely, a ceremony held

Monza – upgrades demanded before contract extension at yet another ‘classic’ race track ...

Image: MOTORSPORT IMAGES

Images: MOTORSPORT IMAGES

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in Monza last Monday where, at 10am, Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini was to be there to to kick off the start of the demolition work that will pave the way for the improvement of the circuit’s facilities, most of them having to be completed before this year’s Grand Prix, scheduled for the first weekend of September.

The host of dignitaries included, of course, Angelo Sticchi Damiani, the president of the Automoblile Club d’Italia and the local authorities; and while Domenicali’s presence was to be done virtually, it’s interesting to note there’s no FIA representative invited to the event, as the Formula 1 CEO is extremely keen to show he’s the one that calls all the shots in the sport and doesn’t want to share the spotlight with president Mohammed Ben Sulayem.

Luis Vasconcelos

TO ADELAIDE

A MASSIVE haul of Ferraris is charging to this year’s Adelaide Motorsport Festival.

With the “greatest gathering of special edition Ferraris in the Southern Hemisphere” promised, the segment known as ‘Ferrari Spettacolo’ will be something not to miss for fans of the Prancing Horse.

The cavalry of cars will include some rare and unique Ferrari special editions that will take on the Victoria Park circuit at the March 16-17 event.

Leading the way will be the iconic La Ferrari midengined hybrid sportscar that was created to be the definitive car by the Italian manufacturer, fitted with the F1-style KERS system.

One of just 30 Ferrari FXX’s in the world will be roaring around Adelaide. The high performance trackonly prototype is powered by a 6.3-litre V12 engine.

The track version of the Ferrari 599 GTB, the 599XX is another Prancing Horse that is not seen everyday, with only 44 produced, which can reach a top speed of 315km/h.

Named after the iconic Ferrari founder Enzo Ferrari, the Ferrari Enzo is a special tribute, with extremely distinctive bodywork.

The car was developed with F1 technology at a time when Ferrari and Michael Schumacher were winning everything in 2002, and it can hit 255km/h with its 6-litre V12.

Not only are modern favourites set to appear, but also classics, including the Ferrari F40. It is a sleek mid-engined rear-wheel drive sportscar with a twinturbo V8 that was a fitting celebration for the brand’s 40th anniversary.

There will also be some Australian flavour to AMF, with two cars raced by some of the biggest names to race in Supercars, on show.

The last ever Holden to conquer the Great Race has been added to the growing Bathurst winners category.

The ZB Commodore Shane van Gisbergen and Garth Tander won Bathurst with in both 2020 and 2022 is coming back to Adelaide, the same circuit where the Kiwi did his unforgettable burnout.

The arrival means two of the three cars to win Bathurst twice will be coming to the AMF following the earlier announcement of the Holden Dealer Team’s VH Commodore SS that won in 1982 and 1983.

Another touring car from the 1980s that will be cutting laps will be Dick Johnson’s 1985 Ford Mustang.

The Greens Tuff Mustang was the first Johnson raced in the Group A era and is the first to be named in the Heritage Touring Cars at the AMF with more coming soon. Thomas Miles

www.autoaction.com.au I 9

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TOYOTA SET FOR NEW WRC ATTACK

By Paul Gover

TOYOTA IS about to double-down on the World Rally Championship.

After dominating the elite Rally1 series in recent years with its Yaris Hybrid, it is about to unleash a new contender in the Rally2 category.

It is another Yaris, but vastly different from the tube-framed Rally1 prototype that runs a silhouette body and more than 375 kiloWatts of power from a combined 1.6-litre turbo engine and electrical booster package.

The Rally2 Yaris is much closer to the showroom car and very similar to the championship winning Toyotas developed in Canberra by Neal Bates Motorsport for the regional AP4 rules.

But this is a full factory Toyota effort, with input from the company’s traditional motorsport base in Cologne, Germany – once home to its Formula One team and now headquarters for its Le Mans sports

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car programs – and the rally team in Finland.

The Rally2 Yaris has been in development for more than a year and has been unveiled in the lead-up to the Monte Carlo Rally, the first leg of this year’s WRC series.

The key components are similar to other Rally2 front-runners from Ford and Skoda, the team to beat last year, with a 1.6-litre engine with 32-millimetre restrictor – good for around 225 kiloWatts – a five-speed sequential manual gearbox, all-wheel drive and a mandated weight of 1230 kilograms.

Development was centred in Europe, with Toyota Gazoo Racing’s team boss and retired WRC driver Yari-Matti Latvala, doing some of the driving.

He also drove the car in last year’s Japanese leg of the WRC. Five cars have been built in the first batch of Rally2 cars, with #1 reserved for the chairman of Toyota,

Akio Toyoda. He is a keen motorsport competitor, who took Toyota into the WRC and even drove a Toyota 86 rally prototype once in Australia during Rally Australia in Coffs Harbour in 2014.

All of the available Rally2 cars will be competing in Monte Carlo, although Bates Motorsport has placed orders and is hoping to get its first factory Yaris sometime in 2024 for the national championship.

Pierre-Louis Loubet has done the most-recent testing for Toyota, in the lead-up to the Monte Carlo Rally, although the top-seeded Yaris Rally2 driver could be 22-year old Sami Pajari.

He lives in Jyvaskyla, traditional base for Rally Finland and also the location of the Toyota Gazoo rally team.

He won the Junior World Championship in 2021 and competed last year in a Skoda Fabia RS in Rally2.

LADELLE LEADING NEW TCR TEAM

THERE WILL be a new team on the grid when the 2024 Supercheap Auto TCR Australia season begins – in the form of 99motorsport.

The family run team led by Marcus LaDelle, who will double up as owner/ driver at the Sandown season opener, has been racing a variety of categories over recent years with the step up to TCR the next step.

There is already some race-winning pedigree at 99motorsport – the car LaDelle will race is the chassis Chaz Mostert steered to the 2021 championship.

Although LaDelle is the only confirmed driver so far, the team has intentions of running two Audis during the seven-round season.

99motorpsport started life as single car operation headed by LaDelle in the RX8 Cup Series before joining the Toyota 86 Series in 2022.

Now in 2024 a new chapter awaits and LeDelle is excited about the opportunity that has arrived very quickly.

“It has been a whirlwind couple of weeks,” said LaDelle.

“I was actually put on to TCR and the Category Manager Lisa Totani by her brother Matthew, who happens to be our videographer. So that was a pretty unique way to get introduced – and as it turns out TCR fits the bill perfectly for what we planned to run in 2024.

“99 started as a personal pursuit to run my own cars, but it’s now evolved with more of a developmental program through Formula RX8 and Toyota 86.

“TCR is the next step for those drivers; a great category that’s commercially viable and has great synergy with the market and manufacturer relevance.

“There’s a great opportunity to bring drivers in to TCR and then give them the platform to go race in Europe, and the World Tour running down here only amplifies that.”

Initially LaDelle was on the search for two drivers, but the former Super2 driver admitted the chance to represent his team at its first TCR race behind the wheel was too good to resist.

“While I originally had the humble approach of putting a driver in the car, I can’t resist the challenge of steering this very fast Euro, and I love the Sandown circuit,” said LaDelle.

“I haven’t driven a Front Wheel Drive Race car since a Honda Integra in the old GTP days in 2001.

“I can’t wait to get in the car in a few weeks, then pack it and send it to Sandown. It’s going to be a massive learning curve, even with my experience.

“Goals are hard at this stage, but I believe with the car’s pedigree and MPC’s support, a top 10 is achievable and reasonable.”

Thomas Miles

CAMPBELL TO MAKE TOP-CLASS LE MANS DEBUT IN ’24 AUSSIE RACER Matt Campbell could scarcely climb the Porsche Pyramid any higher, but 2024 will see the GT turned Hypercar racer switch from IMSA to the FIA World Endurance Championship with Porsche-Penske Motorsport.

Although Campbell loved his life in North America at the top of the sportscar tree, the switch means that he’ll take on the Le Mans 24 Hour in the top class for the first time in his career after having raced in a Porsche 911 at Circuit de la Sarthe five times, winning his class in 2018.

In the first ever year of the GTP Hypercar category in IMSA, Campbell helped deliver a win in the spectacular 963 machine at Road America alongside Felipe Nasr, but was overlooked for the Le Mans drive whilst the #7 team managed fifth in the championship.

As well as a full WEC season alongside Danish driver Michael Christensen (with

Frenchman Fred Makowiecki in the third seat), Campbell is thankful he’ll still get to drive in his beloved IMSA series as a third driver in the enduro’s, which include the Daytona 24, the 12 Hours of Sebring, and the Petit Le Mans.

“I’d love to be able to stay (In IMSA) but I have a really good opportunity to move to the WEC and do it full-time, and also compete at Le Mans for the first time in the top level class,” Campbell said.

“But being able to do the endurance races in WEC is really, really important for me “Obviously it’s a slightly different role to what I’ve been used to in IMSA but I’m going to enjoy it just as much.”

The last time Campbell did a full-time WEC season was in the seat of a Porsche 911 RSR, having done three seasons for German team Dempsey Proton Racing between 2018/19-2021 in the now defunct LMGTE class, as well as driving in the 2022 Le Mans 24.

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WHEN COMPROMISE ISN’T AN OPTION

He’ll also experience an expanded Hypercar field which includes manufacturers like Ferrari, Toyota, Lamborghini, Alpine, Peugeot, BMW, and Isotta Fraschini, which will also race alongside the newly formed and expanded LMGT3 class.

“To be able to race at Le Mans in the top class is a dream come true,” he continued.

“I’ll finally get to realise that this year.

“In 2024, the WEC is really exciting.

When you look at how many cars are in the top class – I think 19 in total for the full season.

“With the new LMGT3 category, it’s changed a lot since the last time I was competing in the championship full-time, which was in 2021.

“I think it will be really cool to be able to be racing in the top class there.”

Regarding the new environment at the Porsche base in Mannheim, Germany, Campbell describes the operations as

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BE RYCO READY

being very different, even though they share information.

“I think it will be good to be racing in both championships as well, so you can get a feel of both cars and see how we’re progressing as a team.

“We learn a lot between both championships during race weekends and testing and everything like that. Coming across, we’ll be able to learn a few things between the two.

“The two operations are run very, very differently, obviously, in different parts of the world and in extremely different championships.”

Campbell will kick 2024 off at the Daytona 24 on January 24-28, whilst the WEC year gets going at the Qatar 1812 km at the Losail International Circuit for the Prologue on February 24-25, and the opening race of the year on March 2.

TW Neal Campbell will pilot one of the Porsche-Penske team’s entries in 2024 ...

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STOP / GO

GEN3 MUSTANGS TAKE ON CALDER GEN3 MUSTANGS took on the revived Calder Park for the first time last month during a memorable day of hot laps conducted by Walkinshaw Andretti United and Tickford Racing. Chaz Mostert’s car #25 and Cameron Waters’ #6 Monster Mustang in its victorious Ken Block tribute livery offered rides for some special guests. One of them was Ford CEO Jim Farley, while the likes of Kay Hart, President of Ford International Markets Group, and Mark Rushbrook, Global Director of Ford Performance Motorsport were also in attendance.

Geelong AFL and AFLW captains Patrick Dangerfield and Meg McDonald were joined by their respective coaches Chris Scott and Dan Lowther for some V8 fuelled fun, plus some lucky competition winners.

BIG NAMES SOAK UP SPEEDWAY THERE WERE some big names joining the crowd at Premier Speedway for the Sprintcar Speedweek meeting, showing their support for James McFadden. Joining the Hodges Motorsport outfit was two-time Supercars champion Marcos Ambrose, alongside former Supercars rival Steven Richards. The team even attracted some AFL royalty in the form of three-time Brisbane Lions premiership player Jonathan Brown and Western Bulldogs forward from the same era, Brad Johnson.

Rounding out the list was well-known SEN radio commentator Gerard Whateley, who took a break from the test cricket to see how the race team he owns was progressing.

MAZDA CHAMPIONSHIPS LINKING ACROSS THE TASMAN THANKS TO a new partnership, the winners of the Australian and New Zealand Mazda RX8 Cup Series will now enjoy funded drives on the other side of the Tasman.

Mazda RX8 Cup category manager Ric Shaw and his New Zealand equivalent Mazda Pro8 representative Ash McConchie have joined forces. “Our plan is simple, to aid the drivers in experiencing as much RX8 racing at as many tracks as possible and with the ease of international team support,” McConchie said.

“Other than the winner’s prize, the drivers from both series can travel during the season and race each other’s cars, as part of a simple and cost effective driver exchange programme.”

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WATERS GAINING MORE CONFIDENCE ON THE DIRT CAMERON WATERS has again swapped his Ford Mustang Supercar for a Sprintcar this summer and is becoming more accustomed to life on the dirt.

After his flying finish to the 2023 Supercars Championship which included wins on the streets of Surfers Paradise and Adelaide, Waters has returned to sprintcar racing with Chief Racing.

Having made a handful of appearances in recent seasons, the Tickford driver is back on the dirt this summer and gaining confidence.

Waters has made seven starts since the start of November with the early races being four of the seven rounds of the SRA Open Sprintcar Series.

After back-to-back top 10 finishes before the VAILO Adelaide 500, everything clicked when Waters returned to the speedway world at Simpson Speedway.

At the December 27 meeting, which doubled as round seven of the SRA Open Sprintcar Series, Waters scored an impressive second.

After 30 laps of racing he was just 2.6s away from race winner and sprintcar regular Tate Frost.

The following night he headed to Mount Gambier’s Borderline Speedway on the Speedweek but could only manage a P7 in the B-Main.

On December 30 he remained in the Speedweek spotlight at Avalon and

Image: EBONY MCQUINN/CHIEF RACING scored another top 10 in the B-Main.

However, Waters maximised everything in the Speedweek finale at Warrnambool’s Premier Speedway.

In a field featuring massive names such as James McFadden and Jock Goodyer, Waters scored an impressive fourth place.

Only the likes of Jamie Veal, Goodyer and McFadden kept the Supercars star off the podium.

Waters described the result as the “most satisfying run yet” of his speedway career.

“The level of competition was so high, so to run fourth with the best racers in Australia and the Americans as well was fantastic,” he said.

“We had a good night at Simpson, then struggled at Mount Gambier and Avalon, so to bounce back at Warrnambool was great.”

After four races in six nights on both sides of the SA and Victorian border, Waters then headed up to Toowoomba for the first time at a track he last visited to watch his father race for the Modified Production Sedan Australian title two decades ago.

With Supercars champion and racing rival Brodie Kostecki watching on, Waters just fell short, racing against some big names at the threenight Red Hot Summer Shootout event won by Jock Goodyer.

On the big final night Waters was on the front row for the B-Main and needed a top-four result to progress to the main event.

However, he fell just short, in fifth, a second behind Matt Dumesny to end the night early.

Thomas Miles

EASTERN CREEK SPEEDWAY GETS NEW OPERATOR

2024 WILL see the return of racing at the Eastern Creek Speedway following Sydney International Speedway Pty Ltd being appointed as its new operator.

The temporary closure of the multimillion dollar venue when Speedway Promotions Pty Ltd ended their tenure back in September caused concern and confusion over its immediate future, before the neighbouring Sydney Dragway – led by Chairman Tony Beuk – stepped in to take over the lease.

The appointment of the new operators means racing will resume soon, after the NSW Minister for Planning and Public Spaces, The Hon. Paul Scully, said that the track had received a five-star safety rating to

green-light the resumption of racing.

“After the previous government bungled the establishment of the new speedway at Eastern Creek, I am pleased that racing will return in early 2024,” Scully said, referring to the drainage issues that plagued the track after it was opened in 2021.

“The racing community was promised a world-class facility and we are delivering on that promise.

“After receiving a five-star safety rating the track is ready to race on and we are working with the new management to make Eastern Creek the number one motorsports precinct in Australia.

“I’m committed to the success Image: PROJECT of motorsports andRACE its social, and

economic value to the community.

Sydney Dragway Chairman Tony Beuk is excited to be uniting the two forms of racing under the one operational umbrella with the Speedway’s new venue operators.

“It’s is a state-of-the-art facility with amazing potential. We are excited by the two forms of motorsport working together to create a bright cooperative future, with the opportunity to share resources between two disciplines of motorsport that share similar passions,” he said.

“Sydney Dragway has 20 years of experience in event management, ticketing and logistics and we’re looking to work with Sydney International Speedway Pty Ltd who understands the speedway industry. Together, we are committed to getting racing back at the venue early in the new year and making it a success for the racing community.

“We are looking to attract the best Australian and overseas racers to Australia’s premier motorsports precinct.

“The return of speedway racing to Eastern Creek ensures racing will not only survive but thrive in Sydney.”

TW Neal

WHARTON FINDS FRECA F3 SEAT WITH PREMA ONE OF Australia’s most promising single-seater talents, James Wharton, has found himself a drive in the 2024 Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine.

The 17-year-old from Bundoora in Victoria will continue with Italian Outfit Prema Racing, stepping up from the F4 machinery into the Tatuus F3-T318 car.

Wharton was surprisingly let-go by the Ferrari Driver Academy (FDA) – along with F2 racer Arthur Leclerc – despite the young Aussie being the only FDA driver to actually win a title in 2023, the prestigious F4 UAE Championship.

Part of the All Drive management team which has helped him get to FRECA, Wharton didn’t quite have the year he expected in Italian F4, finishing fourth in the title race with two wins and six podiums after winning the UAE title in early February.

The European based 10-round, 20-race series is the stepping stone into FIA F3, and Wharton is pleased to stay within the Prema racing family whilst making the move up.

“I’m super excited to continue, and to be taking the next step of my career alongside my second family (Prema),” said Wharton.

“I can’t wait to get started and keep making the steps we have been for the last two seasons of F4. I feel honoured to have the confidence from Rene (Rosin, team principal) and I thank the team for giving me the opportunity for the next step.”

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James Wharton – experience from the F4 Italian Championship (here at Mugello) will help in 2024.

Rosin is a big believer in the Victorian, with the two having developed a strong working relationship for the past two seasons.

“We have had a great relationship with James so far, and we look forward to having him with us for 2024 as well,” said Rosin.

“He always fought for wins and podiums in every championship, so we trust him

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to be able to do the same in FRECA. We know this is a particularly tricky series, but we are confident we will manage to make all the steps we need to maximise our potential together and have a successful learning experience.”

The F3-T318 machine is far more of a wrestle to handle than the F4 machinery, but Wharton will have the luxury of having experienced most of the circuits on offer

from his time in the now defunct ADAC F4 German championship, and the Italian F4, with three of the rounds in Italy at Mugello, Imola and Monza, with the series also going to the Hockenheimring, Spa, Zandvoort, Hungaroring, Paul Ricard, Barcelona, and the Spielberg.

The first round will be on May 11-12 in Germany, at the Hockenheimring.

TW Neal

www.autoaction.com.au I 13

LATEST NEWS

Winning start to the year – Supercharged Outlaw victory to Shane Baxter.

Below: Edge Mallis took out Competition Bike; Todd Wagner won Junior Dragster; Glenn Henley saluted in Top Sportsman.

Images: AUTOMOTIVE EVENT IMAGES

SOUTH COAST 660 RINGS IN AEROFLOW NEW YEAR THE AEROFLOW National Sportsman Championship celebrated the New Year with a stacked field in Portland’s SouthCoast Raceway in Victoria, the first National Drag Racing Championship (NDRC) of 2024.

140 NDRC Western Conference competitors took to the coastal straight on January 1 in hunt of the prestigious Christmas Tree trophies, with the Supercharged Outlaws, Junior Dragster, Super Street, Super Comp, Competition Bike, Modified Bike, Super Gas, Modified, Super Sedan, and Top Sportsman categories all on offer.

Kicking off the winners list in the Supercharged Outlaws was Shane Baxter, who overcame top qualifier Doina Day in the Neil and Parks Dragster.

The Victorian defeated Brendan Carr in Round 1, whilst Day took Bob Sherry, but it was Baxter who took out another Chris Stewart Memorial trophy.

“I am over the moon. It was a good final, a great race with Doina Day, and the car had been faultless all day, so I was pretty confident we had a good chance in the final,” Baxter said while thanking Brian Oakley and also his crew.

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“We ran it out the back door and right on our dial-in, so I am very happy. It was great to win the Chris Stewart Memorial Trophy again, I am very happy about that.”

The Junior Dragsters saw a great story in the form of 12-year-old Todd Wagner taking the Christmas Tree, defeating

three-time tree winner Sarah Osborne, beating Lachlan Walker, Luca Lamattina and Jason Maggs on his way to victory.

“I do not know what to say, I am very excited. We really wanted to get a Christmas Tree in this car before I step up in May to a new car,” Wagner said.

Competition Bike saw a viceroy for Kawasaki H2R rider Edge Mallis.

The Victorian from Moonee Ponds went in as top qualifier, and overcame defending Australian champion and winner of the last Aeroflow round, Joe Khoury.

Mallis rode his luck in the final after getting through the three-round Chicago style Shootout format against Gavin Dohnt , Rob Church and Jake Hamilton-Moderate, with gear issues not getting the best of him after Khoury lit up red in the finale.

The Super Street category saw Michael Jennings back up his December SouthCoast Christmas Tree win in his 1970 Nova, beating Allan Brooks after the SA gun defeated Bill Farrugia, Andrew Waight and Andrew Smith to get there.

The Super Comp fell the way of Whyalla’s Steve Norman in his title winning BMW M3 after Matthew Forbes red lit in the final.

Back on two wheels, Mount Gambier’s Jamie Dohnt was the winner of the Modified Bike, defeating December winner Lucas Neagoe in a blistering final.

The Super Gas category went the way of Craigieburn’s Colin Griffin in his Toyota Celica, with the top qualifier beating Warren Smith in the final.

The Modified final went the way of another SA product from Holden Hill, with Simon Barlow taking his championship winning dragster all the way to the end with victory over previous-round winner, Kenny Stewart.

The Super Sedans kept the SA theme rolling after Beachport’s David Todd took the Christmas tree in his Gemini, overcoming Robert Kardum in the final.

Glenn Henley then became the second winner from Mount Gambier for the weekend in Top Sportsman, taking yet another Christmas Tree with a win over redlighting runner up, Ricky Smith.

Henley took his Datsun 1200 Ute to wins over Vlado Turic and Greg Damiani ahead of the final, whilst Smith got there with a win over current Aussie champ Leon Davies.

It’s not long before the Western Conference is back in action in the 23/24 Aeroflow National Sportsman Championship, with a visit to the Dragway at The Bend’s Festival State Nationals on January 13-14. Meanwhile, the Eastern Conference is heating up for its January 2627 event for the Sydney Dragway’s Australia Day Nationals.

TW Neal

NEXT GEN ENGINEERS SHOW OFF SKILLS CALDER PARK was buzzing with motorsport activity of a different kind recently as the next generation of engineers, rather than drivers, showcased their skills at the 2023 Formula SAE-A event.

Thousands of students in teams from all over the world including New Zealand, Japan, India, Indonesia and Taiwan joined the Australian outfits and descended on the historic Melbourne circuit to complete the final step of their year-long projects at the event.

The energy at Calder was infectious as teams cheered each time their fourwheel creation completed a lap of the endurance test.

There were a wide range of electric and internal combustion engined cars of all shapes and sizes with and without rear wings.

Formula SAE-A is not just about which car is fastest, with teams also completed business, design and cost presentations before their creation hits the track.

The most consistent across all tests is the winner with the event examining all aspects of motorsport.

In 2022, New Zealand based squads swept up the top awards and in 2023 it would continue after University of Canterbury was crowned as the overall winners in the most popular Electric Vehicle class at the event.

However, the Static and Dynamic results are currently undergoing a postevent review.

Despite this University of Canterbury Motorsport team principal Clark Fountain was still extremely proud of the 16-person team, having flourished at the event that was a year in the making.

“We spent all year building the car and came from New Zealand a couple of weeks early building up to this,” he told Auto Action.

“It was our 10th anniversary of competing at the event and was a big achievement for everyone.

“It was pretty cool and relieving just to finish all the events and do it.

“That itself was a massive milestone for the team because last year we just came short of finishing the last endurance event, so we took a different approach and it paid off.”

Clark explained the fundamental changes made for the 2023 car after the

Canterbury University won the popular EV class.

Below: They came from everywhere to compete! Wherever there’s motorsport, there’s Scrutineering ... Bottom: The Taiwan team competed for the first time, after years of planning.

Images: MONASH MOTORSPORT, THOMAS MILES, SUPPLIED

‘learning’ 2022 campaign.

“We competed at Winton with our 2021 car from Covid and those who built the car did not make the trip over,” he said.

“We had some electrical troubles because we were still learning the car, which was a more complex 4wd full aero concept.

“So we took a different approach being 2wd, super lightweight (168kg) and minimal aero but reliable just so we could focus on the basics and finish all the events which was critical.”

The team of 16 started in January and built the car that has a full and goes from 0-100km/h in a tick over 3s from scratch.

These kinds of challenges is why Clark believes Formula SAE-A is the perfect preparation for youngsters dreaming of a career in motorsport.

“It is a great stepping stone to get into the motorsport industry,” he said.

“It challenging but the more challenging it is the more you get out of it.

“The way you learn things at the event plus the business or static side of the event is very applicable to the motorsport scene.”

The proof is in the pudding with one University of Canterbury team member having just been recruited by the Haas F1 Team as a junior aerodynamicist.

One of the teams that travelled even further to be at a sunny Calder Park in December was the National Taiwan University of Science and Technology team.

After many years of dreaming and planning, the 14 youngsters brought the university to the event for the first time.

Although their car stalled on track and was unable to complete the Dynamic tests, they still passed all the off-track inspections and Static tests, plus notably rebuilding a battery pack within two days. For their efforts they won the prestigious Harry Watson Award.

National Taiwan University of Science and Technology team member Zack Lai said everyone is happy having completed their targets on debut.

“It has been years in the making and this was our first car and first time being here,” he told Auto Action.

“We at least were able to pass all the vehicle inspections which was the goal we were trying to make.

“Even though we stalled on the track, we will learn from it and still did a good job.

“Being involved in motorsport which is why we are here and hopefully we will see everyone again next year.”

Teammate Jason Su explained they entered the event with the ambition of gathering experience for the future.

“The philosophy of this car was mainly about applying it to the rules and using this car as a data receiver to build future cars,” he said.

“Our seniors founded the team and designed and built the car before we gradually developed it to apply to the rules.

“We had so much fun and the challenge of the event has inspired us for the future.”

In addition to the competition, a large careers expo was held, while organisers have confirmed their intension to bring the event back to Calder Park in December 2024.

Thomas Miles

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VALE GIL DE FERRAN

Main: Brazilian GP, November 2018 – McLaren Sporting Director.

Everyone knew and loved Gil de Ferran: Below Left: With Roger Penske, at the Japanese Twin Ring Motegi Indycar race in 2011 during his Indycar career. Right: mentoring Indycar ‘rookie’ Fernando Alonso at Indy ...

Images: MOTORSPORT IMAGES

GIL DE FERRAN GONE TOO SOON

A BRILLIANT DRIVER ON THE TRACK AND A MUCH LOVED AND RESPECTED MAN OFF IT, ON DECEMBER 29 THE WORLD LOST A MOTOR RACING ICON OF THE 2000s. DAN McCARTHY LOOKS INTO WHY GIL DE FERRAN WAS SO POPULAR NOT ONLY WITH HIS FANS, BUT HIS CLOSEST RIVALS ...

GIL DE Ferran may have been an Indy 500 winner and two-time Champ Car Series winner, but it was his off-track persona that touched so many.

Sadly, late last year de Ferran passed away after suffering a heart attack at the age of just 56. From the moment it was announced, the tributes flooded social media.

Born in Paris, France in 1967, Gil de Ferran’s family moved to Brazil before he was one. His father was a mechanical engineer and keen motorsport enthusiast, so, it was only natural that Gil got the motorsport bug himself.

Initially de Ferran attempted to follow his idol Emerson Fittipaldi and become a Formula 1 World Champion.

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Having starting karting relatively late, de Ferran moved into car racing in the late 80s and quickly picked up his first Formula Ford Championship.

In 1991 he moved up to British F3, finishing third in his rookie season before dominating the 1992 season by winning seven of the 16 races.

The next step was Formula 3000 (the second tier F1 category of the era) – in 1993 he finished fourth. The following year he took multiple wins and improved to finish third.

Despite the talent and even completing multiple Formula 1 tests with Williams and Arrows, finances meant that teams looked elsewhere.

Instead, he turned his attention to openwheel racing locally. He took to Champ Car like duck to water.

He won the final race of the 1995 season for Hall/VDS Racing, finishing 14th in the championship and winning the coveted Rookie of the Year honours. He improved on that the following year; he finished sixth overall and again recorded a victory.

A move to Walker Racing in 1997 saw him finish as the series runner-up behind Alex Zanardi.

The big career break however came in 2000 when he was offered a drive by Roger Penske.

The Team Penske and de Ferran partnership was an instant success – he not only won the

2000 CART Championship, he backed it up with another championship in 2001.

For 2002 Team Penske made the shock switch from CART to IndyCar but, as always, de Ferran adapted well, finishing third in his debut season.

2003 started badly, he broke his back in a crash in Round 2 and was forced to miss the third round in Japan. It was a race against time to be back for the Indy 500.

Incredibly just 62 days after breaking his back, he not only returned, but he won the

The de Ferran pathway (above), top to bottom: 1988 British Formula Ford Championship; British F3 1992; F3000 in 1994; First F1 test – Silverstone, 1992 – Williams FW14; ALMS in 2008; leading Alex Zanardi at the 1997 Gold Coast Indycar race ...

Top right: Celebrating the 2003 Indy 500 win with wife Angela, daughter Anna and son Luke.

Above right: 2000 CART Champion – at Mid Ohio.

Below: Indianapolis ... 2003 ...

Below right: A one-off Supercar race – Gold Coast, 2011 ...

Images: MOTORSPORT IMAGES

Indy 500, beating his teammate and Brazilian compatriot Helio Castroneves to the line.

De Ferran would finish the year as the series runner-up, just a few points shy of Scott Dixon.

After winning the Indy 500, de Ferran decided to retire at the top of his game – he did just that by winning his final IndyCar race of the season.

The now six-time champion Scott Dixon described de Ferran as a mentor.

“We didn’t want to believe that we lost one of motorsports true heroes this afternoon,” Dixon said on social media. “I was always ready to listen to Gil. Someone I really admired and looked up to. It was a real honour to be one of your teammates.”

For many the defining moment of De Ferran’s career was not his CART titles, but the 241.428 mph lap around the California Speedway. Twenty-three years later it still remains a closed-circuit speed record.

This was only possible because of his uncanny ability to set up a car perfectly – his mechanical knowledge and understanding of any vehicle was second to none and all stemmed from the days testing his kart with his dad.

Like his father, he also spent three years studying to become mechanical engineer in case the driving career did not take off.

Therefore, it was only natural once he hung up the helmet that de Ferran became the BAR/Honda F1 team’s Sporting Director in 2005.

De Ferran departed the team after two years as he felt the squad was going down the wrong

autoactionmag

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path – although he did oversee Jenson Button’s win in the 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix.

“Still in shock that we lost one of the good ones so young, one of the best behind the wheel and all-round great guy Gil de Ferran,” Button said. “I will miss that wonderful smile – rest in peace my friend.”

He returned to the wheel in 2008, driving in the American Le Mans Series, while also testing and developing the brand-new Acura LMP1 car for the 2009 season.

His technical feedback worked wonders as the cars finished 1-2 in the championship and he himself finished as the series runner-up.

2011 would see a move to IndyCar team ownership as well as playing an important hand in the design for the next generation IndyCar. Notably he also drove a V8 Supercar alongside Jonathon Webb in the 2011 Gold Coast 600 event where he finished ninth and 13th.

Fast forward a few years and de Ferran returned to F1, this time with McLaren. In 2018 he was appointed the teams Sporting Director and held the role until 2021.

Early last year McLaren CEO Zak Brown persuaded his good friend to rejoin the team.

“I am shocked and devastated to hear of the loss of our great friend and team-mate,” Brown said.

autoactionmag

autoactionmag

“I’ve raced with Gil all over the world and watched him win some of the biggest races.

He’s been a great friend for over 20 years and will be greatly missed and never forgotten. My deepest condolences to his family. RIP Gil. The next win is for you! Godspeed.”

De Ferran was re-hired as a consultant and advisor, and played a major role in Oscar Piastri’s first Formula 1 season.

“It was a pleasure to get to know Gil this year ... he will be greatly missed. Rest in peace,” Piastri said.

Piastri’s manager Mark Webber expressed what a great man De Ferran was, and how impressed he was with McLaren’s current Aussie driver.

“Days later and we still can’t get our heads around what’s happened. I never realised how much I loved sitting with Gil for the F1 sessions/races in 2023, in the background and watching the data come in live.

“It meant so much to us how proud he was of Oscar doing his work early in his career.

“Look at that son, f**king mega!” was often his line … he certainly had a beautiful style about him. Class guy and straight shooter.

“Both Annie and I were so lucky to spend some quality time with him this year; that special holiday, in special company. Rest easy Gil, a beacon of class that touched our lives.”

In honour of de Ferran’s passing, his former boss Roger Penske (who now owns the Indianapolis Motor Speedway) put a photo of the Brazilian on the legendary timing pylon.

“Gil defined class as a driver and as a gentleman,” Penske said. “As an IndyCar champion and an Indianapolis 500 winner, Gil accomplished so much during his career, both on and off the track.

“Gil was beloved by so many. He was a great friend to the Team Penske and IndyCar family, as well as the entire international motorsports community. Gil’s passing is a terrible loss, and he will be deeply missed.”

Tony Kanaan was a long-time rival of de Ferran, although the two Brazilian’s were good friends. Sadly Kanaan was at the event where de Ferran suffered his fatal heart attack.

“Gil, this day is dedicated to you,” he said.

“We spent countless years as rivals on track and just now I was thinking about the privilege that I had this past year working close to you.

“Endless calls to pick your brain on new ideas and your brilliant insights about everything, so many plans for the future …

Still in shock and not sure what to say or think about this loss.”

It shows the class of the man that, despite winning 12 IndyCar/Champ Car races including the Indy 500, and two championships, in the cutthroat industry that is motorsport, the Brazilian is simply remembered as being one of the nice guys of the sport.

Auto Action sends its condolences to Gil’s friends and family.

www.autoaction.com.au I 17

LATEST NEWS

WILLIAMS STICKS WITH MERCEDES WILLIAMS HAS extended its customer Mercedes engine deal until at least the end of the 2030 Formula 1 season.

The upcoming 2024 season marks a decade since the current partnership between Williams and Mercedes began in 2014 when the famous Grove based team switched from Renault power.

The partnership began with immediate success as Williams rose from a lowly ninth in 2013 to an impressive third in 2014 after scoring nine podiums between Felipe Massa and a young Valtteri Bottas.

Since then Williams has had a tougher time but showed signs of growth last year and the new deal gives the team certainty beyond the new era of power unit regulations in 2026.

All up Williams has scored 18 podiums with the three pointed star in the turbo hybrid era also finishing third in 2015.

In addition to Williams, Mercedes will also supply McLaren until 2030.

Williams team principal James Vowles was thrilled to see Mercedes stay with the team.

“It is fantastic to extend our partnership with Williams Racing until 2030,” he said.

“We have enjoyed a strong relationship with them since the introduction of the current power unit regulations and look forward to continuing that into this next era. “Their commitment and support to our future power unit strategy is highly valued. “We look forward to approaching this new rules set together, with the same passion and enthusiasm we did in 2014 and with the aim of achieving similar successes.”

HILL TO BRING SUPERCARS BACK TO CANBERRA FOR THE first time in over two decades, a Supercar will roar around Canberra with Cameron Hill to take his MSR Camaro home.

The Gen3 Supercar joins a list of more than 300 cars including the Ferrari F40, Lamborghini Countach and Ferrari P4 Le Mans that will feature at the 2024 Canberra Festival of Speed on March 2-3.

Supercars last raced at Canberra in 2002, which was the last of just three street races held in the nation’s capital.

But Canberra will welcome back

Supercars to a lesser extent thanks to hometown driver Hill.

The Canberra native driver finished 23rd in his rookie season last year and will be the ambassador of the event held a week after the 2024 Supercars opener at Bathurst.

Project Supercars event presenter Martin Tanti said it is a big moment for the capital.

“It’s a historic moment for Canberra as we showcase this active V8 supercar in both static and dynamic displays, navigating our exhibition circuit,” he said.

“This marks a significant milestone, as Canberra hasn’t witnessed an active V8 supercar in motion since the GMC 400 more than 20 years ago.

“We are displaying some of the greatest supercars the world has to offer from Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren and Porsche just to name a few.”

Hill’s Supercar will be one of 300 cars expected to take part in the event on a 6-turn purpose built circuit from Formula Ford to Formula 1.

HAZELWOOD TEAMS WITH FORMER ENGINEER AS DRIVER COACH AFTER LOSING a full-time seat in Supercars for the first time in his career, Todd Hazelwood has turned to driver coaching to give back to the sport alongside a former engineer.

The South Australian will work with the engineer that helped him win the 2017 Super2 Series at Matt Stone Racing, Wes McDougall.

The pair also worked together in their first season together in Supercars in 2018 with McDougall staying at MSR up until 2020 before being Jamie Whincup’s last full-time engineer in 2021.

They will reunite working together at the Complete Race Driver coaching program setup by McDougall.

Hazelwood is excited to renew their partnership away from the race track.

“It’s really cool to team up with my mate Wes McDougall once again,” the former MSR, BJR and BRT driver said.

“We have plenty of successful on-track history together and we’re both super excited to combine our knowledge and skills into a service for anyone to now access.

“I’m really looking forward to sharing my racing and motorsport knowledge with the next generation of our sport.

“It’ll be both exciting and satisfying to help progress skills and motorsport careers with The

Complete Race Driver.

“We have created a very broad range of services available to ensure we can support any type of motorsport goal.”

The Complete Race Driver program was setup by McDougall is an online and learning course for drivers of all races.

The course includes 65 lesses and more than six hours of video and 50,000 words.

Hazelwood’s role will include a “wide range of motorsport coaching and engineering services ranging from track day testing, to simulator training, to professional race meeting support, to video and data analysis and more.”

McDougall welcomes

Hazelwood to his new team off the track and is looking forward to utilising his 187 Supercars race starts worth of experience.

“I am excited to once again be working with Todd, who will help bolster the capabilities of The Complete Race Driver,” he said.

“Our aim is to help drivers and teams from all walks of life to achieve their goals and administer motorsport coaching using data driven knowledge, experience, and clear communication.

“Todd is a studious, fast and professional driver who has driven a broad range of machinery and tasted a lot of success despite his young age.

“I look forward to being able to work with Todd and help all the drivers that we work with.”

TRANS AM RECOGNISES YOUTH THROUGH NEW AWARD THE YOUNG chargers of the Trans Am Series will have a new award to chase when the 2024 season begins at Sandown.

A new Young Gun award will be introduced to the category this year designed to recognise drivers under the age of 25.

The three drivers in that age bracket who have scored the most points throughout the season will be recognised.

Young drivers have already made a massive impact in the category’s short history with Nathan Herne winning the 2021 and 2022 titles by the time he was 20.

Although 39-year-old James Moffat clinched the 2023 crown, a number of younger drivers impressed.

The likes of Lochie Dalton, Tom Hayman and Cody Gillis were the leading drivers

aged under 25 across the 2023 season.

Dalton clean swept the Winton round and finished second to Moffat in the standings, while Hayman also took three wins at Queensland Raceway and Gillis collected five podiums.

All three will still be eligible to win the Young Gun award in 2024 and Trans Am

category manager Graham Sattler said it has been brought in to keep rising stars coming through the series.

“We are passionate about fostering new talent in the National Trans Am Series,” said Sattler.

“Introducing the Young Gun Award further rewards the young drivers coming

through, providing them with even more incentive.

“We have a fantastic crop of returning young drivers and also look to have a fantastic crop of new young rookie drivers joining us ready to show what they can do.

“The future is bright in Trans Am.” Hayman believes chasing the Young Gun award is a good carrot to chase in addition to the title.

“It’s a good incentive, to know that there’s that opportunity to be rewarded and show themselves against the more experienced drivers on the big stage,” Hayman said.

“The new award for young drivers is a great step in promoting the series and introducing more young drivers moving forward.”

LATEST NEWS

FIA ANNOUNCES KEY STRUCTURAL CHANGES THE FIA has announced a key structural change to its Formula 1 team following the departure of technical director Tim Goss and sporting director Steve Nielsen and the arrival of Tim Malyon.

The pair played key roles at the FIA with a focus on the 2026 regulations reporting to the single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis.

Following the news the FIA has announced Malyon as the new Sporting Director in the single-seater department.

Malyon will overlook sporting aspects such as Race Direction and the Remote Operations Centre in Geneva, under Tombazis.

He has plenty of experience in Formula 1 having previously been a massive part of the Red Bull F1 team, joining it during the Jaguar days.

Malyon performed a number of race engineering roles helping Red Bull score its four-peat of constructors and drivers championships from 2010-2013.

In 2015 he moved to Sauber in the Head of Track Engineering before moving to BMW’s DTM program initially and eventually the German manufacturer’s Formula E squad.

Malyon’s time at the FIA started in 2019 as the head of research before being appointed as the Safety Director in 2021 where he played a part to the establishment of the ROC. Malyon will work with Niels Wittich, who continues as Race Director and is excited about his next chapter.

“I am delighted to be taking on the role of Sporting Director,” the Canadian said.

“We have already brought significant change to our Race Direction operation with the support of the ROC and I look

forward to taking that to the next level.

“We are also committed to a broad regulatory review of sporting matters, and I look forward to applying a sharper focus to those efforts in the future.”

FIA’s Single Seater Director Tombazis believes Malyon will add a lot to the FIA. “I am excited to welcome Tim to the role of Single-Seater Sporting Director,” he said.

“Tim has a wealth of motorsport experience and expertise at the highest level. He will play a major role as we continue to bring rigour to our sporting and regulatory practices and procedures, and he will drive the innovation we have brought to our Race Control operation.

“Tim has been pivotal in creating a strong synergy between Race Control and the ROC with the introduction of new technology including artificial intelligence and state-of-the-art data analysis and processing systems.

“He will continue to oversee advances in that area as well as taking the lead on the evolution of FIA sporting regulations.”

Tombazis also spoke highly of both departing individuals Nielsen and Goss.

“Steve has been a fantastic asset to the Single-Seater Department over the course of the 2023 Formula 1 season and has been part of a crucial year of development and positive steps forward in our activities,” he said of Nielsen.

“There is, of course, still a lot to do, and we will be building on these strong foundations over the coming years. We wish Steve the best for his next challenge.”

“We are disappointed to lose a person of Tim’s calibre from the organisation,” Tombazis said of Goss.

“Tim has played a major part in the Technical Department and has always operated to the highest level.

“We understand that his career is taking

a new direction going forward and we support and respect his desire to pursue another path, and wish him luck for his future endeavours.”

Goss worked at McLaren for almost three decades from 1990 to 2018 before working at the FIA and has been described as a greatly respected member of the paddock.

He described working for the FIA as “an honour”.

“It’s been an honour to work as Technical Director at the FIA and to help shape the future of the sport,” Goss said.

“I take immense pride and satisfaction from the numerous achievements of the Technical Department during my stint at the FIA. “The department boasts a number of highly-talented individuals and I believe the organisation is on a firm footing in terms of technical expertise for the tasks which lie ahead – particularly the introduction of the 2026 regulations.

“I leave with fond memories of my time with the FIA.” Nielsen arrived at the FIA after performing a similar role within F1 and was an “integral part” of major improvements made to Race Control procedures.

“I’d like to thank the FIA for the opportunity to work on the regulatory side of the sport, which has been a fantastic experience for me over the past year,” Nielsen said.

“The FIA team working in Formula 1 are a hugely passionate, dedicated group of people who work incredibly hard to achieve the best outcomes for the sport.

“I am sure that the positive work that we have done together already will continue into the future.”

SAUBER REVEALS LATEST F1 NAME SAUBER HAS launched its latest name ahead of the 2024 Formula 1 season when it will be named as Stake F1 Team.

The squad that has been known as Alfa Romeo since 2018 has unveiled a new logo alongside the new name on its social handles.

Whilst the Swiss outfit will still be officially known as Sauber, it will use the shorter sponsor version on a daily basis.

Following the ending of the contract with Alfa Romeo, the team had to find a new name for the next two seasons before the arrival of Audi in 2026.

Sponsors Stake and Kick both featured on the car prominently in 2023 with a special livery at Belgium.

It will be Sauber’s 12th name in Formula

1 since its debut campaign in 1993 when it was called Team Sauber Formula 1.

When Mercedes backing arrived

in 1994 it included the German manufacturer, while the next 11 years featured a mixture of Red Bull, Petronas

and Ford around the Sauber name.

In 2006 the return of factory backing in the form of BMW brought in the team’s most successful era and a new name.

BMW Sauber F1 Team secured top three finishes in both 2007 and 2008, but after the German brand’s departure in 2010 it returned to Sauber and the lower half of the grid with Ferrari power.

The connection to the Italians grew in 2018 when Alfa Romeo stepped up as the title sponsor before taking over naming rights in the following season which remained the case until this year with a mix of naming rights shared between Orlen, Kick and Stake.

The team will unveil the C44 car it will race in 2024 in London on February 5.

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LATEST NEWS

GOODYER WINS AGAIN IN TOOWOOMBA AFTER DOMINATING the Speedweek in Victoria, Jock Goodyer has carried on winning in Queensland by taking out the Red Hot Summer Shootout in Toowoomba.

Goodyer dominated the 35-lap A-Main, but he had to survive a two-lap sprint to fend off a charging Jy Corbet to snatch the $30,000 prize.

After Carson Macedo and Lachlan McHugh were victorious in the preliminary races, the stage was set for the three-night event to wrap up in a big way at Hi-Tec Oils Toowoomba Speedway where Aussies and Americans were keen to go for glory.

Goodyer made his intentions clear early by slingshotting into the lead around the outside as McHugh and Newton settled in behind.

But there was trouble at the start of the second lap as Newton was spun from third at turn 1 bringing out an early yellow.

The incident was sparked by slight side to side contact with McHugh coming out of the final corner.

When racing resumed Goodyer produced another flyer to rebuild his lead over McHugh.

Just as the #NQ7 started to close on the Aussie champ, the second yellow arrived after Jessie Attard whacked the turn 1 concrete.

Across the first 10 laps Cody Maroske had been in the top three but lost significant ground after the second restart, allowing both Matt Dumesny and Macedo to surge through into third and fourth respectively.

But things were about to get a lot worse for Maroske as his title defence came to a barrel-rolling end with 23 to go.

It was at the third restart where Macedo pounced on Dumesny to complete his charge from ninth to third.

Inside the final 15 laps traffic started to cause Goodyer headaches with McHugh and Macedo closed the gap and with 10 to go another caution was required due to the stopped Justin Peck.

Goodyer got a lighting restart leaving McHugh to get his elbows out to defend second.

It proved to be an objective he could not complete as Macedo slid by on the exit of turn 2 before Corbet also launched a counterattack.

He caught McHugh napping as the #10 swooped around the outside to surge into the top three Corbet’s late-race charge proved to be irresistible, with Macedo unable to respond after the Queenslander performed the same move to fly into second.

With five to go Goodyer had a full straight on Corbet and he looked set to coast to victory until a late twist.

Goodyer had only just lapped Brent Kratzmann before the #Q2 spun around bringing out a caution with just one lap left.

All eyes were on the restart to see if anyone could take it to Goodyer but as had been the story all night, the reigning national champion had another perfect getaway.

This left Corbet and Macedo to wrestle for second and they put on a show.

Corbet got hung out to dry on the high line at the end of the penultimate lap which opened the door for Macedo to steal second spot.

But as they crossed the line to begin the final lap, Corbet hit back and immediately reclaimed the position by the time they arrived at turn 1.

A further 1.4s up the road was Goodyer, who completed a dominant drive and marked the win with a rapid spin in front of the crowd.

THE FOUR AUSSIES HUNTING UAE F4 GLORY FOUR AUSSIE drivers and one team will be on the grid when the 2024 Formula 4 UAE Championship ignites this weekend.

Jack Beeton, Peter Bouzinelos, Kamal Mrad and Nicolas Stati will be the Australians to cheer for among the 33-car grid confirmed for the five-round championship.

The season begins with at the home of the Formula 1 finale Yas Marina with three races this weekend, which follows a twoday test at the same circuit beginning today.

Three of the four drivers from down under will be representing Australian team AGI Sport.

The bright blue and yellow cars of the Sydney based open-wheel team will be hard to miss as it takes on the UAE series for the first time.

Leading the charge will be Beeton, who is the only Australian with previous experience of the series known as the “F4 world championship”.

The 16-year-old competed in the entire 2023 season and was one of the younger drivers on the grid.

He finished 23rd in the championship which did include an impressive seventh place at Dubai Autodrome.

But Beeton will return as a far more complete driver fresh from a championship success.

He and AGI Sport recently clinched the 2023 Formula 4 South East Asia drivers and teams championship double.

Two wins at Zhuzou in China and a streak of nine successive top five finishes meant Beeton wrapped up the title easily by 48 points.

He will be looking to carry on the momentum with a strong performance in the UAE as he prepares for a big year in Europe.

Perth product Stati also raced in the Formula 4 South East Asia Championship and is hoping to turn more heads.

Stati came straight from karting into the series and despite only making his debut at the halfway mark of the season, Stati still did enough to finish in the top 10.

Racing for AGI Sport he showed impressive improvement across the

Sepang double header to close out the season.

After finishing no higher than 11th in his debut weekend, he was fighting up the front in the finale and won the reverse top eight race 2.

AGI Sport team principal Adam Gotch said at just 15, Ferrari Driver Academy entrant Stati has already shown a lot.

“Nico progressed very nicely in the final two rounds of the Asian F4 Championship late last year with us,” Gotch said.

“In only his fifth car race, he held his nerve to win the reverse top eight race against strong pressure from Prema and his own team mates.

“It was a very impressive mature drive from the 15 year old who had only just started his F4 race programme with us the week before.”

Another member of AGI Sport’s championship winning F4 South East Asia line up was Bouzinelos.

Bouzinelos has a busy start to 2024 mixing his F4 UAE debut with the Spanish F4 Winter Series which begins at Jerez in February.

Much like Stati, Bouzinelos got acclimatised to F4 in his first South East Asia round in Sepang with a top result of 11th, before three straight top 10s in the finale, highlighted by a maiden trip to the podium in the final race, crucial to the thrilling chase for the teams title where AGI tied with Asia Racing Team.

Ina addition to F4 he has also represented Australia at the 2022 FIA World Motorsport Games in Junior Karting.

The only Aussie not racing for AGI Sport is Mrad, who will race under the PHM AIX banner.

Mrad has karting in both Australia and Europe and made the step up to F4 last year in the Italian series.

He participated in all three races of the final round at the Vallelunga Circuit with a best result of 21st in the competitive championship.

Drivers and teams will enjoy a two-day test at Yas Marina today before racing takes centre stage on January 12-14 this weekend.

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FILM & BOOK REVIEWS

FERRARI: ENZO FERRARI THAT IS MOTOR RACING has been blessed by The Netflix Era. The search for content, great stories has inevitably led in racings direction with all of its thrills, spills, drama and pathos despite the high inherent cost of on-track footage.

Rush (2013) and Ford v Ferrari (2019) are both fantastic films, as too is Ferrari which is in-cinema now.

The focus is on the man himself with the complexity of his life laid bare focussing on the year leading up to the 1957 Mille Miglia, the famous Italian road race.

While Piero Taruffi won the race in a Ferrari 315S, everybody remembers it because of the 12 fatalities caused by the crash of another works Ferrari 335S driven by swash-buckling Spanish nobleman, Alfonso de Portago.

The cinematography is breathtaking, you will want to book an Italian holiday by the end of it.

The testing scenes at Modena are fantastic. Less convincing is the biffo during the Mille itself – by contrast the pitstops are done well. The attention to historic detail is high, Mike Hawthorn’s goofy – but absolutely correct – beanie before the Mille off in Brescia is a small example that shows the length to which the team have gone for we ‘anoraks.’

But be aware, there are a couple of occasions I wouldn’t have minded less graphic detail … And it might not be great for the kiddies or for those faint of heart.

Your lady friend will enjoy it too – Enzo’s fondness for the signoras is well known and portrayed, as are his ‘employee management’ techniques and financial challenges.

Sure, some of the timing of events isn’t quite right, but go with the flow – this is Hollywood done very well. My only complaint is that Sig Laura Ferrari – played Penelope Cruz – remained fully clothed throughout.

Mark Bisset

THE FASTEST AUSSIE ON EARTH ROSCO MCGLASHEN’S autobiography starts with raw honesty, talking about his time in solitary confinement at Fremantle Prison in the 1960s. His rebel lifestyle had caught up with him, and he was part way through a two-year sentence for a crime that today would have got a slap on the wrist – but it gives you an insight into a troubled youth who eventually found his purpose.

And that purpose was speed, and his relentless push towards 1000mph on four wheels which remains his next conquest.

An undoubted character of Australia’s motoring and motorsport scene, McGlashen’s life has been spent chasing speed in one form or another, from V8 powered motorcycle and jet powered go-karts (think more than 400km/h) for drag racing, to jet and rocket powered cars for land speed records.

Written with Mark Read who works with him on the Aussie Invader team, the story of his life runs largely chronologically with a few meanderings. We hear about his childhood, and then marvel at his ability to charm and talk his way out of trouble and into mischief.

He started trying to make cars go faster when he was 12, at the same time his awareness grew of Donald Campbell’s world speed record in July 1963, and he was telling people he would go faster. He also left home at that age.

From there his journeys took him around the world and into the homes and hearts of some of the biggest names

within an hour in the opposite direction, and the stories of the challengers in each attempt form a large part of the book.

The chapter detailing Aussie Invader 5R is a good read for those with an interest in the engineering of a land speed car and who need it told in layman’s terms.

Rosco: The Fastest Aussie on Earth is McGlashen’s story. It is an entertaining read from someone who is one of the great characters of Australian motorsport, it is also raw and honest and tells you what happens when a rebel finds his purpose. It is available online at Amazan and other bookstores. Andrew Clarke

creating speed, from ‘Fearless’ Fred Goeske and Dick Keller whose Blue Flame land record was creating a stir that had him labelled the World’s Craziest Daredevil when his car topped 1000km/h over a mile, to Perter Beck who runs Rocket Lap and wrote the foreword.

In Australia, one of the lasting friendships was with Ken Warby who still holds the world water speed record with a jet powered boat called the Spirit of Australia, which first set the mark in 1977 before bettering it in 1978 with an

official speed of 511.121km/h. Warby and McGlashen set up a touring show of speed, two great Australian pioneers showing the work that is their passion.

But as much as this story is about the people in his life, it is also about the five vehicles names Aussie Invader, and how he wrangled – and still is wrangling – to get each vehicle onto the salt and into the record books. His Australian land speed record stands at 802.6km/h, but he has topped 1000km/h, but wasn’t able to duplicate the run

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COUNTDOWN TO BATHURST DAKAR IS HAPPENING AND MONTE CARLO IS UP NEXT ...

SO MOTORSPORT in 2024 is happening and it’s impossible – for me and probably you – not to feel the usual new-year spark.

But . . .

Is it going to be a great year in motorsport? I have questions and doubts.

Dakar is obviously a belter, with an all-star cast and the potential for all sorts of dramas. No-one would try to predict the winner in 2024 with any sort of certainty.

On to the Monte, and the start of the lacklustre World Rally Championship. It’s a pale shadow of the glory days, with only two serious contenders in the outright Rally1 class – Toyota and Hyundai – and an old-timer like Sebastian Ogier like to spank the fast cars at the front.

The Rally2 action promises to be torrid, with Toyota finally rolling its Yaris GR into action against Skoda and Citroen and Ford and the rest, and it’s clear that some form of Rally2 car – maybe with a larger turbo restrictor and active differentials – should be the car of the future.

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with Paul Gover

THE PG PERSPECTIVE Which brings us to ... Bathurst.

But which Bathurst, and why?

Some smartie decided it would be a good idea to run the 12-Hour and the Supercars season opener on consecutive weekends. Why? One of them will suffer, likely big-time, and a second Supercars event at Mount Panorama will definitely take some of the shine off the October enduro. It makes sense at Supercars headquarters, which has backing from the NSW State government to run the first meeting of the year somewhere in the regions and – with Newcastle gone – it’s an easy answer.

But, in a crazy short 12-race championship, there must have been another solution.

Timing the race to go back-toback with the 12-Hour also looks

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smart, to a bean counter in head office. Since Supercars owns the rights to both events, it makes it easier – and cheaper – to get all the infrastructure in place and offset the bills against two cost centres.

But how do the fans feel?

Did anyone ask?

Supercars has obvious appeal, despite the multitude of dramas over the past 18 months, and it will be interesting to see how the championship contenders look and go at Bathurst.

Picking the top Camaro contenders is as obvious as Brodie Kostecki and Broc Feeney, with plenty of others – including Will Brown – likely to make an impact.

On the Mustang side, with parity finally right – or is it, with questions still about the engines? – the

expected front-runners will be Cam Waters and Chaz Mostert, with someone from Grove Racing – Matt Payne or fire-cracker Richie Stanaway – also likely to be in the leading pack.

There are plenty of other questions, like the future of Triple Eight without Shane van Gisbergen and the chance for a genuine comeback at Dick Johnson Racing after a miserable effort in 2023.

The cars will look good and run quick, they have booming V8s, and the Supercars’ appeal is obvious.

But …

Have the latest owners finally got a plan to promote Supercars and its stars, or will it just run another cookie-cutter championship?

Now, compare the Supercars weekend to the 12-Hour, which shapes as a truly world-class event with a field of front-line GT3 sports cars from Australia, Europe and Asia.

The only things missing are the latest Ford Mustang – more on that in a future rant – and Ferrari, which missed the homologation cut-off to come to Bathurst.

There will be more than a dozen potential winners with big names in the GT3 universe – hopefully including Valentino Rossi again with BMW – as well as plenty of Supercars stars.

The 12-Hour has the unique spectacle of a pre-dawn start, there are three- and four-driver crews for plenty of mixing and matching, the cars look different and there is more than one category.

Best of all, there is no parity.

There is a Balance of Performance, but it doesn’t mean the cars are near-as-dammit identical.

Instead, the racing becomes a swings-and-roundabouts battle as a car with good top-end speed runs against another with benchmark braking, or another with the best cornering grip.

So there are battles, and battles within battles, and racing all day.

In case you’re wondering, I’ll be at the 12-Hour with a big smile and plenty to see and experience. And then I might hang around for the Supercars ...

The Bathurst 12 Hour kicks off the year – and a big 10 days – at the Mountain.

Image: MOTORSPORT IMAGES

www.autoaction.com.au I 19

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR PUBLISHER

Bruce Williams bruce@autoaction.com.au 0418 349 555

Email: letters@autoaction.com.au Postal: Suite 4/156 Drummond Street.

Oakleigh Victoria 3166

EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Bruce Williams STAFF JOURNALIST Timothy W. Neal STAFF JOURNALIST Thomas Miles NEWS EDITOR Andrew Clarke FEATURES WRITER Paul Gover SENIOR ART DIRECTOR/PRODUCTION Caroline Garde NATIONAL EDITOR Thomas Miles HISTORICS EDITOR Mark Bisset SPEEDWAY REPORTER Paris Charles ONLINE EDITOR

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS AUSTRALIA Josh Nevett, Dan McCarthy, Bruce Newton, Mark Bisset, Geoffrey Harris, Bruce Moxon, Gary Hill, Craig O’Brien, Ray Oliver, Martin Agatyn, Reese Mautone.

David Batchelor, John Lemm, Pete Trapnell , Toby Cooper

SOCIAL DISCOURSE IT MAY BE SUMMER AND NOT MUCH RACING IS TAKING PLACE, BUT THAT HAS NOT STOPPED AUTO ACTION READERS FROM EXPRESSING THEIR THOUGHTS ON SOCIAL MEDIA PREMI-AIR PUSHING FORWARD

Gavin Harvey Regardless of racing results at this stage, the last person I met with such passion and drive was Peter Brock.

Xiberras’ team will succeed.

FORMULA 1 Luis Vasconelos US CORRESPONDENT Mike Brudenell PHOTOGRAPHERS AUSTRALIA Mark Horsburgh-Edge Photography, Peter Norton-Epic Sports Photography, Ross Gibb Photography, Daniel Kalisz, Mick Oliver-MTR Images, Rebecca Hind-REVVED, David Batchelor, Randall Kilner, Richard Hathaway, Bruce Moxon, Ray Ritter, Ray Oliver, autopics.com.au Roy Meuronen Photography, Angryman Photography, Riccardo Benvenuti, Matthew Bissett-MJB Photography, Phil Wisewould Photography.

Geoff Colson - Colson Photography INTERNATIONAL

Motorsport Images

ADVERTISING MANAGER Bruce Williams All Advertising inquiries bruce@autoaction.com.au 0418 349 555 Editorial contributions may be sent to Auto Action. No responsibility will be accepted for their safety. If you require the return of any sent item or items, please attach a separate, stamped and fully addressed envelope.

Auto Action is published by Action Media Partners ABN number 62976094459 Suite 4/156 Drummond Street Oakleigh Victoria 3166 Phone: 03 9563 2107 The trademark Auto Action is the sole property of Action Media Partners The website www.autoaction.com.au and associated social media platforms are wholly owned by Action Media Partners.

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AUTO ACTION WEBSITE

For more of the latest motorsport news, reviews and features, PLUS additional breaking news.

Go to autoaction.com.au or scan below

Geoff Brabham, Racing Team VDS, Lola T530 Chevrolet Can Am car, in the pits during the Watkins Glen International in 1981.

S5000 Can Am? Reader Webster thinks so! Image: LAT MOTORSPORT IMAGES

ELEVATE GRIPES TO THE HEIGHTS

WITH THE ever-increasing dissatisfaction with the performance of our national ruling motorsport body, Motorsport Australia, different branches of the sport have expressed their problems in different ways.

My feeling is that individual complaints to MA won’t achieve anything.

The organisation does not employ the people with motorsport knowledge that it did in the past.

MA is now run more as a business than a service to its members. The unhappiness of MA members towards the often onerous decisions or rule changes made without consultation with ‘stakeholders’ (an oft-used MA term) need to be expressed to a higher authority, namely the FIA (Federation Internationale de l’Automobile).

If enough competitors, teams and ‘stakeholders’ write to the FIA to express their unhappiness with the way MA is running motorsport in Australia maybe some questions might be asked.

Obviously me posting on Facebook has very limited coverage, but if anyone agrees with my comments and can pass them on to important people something might happen. Maybe.

Bob Watson, Melbourne, Victoria Publisher/Editor’s note: Bob Watson is a former Australian rally champion, a member of the Australian Rally Hall of Fame and a recipient of a Confederation of Australian Motor Sport (now trading as Motorsport Australia) service award among many achievements in a long and illustrious career.

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A LONG WAIT FOR THE NEW-LOOK SUPERCAR SHOW

HEY, AUTO Action, weren’t we supposed to see something different when that RACE (Racing Australia Consolidated Enterprises) mob took over Supercars?

They’ve had a couple of years in charge now, but what’s changed?

You guys have had a couple of interviews with the head bloke Barclay Nettlefold?

When are we going to see the show shaken up rather than just read or hear talk?

The Gen3 cars are a bit different, but no big deal.

Hopefully a bit better this year.

But what is it that RACE is going to serve up?

Whatever it is, it’s about time we saw it before Supercars disappears up its own ar..!

Steve Butler, Scamander, Tasmania Editor’s Note: Well Steve, as they say money talks and bullshit walks. So, it’s time for Supercars to deliver. With Gen3 up and running and COVID well behind us there should be no more excuses.

WHAT WE NEED NOW IS AN S5000 SPORTS CAR CATEGORY

S5000 IS Australia’s premier openwheeler category and hopefully it will have a long-term future, be better managed, and have more rounds.

Like Supercars, S5000 is a V8 category.

Why not create a new Australian V8 category from 2025 that Supercars Australia could be part of - S5000 Sports Cars?

The S5000 Sports Cars could be powered by the Ford Coyote V8

and the designs and dimensions of the cars could be a modern version of the Can-Am racing cars that were very popular during the 1960s and 1970s.

A S5000 Sports Car Championship could be a major support category for Supercars and Super2 rounds.

Young Australian and New Zealand racing drivers would love to participate in a modern V8 sports car class and it could be popular with fans, very attractive to corporate sponsors and have high TV ratings.

It would be great to attend future Supercars rounds and see a modern version of the Can-Am V8s taking part. That’s where a new Australian S5000 V8 Sports Car category has a role to play.

Malcolm Webster Boronia, Victoria Editor’s Note: Well Malcolm, you certainly are an ideas man. And while the idea of a Can-Am series is certainly of merit, I think history proved that putting a floppy body onto a Formula 5000 car and calling it Can-Am was the end for the iconic class in North America. Frankly, I can’t see it happening here. Having said that, they would be uber cool.

2024 RACE CALENDAR

DEAR AUTO Action, for years you published a motorsport calendar.

Will you be doing that this year?

It’s great to be able to put it on the wall of the shed to keep an eye on whats going on with all the racing.

Mark Wilson, ‘Beachside’, Melbourne, Victoria.

Editor’s Note: Thanks Mark, keep an eye out as we are currently compiling the list of major events and hope to be able to publish it soon.

Troy Errington I have said this on many occasions, whatever Peter touches turns to gold. Give it time and he will be a championship contender.

NEW ERA OF TCM

Martin Hayden Very good news TCM is back under new control. Don’t think I have ever spoken to anyone who did not like this series. There appears to be some extremely powerful and welldeveloped cars in the category which are pretty exciting to watch.

Jim Byrne TCM is undoubtably the best category in Australian motorsport along with Sprintcar racing on the clay ovals.

Every race is competitive, exciting and unpredictable.

Paul George One of the best reasons we went to the Adelaide 500 and regularly in the past was TCM. Very disappointed to see it removed and believe it will affect ticket sales. Everyone we spoke to that weekend loved the category.

CALDER LOOKING TO BRING BACK RALLYCROSS

Brett Ramsey It would make a lot of sense out there.

Of course the thing that would make a lot of sense is a return to full drag racing as well.

Paul Anthony Bob Watson tried to get this up and running a few years back and I remember there were some issues with concern of mud getting on the tarmac. Great shot of Brock v Watson.

Amazingly that little Renault used to compete and win its fair share against the supercharged Torana, which was impressive.

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Image: MOTORSPORT IMAGES

BIG TASKS AHEAD FOR AUSTRALIAN TALENT

NOW THAT they’re resting back home in Australia and surely getting ready for the start of what will be Formula 1’s most grueling season ever, Oscar Piastri and Daniel Ricciardo know they are about to embark in a campaign that will very much determine their future in motor racing’s top echelon.

Following a highly positive rookie season with McLaren, Oscar Piastri will now have to consolidade all the good work he did in 2023. Being a newcomer last year, every time he matched or beat Lando Norris, particularly from the moment the MCL60 became a very competitive car, the Melburnian got a lot of praise and attention – the win in Qatar’s Sprint race, followed by a solid second place in the main event, being the highlight of his very positive first year in Grand Prix racing.

However, as Piastri himself

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with Luis Vasconcelos

F1 INSIDER admitted on several occasions, even by the end of the season he was lacking the consistency that Norris – far more experienced than him – was able to bring to McLaren. His form dipping after Qatar, which, combined with successive incidents in Austin, Mexico and Brazil – not necessarily of his own making – cost him a lot of points. Tyre management was, of course, the area Piastri identified as the one requiring most of his homework and, for sure, as soon as he returns to the factory, to work with new signing Antoine Okla, a man he knows well from their successful Formula 2 campaign

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in 2022, that should be his number one priority.

You see, credit never really lasts in Formula 1 so, for all the good things everyone was saying about Piastri throughout 2023, he’ll now no longer be judged as a rookie and will be compared directly with Norris in every qualifying session or race. This means the Australian will need to match and beat his more experienced and extremely rapid team mate to keep his momentum going.

Of course Andrea Stella knows more about Formula 1 and the way drivers operate than all the punters combined and will be working closely with Piastri

to make sure there are as few obstacles as possible in his way this year. After all, the Italian rates his young charge very highly and that’s why, together with Zak Brown, Stella offered Piastri a contract extension that will keep him at McLaren until the end of 2026 – even after Norris eventually leaves, which shows how much they expect from the young Australian.

Further down the pitlane, veteran Daniel Ricciardo faces an even more decisive season.

To put it in simple terms, 2024 will be a make or break year for the man from Perth.

Ricciardo has been given a second chance by Red Bull after abandoning ship at the end of 2018 and has returned to the Austrian fold to try and rebuild his career, having endured the toughest of times in his second season with McLaren.

The goal, of course, is to return to Red Bull Racing and Ricciardo needs a combination

of two factors to achieve that: first and foremost, he needs to clearly beat Yuki Tsunoda in the internal battle at the Faenza-based team; secondly, Sérgio Pérez must continue to underperform, as he did for the last three-quarters of the 2023 season, to be shown the door at the end of the year.

Of course Ricciardo has no control whatsoever over Pérez’s performances, so his goal can only be one: to be Racing Bull’s main driver all year, dominating his young Japanese team mate, punching above his car’s natural weight and making it clear to Christian Horner and Helmut Marko that he’s a much better wingman for Max Verstappen than the Dutch’s current team-mate. Any less than that, and neighbour Liam Lawson will be knocking at Dr. Marko’s door to reclaim his seat back, after filling in for Ricciardo when the Aussie injured himself in Zandvoort.

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FORMULA 1 NEWS – LUIS VASCONCELOS

NO DRIVER AT RISK OF IMMEDIATE RACE BAN ONE YEAR after Pierre Gasly and Lance Stroll started the 2023 season under the threat of immediate race bans, as they were close to reaching the dreaded 12 penalty points that result in a one-race ban, only Sérgio Pérez and Logan Sargeant will have to be a little bit careful with their track manners in the first two-thirds of the season – they’re the two drivers who have accumulated the most penalty points during the last championship.

But let’s start with the good news that no less than nine drivers – nearly half the field – earned no penalty points during their last campaign and, therefore, head into the 2024 Formula 1 World Championship with a clean sheet. That reflects well on their track manners but it’s also a consequence of minor offences – like speeding in the pit lane – no longer coming with penalty points attached, reducing the number of infractions that can lead to a one race ban.

The group of well-behaved drivers is headed by front runners Charles Leclerc, Carlos Sainz, Fernando Alonso and Lando Norris, but also includes rookie Oscar Piastri and the highly experienced Pierre Gasly, Esteban Ocon, Daniel Ricciardo and

Logan Sargeant – carries six penalty points, while Sergio has seven to take into 2024.

Images: MOTORSPORT IMAGES Kevin Magnussen, as they all managed to get through the 2023 season without getting a single penalty point.

As mentioned initially, Sérgio Pérez tops this unflattering classification, the Mexican earning seven penalty points in quick succession after last year’s mid-season break – at a time when he was under tremendous pressure at Red Bull and underperforming massively. This means that Pérez will carry those seven penalty points all the way until the end of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix – this year held much

later than usual, in the middle of September – leaving him with little margin for error in the first 16 (!) Grands Prix of the season.

That’s the same fate Williams’ Logan Sargeant will face, the young American driver carrying six penalty points for the first two-thirds of the season as well, and having to make sure he doesn’t double his account until he gets out of the streets of Baku.

Lance Stroll is, again, close to the top of this list, the Aston Martin driver carrying five penalty points all the way to the British

Grand Prix, but in a much better position that he was one year ago, where he was just two incidents away from being handed a ban.

The two Mercedes drivers are next on this list, both on four points, with Russell discounting two after the Monaco Grand Prix while Hamilton will carry that amount all the way up to the Hungarian Grand Prix, to be held in the penultimate weekend of July. Yuki Tsunoda is the only driver with three penalty points, but will discount one in Monaco, while another five drivers start the season with two penalty points and, therefore, quite comfortable with the way they can handle themselves all season.

World Champion Max Verstappen earned two penalty points by pushing Leclerc out of the track immediately after the start in Las Vegas and will carry those points all the way to Brazil, while, on the opposite side of the barricade, Sainz will discount his two penalty points after the Australian Grand Prix. Valtteri Bottas (up to Mexico), Zhou Guanyu (up to Hungary) and Nico Hulkenberg (up to Monaco) are the other three drivers starting 2024 with two penalty points.

RB20 MAY HAVE FAILED FIRST CRASH TEST RED BULL’S preparation for the 2024 season are rumoured to have suffered a setback just before the Christmas shutdown, with sources close to the Austrian team suggesting the first monocoque of the new RB20 failed the mandatory FIA frontal crash test.

Like all UK-based teams, Red Bull conducts the crash tests of its cars in Cranfield but, according to those sources, the team will now need to bring a second chassis into that facility, with at least one extra layer of carbon fibre added to the frontal structure, in order to pass thus crash test and get the necessary homologation.

The Cranfield Impact Centre is one of the two FIA approved Formula 1 crash test facility, the other one – used by Ferrari, AlphaTauri and Sauber – being based in Milan, Italy. It’s there that Red Bull, Mercedes, McLaren, Aston Martin, Alpine, Williams and Haas conduct their tests and a couple of these teams actually managed to get their crash tests done before the inaugural ‘winter’ shutdown.

In the case that Red Bull has actually failed that frontal crash test, as rumoured, the fact the Milton Keynes factory – like all nine other Formula 1 team factories – was in shutdown from December 24 until January 2 meant that the modifications needed for the second monocoque to withstand the front impact crash test could only be started last Tuesday, putting the entire program a bit behind schedule.

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Attempts to save further weight over the successful RB19 may have gone a fraction too far!

With Adrian Newey being known for wanting all parts of his cars to be as light as possible – as weight saving equals performance – this is not the first nor the second time Red Bull has failed a crash test but, with seven weeks to go before the start of testing in Bahrain, there’s plenty of time for the team to catch up, the biggest delays being on static testing in the factory, using the seven-post test rig, as only after monocoque number 2 passes the

crash tests in Cranfield will those tests go ahead.

Red Bull entered 2022 with a car that was seriously overweight and the biggest developments made during that season were more on weight saving than in aerodynamic upgrades, with the dominant RB19 being much closer to the minimum weight right from the start of the 2023 season and reaching it with the introduction of the first upgrade, in the Spanish Grand Prix.

Now, the team seems to have gone a bit too far in its quest for reducing the basic weight of the RB20 so, once a new layer of carbon skin is added to the front of the car, the total weight of the car will go up by a couple of kilos, leaving some margin for Newey and his team to work on a ‘diet cure’ that will bring the car bellow the minimum weight, to allow the team to work with ballast as a means to improve the set-up of Verstappen and Pérez’s new car.

VASSEUR UNSURE DISCUSSIONS “SHOULD BE WITH THE FIA!” FERRARI APPOINTS JOCK CLEAR AS HEAD OF DRIVER ACADEMY THERE HAS been a change of the guard at the Ferrari Driver Academy, with the departure of Marco Matassa, who had been leading the young drivers’ program since the start of 2018, the Italian expected to return to his previous team – Faenza-based AlphaTaur, racing under a new name this year – with his position in Maranello being taken over by the highly experienced Jock Clear.

The change of leadership in the FDA coincides with a streamlining of the group that is supported by Ferrari and, also, with the clear indication British driver Oliver Bearman is considered the next man to make the move to Formula 1, after a very impressive debut season in Formula 2 last year.

Clear is no stranger to the Scuderia’s Young Drivers’ program, as he’s been assiting Bearman and the other drivers involved in Formula 2 and Formula 3 with his input when their championships are part of the program of the Grand Prix and is a regular presence celebrating under the podiums when one of his charges ends a race in the top three.

With Matassa’s departure being known to Ferrari since the middle of 2023, as he’s set to follow former Sporting Director Laurent Mekies back to the Faenza-based team, Frédéric Vasseur immediately appointed Jock Clear as his successor and the British engineer started working closely with the Italian, to get up to speed as soon as the official handover of position could be made.

It was already Clear who spent most of the time working with Bearman in preparation for his FP1 outings with Haas, in Mexico and in Abu Dhabi, and it will now be his full responsibility to support the youngster in his second Formula 2 season with Prema.

Clear will also be on hand to support Dino Beganovic in his second Formula 3 season, as well as Rafael Camara, who heads into his second season in Formula Regional Europe, where he’ll be joined by Formula 4 graduate Tukka Taponen.

The two young ladies who are part of the Italians driver’s program are yet to have their racing plans for 2024 finalized, but it’s widely expected the more experienced Maya Weug will join the other two FDA youngsters in Formula Regional Europe, while Brazilian Aurelia Nobels is very likely to make her debut in the new Formula 1 Academy, although a second season in European Formula 4 is also under consideration, as she now heads to the Middle East to take part in the five rounds of the UAE Formula 4 series.

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THE DISTANCE between the FIA leadership and the 10 Formula 1 teams has become much bigger in recent months, with the competitors openly siding with the Commercial Rights Holder and being very critical of some of president Ben Sulayem’s moves. The sudden departure of the FIA Sporting Director, Steve Nielsen, is set to increase the gap between the sport’s regulator and the teams, as the veteran Englishman is hugely respected in the paddock, having successfully worked with a large number of teams, to the point he was singled out by drivers and Team Principals as a tremendously valid part of their discussions on the subject of improving the regulations and the way the sport operates – praise that is unusual to hear regarding an FIA official.

Even before Nielsen’s departure from the FIA, the teams reacted pretty badly to the creation of the role of Formula 1 Commissioner by the Federation’s president, believing the structure that was already in place was more than enough to make the sport work.

Asked what were the main topics Ferrari and the other teams would want to discuss with the FIA in the next 12 months, as the 2026 Technical and Sporting Regulations are set to be publish before the summer break, Team Principal Frédéric Vasseur was quite dismissive of the need to speak directly with the Federation’s leadership or his new controversial representative: “I don’t know if the discussion should be between the FIA and the teams. We have

Vasseur – not a great Ben Sulayem (right) fan? a governance body which is the Formula 1 Commission and up until this year it has worked well. Personally, I believe that the main problem we have had throughout this season has been the consistency of decisions. This is still a topic within the Commission, because the most important thing is that fans have an easy understanding of our sport.”

The Frenchman went on to give what he believes it was a clear example of the lack of consistency in the official’s decisions: “Some decisions taken by the FIA, such as the management of track limits, do not go in this direction – the maximum lap time in qualifying was a joke: Russell was called 14 times by the stewards and never received a penalty. This means that the rules are not correct or that the stewards

do not enforce the rules.” Vasseur then explained that, “I believe that we need coherence towards the fans, the sponsors, the manufacturers who invest and the shareholders who believe in our sport. We have very important topics before us – I believe the main one is 2026 – and it will be necessary to be able to count on great cooperation. We must work together, as is already happening with the FIA technical department, a group with which we are carrying out good work”, he concluded, in a direct mention of Nikolas Tombazis, the FIA Technical Director who, together with Nielsen, did a lot of good work for the Federation in the last 12 months but now finds himself without his closest ally in the battle to bring the FIA up to speed with the rest of the Formula 1 world.

McLAREN EXPANDS HIRING SPREE

MCLAREN’S IMPRESSIVE recovery during the 2023 season, with two major upgrades – the first introduced in Austria, the second one in Singapore, transforming the MCL60 into the second quickest car in the field after starting the year at the back of the grid – has given reason to optimism inside the Woking-based team now looking ahead at the 2024 Formula 1 World Championship.

Even before the recovery made under Andrea Stella’s guidance started, the Italian had already been able to attract two big names to join McLaren from the start of this year, so last week, new Technical Director of Car Concept and Performance, David Sanchez, and new Technical Director of Engineer and Design, veteran Rob Marshall, officially joined the team and started working from Woking.

While the two man have arrived, from Ferrari and Red Bull respectively, too late to have an impact on the design of the 2024 car, they’ll still be able to help with its development, although it’s clear that their first priority is to start the project of the 2026 car, that will be design and built to completely new Technical Regulations, immediately. Next year’s cars, for all teams, are expected to be just small upgrades of the ones we’ll see during the coming season, as

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teams will focus their resources on the brand new cars they’ll have to come up with for the new rules.

But McLaren’s hiring drive is not only focused on the design office and, late last year, the team quietly made an important acquisition, hiring Frenchman Antoine Okla, a man whose name means nothing to Formula 1 fans, but who comes with a tremendous reputation from the junior formulae and is also well known to McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, who worked with him during his very successful Formula 2 campaign in 2021.

Still in his early 30s Okla started his career in motor racing with Frédéric Vasseur’s ART Grand Prix back in 2013 and, after two years with the team, he moved to DAMS, helping Jolyon Palmer win the GP2 title. In Jean-Paul Driot’s team he also worked with future Formula 1 drivers Alex Albon and Nicholas Latifi, before moving to Prema, where he stayed for the following five years.

In the Italian team Okla helped Mick Schumacher win the 2020 Formula 2 championship, repeating the feat one year later with Piastri. With Prema also moving into Sports Cars, Oka accumulated the role of Chief Race Engineer in Formula 2 and in the ELMS series, winning the championship in Sports Cars and working with Oliver Bearman in Formula 2.

The Frenchman has now moved up to Formula 1 and joined McLaren in the role of Trackside tyre performance engineer, so he’ll be a key person during the Grand Prix weekends and will work closely with the two drivers and their race engineers. Given his impressive CV, the hiring of Okla may have been another inspired move from Andrea Stella, a man who works quietly but very efficiently and seems to have a good eye to spot talent in all areas of motor racing.

2024 FORMULA 1 CAR LAUNCHES CONFIRMED TO DATE: Williams: February 5 Sauber: February 5 Aston Martin: February 12 Ferrari: February 13

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SUPERCARS: 20 BIG THINGS FROM 2023!

ON THE TRACK AND OFF THE TRACK, WHAT ARE THE THINGS THAT DEFINED THE 2023 SUPERCARS SEASON? AUTO ACTION’S ANDREW CLARKE LOOKS BACK AT THE HIGHLIGHTS AND THE LOW POINTS …

ON-TRACK: THERE WAS ALWAYS PLENTY GOING ON T8 DISQUALIFICATION FROM RACE 1 GEN3 RUNS a very tight set of rules, and the standard-setting Red Bull Ampol Racing team found out just how tight by stepping outside the boundaries. What followed was an argument over who said what, but all that mattered, in the end, was that both the first and second-placed cars on the track, Shane van Gisbergen in #97 and Broc Feeney in #88, respectively, were disqualified and Cam Waters was handed the win.

The dispute centred around the location of a second cooling system installed in the cars for the drivers, which breached rule C16.2.

RBRA maintained it had permission for the second system in the location that was used, but that was denied, and the team felt the brunt of the rules.

While 29°C ambient doesn’t sound hot, it is if you are racing in a street race driving a Supercar. The walls don’t allow for much air movement, and the car temperatures elevate considerably. For the team, this was about driver safety. There were appeals and all, but nothing altered the outcome. Van Gisbergen won the second race with a legal car, rueing what could have been a perfect weekend.

Just in case people thought that was a fluke win, he came out on Saturday morning and claimed the pole and then dominated the fifth race of the season to trail Chaz Mostert by one point in the Championship.

After finishing third on Sunday with Mostert in 14th, he left Melbourne with his first two wins in the series and the Championship lead, which he only momentarily relinquished mid-season before controlling the run home from The Bend.

THE TAP-TAP-TAP IN PERTH

TWO OF the hardest racers we have seen in the past decade went toe-to-toe at Wanneroo Raceway in Perth for the seventh race of 2023. After all the stops were complete on lap 30 of 42, Kostecki, who started second on the grid, was leading from Penrite Racing’s Dave Reynolds and the pole-sitting, late-stopping van Gisbergen was on the charge in third.

Reynolds, who had stopped on lap 17 and 10 before van Gisbergen, was powerless to resist the reigning champion, and they swapped spots on lap 32. Kostecki, who had a nine-lap tyre disadvantage, had a two-second lead that looked vulnerable.

The Giz pulled it back at 4/10ths a lap, and then the battle really started.

Tap, tap, tap … van Gisbergen started working the rear of the red Camaro, careful about where he unsettled the race leader. The #99 spent a couple of laps brilliantly defending his

KOSTECKI’S FIRST SERIES WIN

BRODIE KOSTECKI and Coca-Cola Racing

by Erebus was emerging as a driver, and in (V8) Supercars’ 801st race and his 75th race in the main game, the unlikely athlete took his first win on the streets of Albert Park.

Starting from fourth on the grid, Kostecki popped up in the lead at the right time in a chaotic and shortened race that effectively had only three racing laps.

Below: Controversy from Day One – Former Supercars Motorsport Manager Adrian Burgess (left) watches on as the two Triple Eight cars which would later be disqualified, lead out of pit lane ... Image: PETER NORTON

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Tap-tap-tap ... SVG and Kostecki laid down the rules of engagement in Perth ... Above: Brodie Kostecki raced to an early championship points lead and was never caught. Images: MARK HORSBURGH.

position and was given an undeserved bad sportsmanship flag for his efforts.

At least four times on lap 40, van Gisbergen tapped Kostecki in the lively battle. Then again, on lap 41, Kostecki continued to run the inside line until Kolb corner when van Gisbergen finally got his nose down the inside and bundled Kostecki out of the way with a grinding run on the inside. It was brilliant racing.

Erebus sought clarification on what was and wasn’t allowed, believing Kostecki was unfairly tapped out of the way. Officials said it was OK, and Kostecki and Erebus said ‘fair enough, now we know what we can do’.

DARWIN – THE NEW GEN3 ERA PROVES ANYONE CAN WIN

CAM WATERS looked set to dominate the first race of the Darwin weekend until his Monster Energy Mustang caught fire. Mark Winterbottom was running second for Team 18 and went on to win the race.

Winterbottom was no stranger to winning, having saluted 38 times before, but he hadn’t tasted victory since Pukekohe in 2016, the season after he won the championship with Prodrive/Tickford. Three winless seasons with that team saw him move to Charlie Schwerkolt’s Team 18 outfit, which was yet to win a race.

Then, on Sunday, Jack Le Brocq, with one Tickford-powered win to his name, took Matt Stone Racing to its maiden race win.

Gen3 was promised to shake the field up, and it proved in Darwin anyone could win if they got it right on the day and had a little bit of luck and – at that stage of the season – drove a Camaro.

Bathurst 2023 is go – and it turned out to be a tyre-nursing affair ... Image: PETER NORTON. Above: In Darwin, Jac Le Brocq and MSR were among those to show that Gen-3 opened up winning opportunity ... Image: MARK HORSBURGH

SVG’s CHICAGO WIN CHANGES SUPERCARS FOREVER

YES, CHICAGO is not part of the Supercars series, but what happened on Chicago’s streets on the first weekend of July changed Supercars forever. Running for Trackhouse Racing’s Project91 outfit, Shane van Gisbergen, on his NASCAR Cup Series debut, blitzed a field of highly credentialled stock car drivers to show them how to run a street race.

He would have got pole had Chase Elliot not crashed while trying to keep up with him in qualifying, but third set the tongues wagging and the local media in the States said ‘just wait until the racing starts, then he’ll know what it is all about.’ Fuel saving and a bit of poor luck with the shortened race and a Safety Car on a day when Chicago saw 20cm of rain, left van Gisbergen in 18th spot with 25 laps to run … and then he went racing.

Yes, he won, but it was the way he won that made the impact and opened doors for Supercars drivers and perhaps moved our top series from being a destination class to a stepping stone to bigger things. He was 1.5 to 2s quicker than anyone else at the end of the race, but the proof will be in the pudding if van Gisbergen adjusts to the ovals in 2024, but his win in Chicago changed it all. Pity Supercars scheduled Townsville on the same weekend in 2024 or we might have seen a full-scale assault from down under.

BRODIE STAMPS HIS AUTHORITY AT THE BEND WITH A CLEAN SWEEP

Top to bottom: Van Gisbergen’s Chicago win changed Supercars for ever (Image: LAT); Young discovery Matt Payne with Stephen Grove and the departing Dave Reynolds; Kostecki blazed to a decisive pole in Adelaide; Having already staked his claim earler, at The Bend ... Opposite: Reynolds’ battle with Kostecki was a Gold Coast highlight.

(Images: MARK HORSBURGH)

BRODIE KOSTECKI made his long plannedfor NASCAR Cup Series debut with Richard Childress Racing on the Indianapolis Road Course in August and returned to Australia the next weekend to dominate The Bend.

He was untouchable in the races and clean swept the weekend and said to the rest of the field, “catch me if you can.”

Never before had he looked so in control.

He blitzed teammate Will Brown in the same equipment, pulled his gap over the #9 from 41

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points to 202, and pulled out from 54 points over van Gisbergen to 111.

In five races on either side of Indianapolis, Kostecki had four wins and control of the Championship, and from there, he never looked back.

shortcut it, again.

It was controversial, but it was a win. His first since 2018 when he was with Erebus and the first win for Grove Racing.

BATHURST IS BACK TO BEING AN ENDURANCE RACE

JUST IN case anyone thought the pressure of leading the championship was going to get to Brodie Kostecki, he used qualifying in Adelaide to put any doubts to bed. He won pole for both races to claim the Armor-all Pole Award for the season, but more importantly he showed he had nerves of steel as he gapped his only championship rival, threetime and reigning title holder van Gisbergen.

In Saturday’s Top 10 Shootout, he won pole by 0.0090s over Dave Reynolds, but had 0.2751s over van Gisbergen, who qualified seventh. On Sunday, the gap was 0.0314s to Matt Payne, Reynolds’ teammate at Penrite Racing, and van Gisbergen – who had already lost the championship – wasn’t even in the Shootout.

To dominate like that when all he had to do was record a set of numbers showed his mindset. He wasn’t there to simply to accumulate points; he was there to win.

IN THE past few years, we have increasingly watched two hours of qualifying laps intermingled with Safety Cars to close out the Bathurst 1000, not so in 2023.

The delicate Gen3 cars and tyres that are completely inadequate on which to race, left the race flat as a tack as it wound down the laps.

All Triple Eight cars had issues with gearstick mounts, which cost the #88 and #888 cars heaps of laps in the pits, and van Gisbergen, who won the race, was only moments from the same fate. But he was also battling steering issues made worse by picking up clumps of the Dunlop soft tyres that were mandated for the 2023 race.

Kostecki, in second, was likewise limping with his own ills, but it was the way the drivers had to be so gentle on the tyres that was causing the issue. We know Dunlop wants and wanted to build a better tyre for the racing, but Supercars didn’t want to change the tyre spec despite the massive changes to the cars with Gen3.

It left us with drivers running to a number rather than racing. Let’s hope Supercars lets Dunlop off the leash; it can only improve the racing, which all year was blighted by this issue. Bathurst just made it look all the more obvious.

KOSTECKI v REYNOLDS ON THE GOLD COAST – FORDS FIGHTBACK

THE CLOSING laps of the second race on the Gold Coast were ones for the ages. After the final round of pitstops were complete on lap 60 of 85, Kostecki trailed Reynolds by the smallest of margins, and there he sat for 10 laps, edging ever closer, piling on the pressure and handing out the odd-SvG-likePerth-tap.

Reynolds was having none of it, though and he kept running a defensive line. He skipped the first chicane on lap 71 but he had kerb strikes up his sleeve. At the end of that lap, the final turn tap was even bigger, but Reynolds held him off for the chicane but then lost the spot going into Turn 2. Kostecki had the lead when Reynolds conceded heading into the beach chicane.

But he says he learnt something from being followed, and he stayed close enough to unsettle the rear of #99 on the next lap and he zipped back through to the lead. But then James Golding had a spin and took out Scott Pye on the recovery and the Safety Car came out to give the protagonists a rest with seven laps to run – but just before that happened, DR skipped the chicane again.

For five racing laps, Reynolds held out the championship leader with plenty of taps to unsettle the gold Mustang.

Then, Reynolds he did it again, as the tail jumped out under brakes for the first chicane and he

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KOSTECKI GOES WHACK IN ADELAIDE

PAYNE AND GROVE RACING ON THE RISE

IN 2022, Broc Feeney announced his arrival in Supercars by taking his first in the series on the last day of the year. In 2023, it was Matt Payne who did the same thing, claiming the Adelaide 500 and stamping himself as the future champion of the sport.

But there was more to it than Payne alone, it was also a story of the emergence of Grove Racing (aka Penrite Racing) as a legitimate championship contender and perhaps even the leading protagonist from the blue oval.

Since taking full control of the team from the Kellys in the middle of 2022, Stephen Grove has worked at filling any voids. He recruited Dave Cauchi from Triple Eight to the team principal; then he added Grant McPherson while Alistair McVean was already there, giving it a top-flight engineering crew.

In 2023 it elevated Payne into the #19 car at the expense of Lee Holdsworth who was really only brought in a seat warmer for the young Kiwi. The Groves knew what they were getting, even if we didn’t fully grasp it at the time.

The final round of parity changes gave the Mustang an advantage, and Dave Reynolds rounded out the season with four podiums and a win from four races. But it was Payne’s win that will resonate the most. Win number one will surely not remain a solo win for long.

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IT WAS ALL GOING ON OFF-TRACK AND BEHIND THE SCENES

It’s here! SMP hosted the pre-season test day. Image: MARK HORSBURGH. Below: Adrian Burgess checks out Broc Feeney’s cooling system post-race in Newcastle.

Both T8 cars were disqualified ... Image: PETER NORTON from teams trying to protect an advantage.

There was a mid-season change after a parity trigger demanded a review, and then a second one after Bathurst.

Post-season wind tunnel testing confirmed that there was not parity in any of the Ford’s three guises – V3 giving Ford an advantage for the final four races, all wins. Parity, unfortunately, dominated the season and it didn’t need to happen. Supercars and Ford should have been better organised to get the cars in the wind tunnel.

HEARSAY – ADRIAN BURGESS WHILE THE on-track battles raged between the drivers and teams in the fight to win the Supercars Championship, there was plenty of action that went on off track.

Much of the behinds the scenes politics and manoeuvring was to ultimately determine the championship results. Some of the heavy hitters representing one brand seemed to be better at the politics than the opposition …

GEN3 ARRIVES ... FINALLY!

WHEN CHRISTMAS arrived in 2022, it looked like a miracle would be needed to get a full field of Gen3 racers on the track for the test day at Eastern Creek – yes, we know it is now called Sydney Motorsport Park – in February, and the opening round in Newcastle a couple of weeks later.

Instead of a miracle, we had 11 teams of amazing people working incredible hours to get the new cars on the track, and what arrived in some cases was a cobbledtogether Supercar with ‘bits’ that still needed to be completed. Ford, in fact, still hasn’t finished, given that the dashboard has yet to be homologated.

In January, Supercars was still approving new parts for the cars which meant some

components arrived late. There were also issues with parts, like the sticking wheel nuts, but the teams put their collective heads together and started fixing them.

That desire among the teams to work together to get it right is one of the highlights of the season.

PARITY OUT OF WHACK

IT WAS clear from the minute the cars hit the track that something was out of whack, and the Chevrolet product had an advantage over the Ford, despite people like Brad Jones claiming the Ford teams were fudging at the pre-season test.

It took a while to get a clear picture given the nature of the Newcastle street track, but with more than half the races for the season run at the end of the Darwin round, on the track, every race had been won by Chevrolet teams – 15 wins from 15, 38 podiums from 45 and 12 poles to boot.

The teams that in 2022 finished from second to fifth in the championship apparently were just not doing a good enough job. Not taking away from the superhuman efforts of Erebus and, to a lesser degree, Triple Eight who we expect to perform, it was a crap argument

Parity out of whack ... In Perth, the Mustangs raced each other back down the road, while the Camaros fought out the wins. Courtney heads Mostert and Davison. Image: MARK HORSBURGH

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THE RACE 1 disqualification generated plenty of angst, with T8’s Mark Dutton saying he had shown Supercars Head of Motorsport, Adrian Burgess, the team’s proposed solution to its driver cooling issues, and that was given the thumbs up.

When T8 was disqualified later in the day for the location of its second cooling box, Burgess said he never gave approval and that started a debate about the integrity of the parties in question. We have no doubt that T8 thought it had approval. We know Dutto, and this is just not in his nature, but what really went on, we’ll never know.

It opened some cracks in the fabric of Supercars, and to a certain degree, they never closed, even after Burgess resigned from Supercars to join Team 18.

BATHURST – PARITY DUMMY SPIT FORD WAS thumped at Sandown and wanted small changes for Bathurst, and all but one Chevrolet team denied those changes. The race went on with no changes, and the second of the so-called parity triggers for the season was reached, and changes were made for the final two rounds.

At Bathurst, Ford was finally armed with CFD data that showed there was a difference between the cars, whether it meant Ford or

Chevrolet had an advantage or if neither did in practical terms, was beyond our ability to understand. But that didn’t matter. There was a difference, and this is a parity sport, so it needed to be fixed.

Those teams arguing for no change hurt the sport on the Wednesday and Thursday of Bathurst, and Barry Ryan grew his reputation even more when he backed himself and his team to keep doing a good enough job, and supported the proposed changes when no other Chev team did.

Supercars needed leadership at this time, but it didn’t deliver that leadership and appeared weak. That needs to change.

TIM FROM THOMASTOWN

TIM EDWARDS had an interesting run home from Sandown after a spat with a media outlet covering the sport, which it turns out was partially on the right path but also way off target in others. Despite his profanity-laced denial, Edwards – aka Tim from Thomastown – was contemplating leaving Tickford for a lap of Australia in a van with his wife, Trudie.

He wasn’t contemplating a job as the CEO of Motorsport Australia, but Supercars was chasing him to lead its motorsport, or technical, team. He says that he didn’t announce his departure from Tickford to take on the job he eventually accepted; he was doing the lap and had bought a caravan, the first of which he decided was not right and sold while ordering himself a flash new unit from one of his team sponsors, Snowy River.

But in the lead-up to the final round, Burgess resigned as Head of Motorsport, and Edwards finally accepted the advances of Supercars. He starts in late January but did attend the wind tunnels and other testing in the States post-season.

SVG LEAVES FOR NASCAR

SHANE VAN Gisbergen has proven himself as one of the most adaptable drivers on the planet. Supercars, GT, Aussie Racing Cars, open-wheelers, rally, drifting, and Sprintcars are just some of the cars which he has won in the past. We knew he had a chance to win on his NASCAR debut in Chicago despite the NASCAR media believing in the talent and skills of their own drivers, but we told them he could win when we sat with them in Nashville the weekend before.

He didn’t just win the Chicago Street Race, he smashed the Good Old Boys, and his world changed. After qualifying, Matt Herman from Enhance Health, who was backing the Trackhouse Racing Project91 Chevrolet, told Auto Action he was going to run SvG more in 2024; he was already laying his plans.

Talking to SvG after that first day and before

The solution – wind tunnel testing ...

With their pre-Bathurst demands not met, Ford team bosses got together at the Mountain to plan the next step ... even the race, he liked that you could race a NASCAR from the very first lap and that, after that experience, ‘driving to a number’ in Supercars, even though he is one of the best we have ever seen at that, just wasn’t fulfilling his racing urges. Not to mention the muzzle he felt had been placed on him during Newcastle.

With SvG increasingly disillusioned with the local scene, a full-on NASCAR career beckoned and, with even with nothing on the table, he told Jamie Whincup he wanted out.

He leaves the series third on the all-time Australian Touring Car Championship/ Supercars Championship wins table and has three titles and three Bathurst wins.

SILLY SEASON WAS SILLY

Above (from top): Tim Edwards did leave Tickford, but ended up at Supercars not MA; The AGP event was SVG’s last as a Supercar driver; Jac Le Brocq was an early Silly Season mover (Images: MARK HORSBURGH); Supercars marketing has come in for sustained criticism – Kelly/ Ambrose on the front row?; And finally ...

Chaz’s message (Image by Chaz!)

ONCE VAN Gisbergen announced his departure, Silly Season hit fever pitch. Auto Action was the first media outlet to reveal Triple Eight’s interest in Will Brown (Brown rumoured for shock Triple Eight switch – Auto Action) who had a year to run on his deal with Erebus, but the latter let him go and the balls started to roll.

Jack Le Brocq, who won for Matt Stone Racing in 2023, headed back to his old stomping ground and will run the #9 Coke car in 2024. Stone started hunting, and we know he eyed some big guns before hitting a few contractual hurdles, and signed Nick Percat in what we think is a good move. Percat’s switch to Walkinshaw Andretti United didn’t work for whatever reason, but we know he can race and Stone thinks he can get the best out of him.

Super2 driver Ryan Wood was announced as his replacement at WAU. David Reynolds couldn’t get the deal he wanted at Grove Racing, so he jumped ship for a longer-term contract at Team 18, renewing his association with team owner Charlie Schwerkolt and the team’s other driver, Mark Winterbottom. Richie Stanaway, who the lazy pundits tipped for the SvG seat, was announced as the new driver for the #26 car. Scott Pye made way for Reynolds, and he’ll co-driver in the endurance with Triple Eight this year.

Tickford announced it was dropping to two cars in 2024, and James Courtney eventually confirmed what we all knew, that he was going to Blanchard Racing Team, which was taking one of the Tickford Team Racing Charters to become a two-car team and some of the engineering staff from Tickford and sponsor Snowy River Caravans. After Bathurst, Aaron Love was confirmed for the other car, and Todd Hazelwood was out of a full-time drive and headed to Brad Jones Racing for the endurance races in 2024.

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Declan Fraser was dumped, and we are still unsure where he will be in 2024.

The remaining change in the field was the retirement of Jack Smith and Jaxon Evans being slotted in as his replacement. Yes, another Kiwi.

THE WIND TUNNEL TESTING ...

FINALLY

FINALLY, AFTER two or more decades of relying on the archaic Vehicle Control Aerodynamic Test (VCAT), Supercars was finally forced to enter the 21st Century and get its cars into a wind tunnel. It sent two cars to the Windshear wind tunnel in Concord, North Carolina, just outside Charlotte.

Supercars used three days of tunnel time with support from Ford, Chevrolet and NASCAR in an attempt to get the aerodynamic parity right. One day was baselining, and then the testing of new bits began.

All three versions of the Ford Mustang package from 2023 were tested and the results confirmed what the Ford teams were saying.

The thin Ford panels caused an issue, with the flexing of the panels making it hard to get the baseline sorted, but it was clear there was not parity.

Aside from the sharp edged profile of Ford’s aero package, which gave it a narrow set-up window, Ford’s V1 package that ran until after Darwin had less downforce in the rear and less drag, which is why it was cooking its rear tyres in the races but was OK if you hit the narrow window in qualifying.

For Townsville, Ford shifted the rear wing for V2, and that had more rear downforce than before but also more drag than the Chev.

And then we get V3 after Bathurst when Ford – after it finally had the CFD data on the Chev – got more than it was asking for at Bathurst. The V3 package reportedly had 30kg more rear downforce and around 1-2kg more drag. It was now the better car and won four races.

Ford is now styling its package for this year and more wind tunnel time will be needed before it signs off on the final package.

SUPERCARS FAILS MARKETING 101

SUPERCARS, UNDER its new ownership, is learning fast about how to run the sport, but it is failing Marketing 101. There are little and big issues all over the place that are affecting the way the sport is consumed, and changes are needed.

The TV package is stale and needs a shakeup. We’re not saying what needs to happen, but tune into The Auto Action RevLimiter podcast and you’ll probably get our views this week.

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The new digital platform is woeful, and that Supercars thinks it is good tells you why they are failing this course. The website on launch didn’t work with the App, and while they kindof work now in synch, they suck. Some of the views are subjective, such as the aesthetics, but the user functionality is lacking, and the revenue streams seem limited.

Given how much Supercars must have spent, this should have been better.

Worse, though, in marketing terms, is the lack of development of personalities in the sport. Go and ask one of your mates who doesn’t follow the sport who are the leading drivers, and there is a chance they won’t have any names for you, and if they do, it might be Craig Lowndes or Scott McLaughlin.

For all the efforts of Supercars and how much money and support it sinks into the News Limited network, it doesn’t get to the back page, and there are no new heroes. We’ll do our part this year, but we are only a small part of the machine and Supercars needs to up its game.

And then there is the parity debate, and Supercars lost control of this at the start of the year and kept jumping into a bigger hole as the year progressed. If they had passed Marketing 101 or understood crisis management, it would have been a different story.

Editors footnote: Of interest, when you type in ‘Supercars’ into your Google search engine the Supercars web site ranks as item 10 on the first page.

ONLINE BULLYING … SOME FANS AREN’T LEARNING WE SAW online bullying again in 2023, showing some fans of the sport are not learning the lessons as championed by Chaz Mostert. We want more from our drivers, but we also want more from a slim minority of race fans who think bullying is OK. Barry Ryan highlighted it in his apology for his post-race rant at Sydney Motorsport Park – which could have been #10 here given the hypocrisy of Motorsport Australia and Supercars in punishing him but not Cam Waters who a similarly exasperated rant – when his team and driver were targeted.

It wasn’t quite at the same level as Zane Goddard last year, but it is just not on. This year we are going to join with Mostert and others, including Russell Ingall who wrote about in our pages last year, in calling it out and trying to stamp it out.

Jack Smith was driven out of the driver’s seat by it – fortunately his family are remaining involved and we hope we see him again.

In the media we’re used to it, but last year reached a new low when a potential team owner, who we had given plenty of coverage to, encouraged social media attacks in our direction. We need better from all involved in the sport.

Play the ball, not the player. Call out what you see, but don’t threaten, abuse or bully.

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EVERYONE LOVES AN OUTLAW...

WHEN AUSSIE SPRINTCAR SUPERSTAR JAMES McFADDEN CAUGHT UP WITH AUTO ACTION'S TIMOTHY W NEAL BEFORE BEGINNING HIS HOME SUMMER CAMPAIGN, HE TALKED ABOUT HIS CAREER-BEST WORLD OF OUTLAWS SEASON, REVEALING THE UPS AND DOWNS, AND ABOUT LIFE ON THE ROAD IN THE USA WITH HIS FAMILY ...

IF THERE’S one thing historically that America and Australia has in common, it’s that we both love an outlaw: Billy the Kid, Jesse James, Ned Kelly … and James McFadden.

After his six-win season in the premier World of Outlaws (WoO) Sprintcar series, McFadden took a big step toward cementing his status as one of our best ever Sprintcar exports in the US. In WoO terms, he’s the fifth ever fulltimer from Oz, with Kerry Madsen having 25 career wins and Brooke Tatnell 13 with McFadden next in line in win terms.

In 2023 McFadden took his Toyota Development Engined #83 Roth Motorsports to wins at Volusia Speedway, Devil’s Bowl Speedway, Lawrenceburg Speedway, Huset’s Speedway, and a rare double at the Jackson Motorplex double to bring his career win tally to 11.

After taking the WoO Rookie of the Year in 2021, his third full-time season was probably his most challenging, both on and off the track.

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From giving Dennis Roth his 100th victory (which was also a first for the Toyota engine in WoO competition) to being banned for four races and stripped of 500 championship points over a failed tyre sample test.

The points demotion had him as low as 12th with little hope of finishing in the top-10, but an explosive comeback saw his ‘23 stats right up there with the best by season’s end as he fought back into the top-10.

In his chat with Auto Action, McFadden gives an insight into life on the road with his family – his wife Zoe and son Maverick – touring the States from speedway to speedway as a travelling Outlaw and, in a first, he outlines what life was like during the failed tyre-sample-saga, only to come back with the force of a Florida storm.

But first, on his own summation of the season, McFadden said he hadn’t ever experienced such a rollercoaster year in his professional life, as well as giving an insight into the new engine.

“Honestly, I’ve never experienced a year like that, and that was probably the thing that I was most proud of,” he began.

“It was the way our team jumped back from the lows to make highs out of bad situations. It was an interesting year, but to have the success that we did and to be sitting here saying I had six wins, and that we were sitting seventh overall at one point … it could have been a 10-win year, but I’m so proud of where we were at the pointy end. It was a tough year mentally for sure.

And although he had two previous seasons to become familiar with the tracks, he went into the year with a different team behind the scenes as well as the new Toyota engine.

“Things changed within the organisation this year – I had a new crew chief for the first time in three or four years over there.

And obviously with Toyota doing the development stuff with the engine, they don’t do anything by halves, so to have their presence in the team was great. But it was pretty different.

“But obviously Chevrolet has been the number one brand in Sprintcars for 50 or 60 years, and nothing has changed engine wise in my time, from the way you tune it, to how you drive it and the gearing you run … but the Toyota reacts differently to all that!

“Everyone in motorsport talks about so much power, so much power, but in Sprintcar we actually have to take the power out as the night goes on.

“So finding out what the Toyota liked, and what my foot liked was part of that battle.

“You asked me about the highs and lows – well that was delicately a part of that. Tracks where we were used to running a certain set-up ... well, that went out the window at times. But they were always there and fully on board to give us everything we needed.

“It’s true we hit the ground running, but we definitely had a weak patch at the start because of it, but we got it back and rolling.”

On whether or not he’ll stay with Roth Motorsports, that’s something he wants, but

“ ”

Left and above right – at speed in the Roth Racing Sprintcar. Below: Winners are grinners ... Below right: Sprintcar racing is a McFadden family show, involving a lot of motorhome travel ...

Images: RICHARD HATHAWAY

there are some limiting factors that need to be ironed out.

“The plan is to stay there and their plan is to run two cars, but with racing there’s always the funding side of things and it's a limiting factor right now, but I should be in a position to announce that in the next month before I can say I’m definitely going back.”

On April 14 after running second behind Brad Sweet in Missouri, the news came out that McFadden’s #83 had failed a tyre doping test, and the Roth team was accused of illegally softening their Hoosier tyre.

Despite himself and the team passing a lie-detector test as part of the appeals process, they were given a four-race suspension, a fine, and a huge loss of 500 hard earned points.

“It was one of the toughest things that

Things changed within the organisation this year, I had a new crew chief for the first time in three or four years over there ...

involved in the sport – that happens and it might be in the back of people’s minds – but we came back swinging, won some races and just did our jobs.”

After losing an appeal process despite passing a lie-detector test sanctioned by the series, they took the hit, and McFadden came back for a resounding win on May 29 at Lawrenceburg, Indiana, where his son Maverick joined him in Victory Lane in a memorable moment.

And that’s the other side of McFadden’s journey, the fact that he travels America with his wife and child in an arrive-and-drive WoO environment, and seeing the States in a 45-foot bus.

“It’s a good set-up – it’s not like it’s a Britz Camper Van or anything like that. We have a kitchen and a laundry, TV’s, proper shower … it’s got all the stuff in there.

“But you know, there’s a situation where you need to empty the toilet, fill up with water and make sure you’re all set if you’re racing for four nights in a row or something.

It’s a juggling act!

“I think I personally drove over 30,000 miles this year in a motorhome so, between that and serving generators and slide outs when they break, there’s obviously a non-glamorous side and the racing part is probably the easiest.

“Logistically, getting up and down is pretty tough – there are times when it’s a 48 hour drive, going out to California for example.

“Then there are times when it’s unreal.

I get to have my family in the pit area and have them with me 24/7, and we get to stop

at some really cool places and see all of America at the same time.

“There are days where we pull up in the middle of nowhere by a river and just go swimming, so it’s the best of both worlds.

The big drives can be tough, 10 or 15 hours at a time … but it’s the only way I could do it, with the family on the road. I couldn’t do it otherwise and be away from them for that long.”

That sort of life also means there are limits to McFadden’s US career in terms of racing World of Outlaws full-time. And he explains that ,whilst he’s living his dream, certain factors will always mean he’ll be drawn back home instead of racing there until he’s one of those wily veterans.

“It’s a dream to be able to go race in World of Outlaws, but it’s not something that I’m going to do for life.

“I was fortunate to get the opportunity ... I was a little older than I probably wanted to be when I got that opportunity, but I’d like to do it another year or two.

“It’s definitely not something I’m going to be doing in my 40s like most of those guys.

If it was, I needed to move to America five, six, seven years ago and I didn’t do that. I’m an Australian and I’m always going to come home.”

As for next year, he confirmed that he’s keen to remain with Roth to build on what they’ve worked hard towards, but that nothing can be confirmed until maybe next month as they seek to build the funding, with the WoO season to begin on February 7-10 at Volusia Speedway in Florida.

I’ve had to deal with in my career. But we just put our heads down and came back and won some races to shut everyone up.

But the situation was a bit heartbreaking for us.

“The team were adamant that they didn’t do it, and at the end of the day I trusted them …I trust them with my life 85 nights a year so if I can’t take that for gospel then … but our backers and Toyota stayed with us and backed us.

“We’re not sure what happened cause we didn’t alter the tyre knowingly. At that point it was our fourth test of the year, so it just wouldn’t happen – but something happened that we couldn’t change the outcome on.

“Every team seemed to be on our side, to our faces anyway,” McFadden quipped.

“There was obviously some backlash from fans and people that aren’t as

www.autoaction.com.au I 29

ALEX

Winning the Radical series at the first attempt should help to open doors for Gardner.

Main Image: REBBECA HINDREVVED PHOTOGRAPHY Right (top to bottom): Hyundais, karting and Ferrari Academy – an interesting mix.

Images; ALEX GARDNER FACEBOOK

GARDNER

ALL ROADS LEAD TO LE MANS

HE MAY HAVE GOT LOST DURING HIS FIRST TIME BEHIND THE WHEEL, BUT NOW ALEX GARDNER HAS NO TROUBLES FINDING THE RACING LINE WITH HIS EYES FIRMLY ON LE MANS. THE RECENTLY CROWNED RADICAL CUP AUSTRALIA CHAMPION IS FOLLOWING A DIFFERENT CAREER PATH TO MANY AND IS THE LATEST AUTO ACTION YOUNG GUN, SPEAKING TO THOMAS MILES ON HIS JOURNEY SO FAR …

ALEX GARDNER has enjoyed a rapid start to his racing career and has a very clear goal in mind and, despite Chaz Mostert being his favourite driver, it is not Supercars.

The 16-year-old, who honed his craft at Queensland Raceway is GT dreaming with the end goal to be racing at the iconic Le Mans 24 Hours.

Gardner is already on the right path, having won the 2023 Radical Cup Australia title but he wants a lot more.

“Le Mans is the end goal for me,” he told Auto Action .

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“I am trying to get there with Volante Rosso Motorsport through the program they have.

“Jordan Love has done it through the Mercedes juniors and Jayden Ojeda this year has got a drive in Asian Le Mans, so I am hoping to follow in their footsteps.

“I would love to be at Le Mans in any car from a GT3, LMP or Hypercar. It would be an awesome experience and something I have dreamed of for a long period of time.”

Gardner has not come from the traditional setting of a motorsport family, being the first of his clan to ever cut a racing lap.

His passion for the sport blossomed from watching Supercars on TV, but it was not until a special trip to watch Shane van Gisbergen and Craig Lowndes take victories at Queensland Raceway in 2016 that his own racing journey hit top gear.

“When I was 6 to 8 years old I would always watch the V8 Supercars on TV and then my parents took me to a race at Queensland Raceway,” he recalls.

“I was definitely nagging them a lot of the time to get a go-kart and they kept saying they were not going to do it, with school

on, but then they surprised me.”

Surprisingly for a driver with a national championship under his belt, Gardner’s first lap on a gokart went badly off course.

“When I first drove at Ipswich Kart Club

En route to the Radical crown. Below: The Gardner team. Images: SPEEDSHOTS PHOTOGRAPHY. Below right: Young fella, on track, dreaming ... Bottom: Learning the complexities of motorsport – the Ferrari Academy.

“ ”

When I was 6 to 8 years old I would always watch the V8 Supercars on TV and then my parents took me to a race at Queensland Raceway ...

I actually managed to get lost on the track! I don’t know how, but I did somehow,” he said.

“It was part of the growing process and after that little hiccup it all started to fall into place.”

Gardner gradually became a karting frontrunner on the national stage and won the KA3 junior karting title in 2022 when things started to accelerate.

The then 15-year-old not only had his first taste of car racing in a Hyundai Excel, but made it to the top six of the Ferrari Driver Academy Asia Pacific selection program at Sepang.

This is where Gardner discovered the detail required to compete on the global scale.

“When I was there I learnt first-hand that it is not just about the driving – it is also about the media, physical and mental side of racing, plus all the data analysis,” he recalled.

“It woke me up a bit and showed me there is a lot of work to be done in order to get to the top.”

Boosted by the Ferrari experience, Gardner was ready to take his career to the next level in 2023 and he found the perfect platform.

The 16-year-old teamed up with Volante Rosso Motorsport to have a crack at the Radical Cup Australia in 2023.

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Whilst the teenager would eventually stun everyone to snatch the title in his rookie season, he revealed both the team and himself were not even entertaining those heights when the deal was done, with a single podium a goal.

“In a way I was surprised (to win the championship) because my goal together with (team owners) Josh (Hunt) and Chris (Papadopoulus) was to settle for a top five in the championship and maybe grab one podium in a race,” Gardner confirmed.

“But it was mainly about learning as much as I could.”

Prior to the Radicals, Gardner’s only previous racing experience had been a handful of races in a Hyundai Excel, so to go Sports Car racing on the national level was no simple learning curve.

“The jump between the cars was massive from a front wheel drive Excel to a rear wheel drive Radical,” he said.

“I needed to acclimatise really quickly but I managed to find my feet and feel at home in the car.”

This was evident as soon as Gardner took on the more established and experienced drivers at the season opener in Sydney.

The #94 driver had already turned heads by qualifying when he set the third fastest time, but much bigger things were to come.

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Gardner announced himself with a flying getaway when the lights went out on his debut race as he stormed into the lead at Turn 1.

He then showed zero nerves as he dominated the remainder of the race and cruised to a 9s win on debut.

From the massive high, Gardner crashed back down to earth the following day when his second race ended early with a gearbox issue.

But he had the perfect response, recording a hat-trick of clean sweeps at Queensland Raceway, Phillip Island and The Bend.

Despite consistent title rival Elliott Schutte offering stiff resistance and the pair clashing in the finale at Sydney, a seventh straight win followed by sixth and second place finishes in the final two races were enough to clinch a dream rookie crown.

Gardner was stunned to simply win one race, let alone the championship.

“To win the first race of the year was a big shock for me and I did not know if that could continue throughout the season,” he said.

“I tried to stay really level headed and the goal for me throughout the year did not really change.

“I obviously knew as early as Round 2 that the championship was on the cards but it did not do anything to my approach to driving because I knew that if I did that, the results would continue to come.

“Obviously they did, so being at the top of the national stage is something I have always wanted to achieve and to be able to do it in my first year was absolutely incredible.”

Following the special Radical title, the next question is when and where Gardner will continue his rapid trajectory?

At the time of writing his 2024 plans were yet to be finalised, but he is certain he will stick with Volante Rosso Motorsport after the dream start to their partnership.

“We are still in discussions with the team to work out what I am ready for and to take the next step with,” Gardner confirmed.

“The ideal situation would be to follow what Jayden and Jordan did and race overseas.

There is nothing I can say at the moment but I know the team will put me on the right path.”

www.autoaction.com.au I 31

2023: AUSSIE OPEN WHEELERS AGAINST THE WORLD 2023 SAW PLENTY OF YOUNG AUSSIES SET OUT OR CONTINUE WITH THEIR SINGLE-SEATER ASPIRATIONS ACROSS EUROPE, AMERICA, AND ASIA, WITH SOME OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCES IN THE CUT-THROAT WORLD OF THE JUNIOR FORMULAE PATHWAYS. TIMOTHY W NEAL REPORTS …

OVER 30 Aussie kids threw themselves headfirst in the 2023 open-wheel season spread out across the continents with some traversing the globe in pursuit of their lofty goals.

Not many make it all the way to the single-seater pinnacles of Formula 1 and IndyCar. It’s a tough journey against countries where the pathways are far more advanced and defined in taking and moulding youth out of karting, but 2023 saw a plethora of young Aussies really give their respective categories a shake and, in some cases, come out on top.

There’s never been a time like the present, where there are so many opportunities in the feeder junior formulae world, with full seasons mixed in with satellite championships all across the globe, allowing the drivers to get plenty of races in for different teams and in different machines. It’s a cut-throat world made up of money and sponsorships and the pressure to perform in order to keep climbing, and it’s easy to forget how young some of them really are; and as a journalist lucky enough to interview and document them on their journeys, their level of maturity, focus, and all-round demeanour for kids that are aged 14-18, was something that this writer found to be impressive.

Note: this article is more inspective of the younger drivers from FIA Formula 3 and down, meaning F1 drivers Oscar Piastri and Daniel Ricciardo, F2 and Alpine F1 Reserve Driver Jack Doohan, IndyCar’s Will Power, and Indy NXT’s Hunter McElrea (honorary Aussie) are all above the targeted eye-line.

The future appears bright in the lower formulae levels and, with the Australian F4 Series getting a second chance at life in 2024, it’s yet another stepping stone to the

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international scene opening up.

Here’s a rundown of how our Aussie chargers fared across 2023, starting with the three Aussies who climbed into FIA Formula 3 machinery.

THE FIRST BIG STEP

FIA FORMULA 3 is a step-up in every sense: from horsepower, pressure, sponsorship, money, viewership spotlight, and expectation – a true international series under the watchful eyes of F1 and F2.

Since the GP3 and FIA Formula 3 European Championship merged to become what it currently is in 2019, the Aussie seat count went from zero fulltime seats in 2022 to three in 2023 for the second most in a season, with Christian Mansell (Campos Racing), Tommy Smith (Van Amersfoort Racing) and Hugh Barter (Campos) flying the flag.

Note: The most in a season was 2020 with four Aussies: Piastri/Doohan/Calan Williams/Alex Peroni.

They also got to have a home race at Albert Park for the first time in series history.

Out of the 2023-three, Campos’s Mansell went away with the best record after having had two rounds of experience in ‘22 – the 18-year-old will drive for ART Grand Prix for the 2024 F3 season.

Both in terms of championship position and on track deeds he was a standout.

Mansell finished 12th in the championship with two podiums and eight separate top10s, with his P3 and P2 efforts coming at Silverstone and Spa, both in the wet.

At Silverstone he qualified a season high fourth to go from ninth to a maiden podium in the Sprint, whilst Spa was then the main standout performance.

He powered from 23rd on the grid to take 19 spots on a chaotic first lap, fighting his way into second and looked like taking the win before an error at Les Combes ended what would have been a memorable win.

Whilst finishing the lowest of the three, in 27th with no points or top-10s, Smith will get another shot with the Dutch team in 2024, with both driver and team admitting they weren’t up to scratch – struggling with the Pirellis for most of the year – but they were confident enough for it to continue next year.

He came close to points with a rampant drive in the feature at Albert Park for a season high P12, whilst Monza saw him close to the points before a puncture ended his charge.

Barter was the second-best performer on points to finish in 19th, but his future remains unclear with Campos more-or-less settled seat wise for 2024, after the 18-year-old had three years with the Spanish team.

Image: WHARTON

Lochie Hughes was a top US F2000 contender.

Image: GAVIN BAKER PHOTOGRAPHY James Wharton took out the UAE F4 Championship.

Christian Mansell snatched a couple of FIA F3 podiums and will return in 2024 with ART Grand Prix. Image: DUTCH PHOTO AGENCY The Melbournian took three top-10s in an up-and-down rookie year after being a dominant race-winning force in Formula 4 the year prior.

A mix of driver error and bad-luck with punctures and contact were a consistent theme, his strongest rounds were P6 Sprint finishes at Silverstone and Spa. He started the season strongly by qualifying fifth in Bahrain, but a puncture at the first chicane seemed to set off a season of variables. He also missed the last round due to unspecified issues.

Tommy Smith had a ‘learning’ year, and will race with Van Amersfoort again this year. Image: DUTCH PHOTO AGENCY

TITLE WINNERS

THREE OF our exports, James Wharton, Jack Beeton, and Cooper Webster, walked away with maiden international titles in their respective satellite series’ this season, with Ferrari Driver Academy (FDA) youngster, Wharton, claiming arguably the biggest of them all - the ‘World Cup-like’ UAE Formula 4 Championship which opened up the season.

Wharton had come from an impressive first year in Europe (2022) across the Italian F4 and the now defunct German F4 to herald his talent in the UAE against the best F4 youth in the world.

It was the manner in which he did it that really stood out, coming from behind to overcome fellow FDA member Tuukka Taponen and McLaren Junior Ugo Ugochukwu, driving for the Mumbai Falcons (Prema) in the F4-T-421 machinery.

He stormed home across the final four rounds in Kuwait, Dubai and Abu Dhabi, claiming four wins and seven podiums, including a run of eight straight top-three finishes.

AGI Sport’s Jack Beeton also cappedoff his

Straight out of S5000, Cooper Webster ran second in the GB4 series, then went and won the Indian F4 title late in the year. He’ll move to Eurocup-3 for 2024 ... Image: JACOB EBREY PHOTOGRAPHY

year with an impressive title, taking out the Formula 4 South East Asia title in China, Macau and Malaysia after competing in his full Italian F4 season.

Beeton took part in 49 international races in 2023 and capitalised against a talented field to take the title over Prema’s Doriane Pin, collecting two wins and three podiums in 11 races.

Webster was another to capitalise late in the year after being vice-champion of the British GB4 series, dominating the Indian Formula 4 series held in Madras for the MP Motorsport run Chennai Turbo Riders.

The Victorian won eight of 15 races across four rounds at the Madras International Circuit, with a further three podiums and five poles to win the inaugural championship by 62.5 points over Indian national Rishon Rajeev.

RACE WINNERS

THE LIST of race winners bodes well for Australia’s international future, with some collecting enough wins to be in their respective title fights, including a few vice-championship finishers.

there were three race winners across three different series – Lochie Hughes, Quinn Armstrong and Jesse Lacey.

The highest on the Indy rung was Lochie Hughes, who has been impressing for a number of years, entering the USF2000 series as the F4 US title winner.

Gold Coast’s Hughes fought it out for the title until the penultimate round after leading it for a good chunk of the year, but slipped to third in the last round behind Simon Sikes and Nikita Johnson, winning four races for the Jay Howard Driver Development team, including four podiums in the Mazda powered Tatuus USF-22.

He should rise up to the penultimate rung on the ladder next year, the USF Pro 2000 series (you could say it’s North America’s F3 equivalent) with JHDD, with Indy NXT then being the final step before IndyCar. Newcastle’s Armstrong was another to shine in the USF Juniors (first step), a vicechampion who was in with a chance up the death against Nicolas Giaffone.

He fell 63 points short for DEForce Racing,

THE AMERICAN CONNECTION

STARTING IN the US of A in the Road to Indy feeder system,

Hugh Barter.

Image: LAT

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Ex-karter Jesse Lacey – fourth in US F4 Image: KIWICROSSLINK MOTORSPORT

Noah Lilse was a winner in British F4.

Jack Beeton took out the SE Asian F4 title – after a full Italian F4 season. Image: GCS

taking three wins and six podiums and is hoping to be back in 2024 depending on budget.

In the F4 US series, Jesse Lacey gave it a good crack in the Crosslink/Kiwi Motorsport squad, with the Melbournian finishing fourth in the championship, claiming one win and five podiums straight out of Karting.

Piszcyk, he took three wins at Donington, Thruxton, and Silverstone, as well as three podiums. In sitting out a round for the Spanish F4, he took 10th, racing for team and driver champions Rodin Carlin, with NZ’s Louis Sharp winning the title to keep it in the Antipodean family.

EUROPEAN HOTBED

EUROPE PROVIDED a host of race winners across the board with Webster taking the most across the year for Evans GP in the British GB4 series. His vicechampionship year ahead of entering the EUROCUP-3 season in 2024 included five wins and 10 podiums, including a sweep of the final round at Donington to fall only 11 points shy of title winner Tom Mills.

In taking out the Indian F4 title, Webster also finished the year with 17 victories on three continents in 2023 having also won four S5000 races in Oz. Wharton was the next best with four wins in the premier Italian F4 series, as well as the satellite EURO-4 series.

The Prema FDA racer finished fourth in Italy with two wins and six podiums, whilst in the nine race EURO-4, he claimed second with a further two wins and three podiums.

The British F4 season was a strong year for the Aussies, with two of the four Oz drivers claiming wins in their maiden season.

James Piszcyk justified his doubters after taking the chance to test for Hitech Pulse-Eight over winning the Australian Formula Ford title in 2022 after leading into the final round.

Although he took his time to acclimatise to the Abarth powered Tatuus F4-T-421 car, a steady improvement saw him build up to a maiden win at Thruxton before taking a memorable win at Silverstone.

Two other podiums and a consistent year finishing in the top-10 had him fifth in the title race.

Noah Lisle was the other to take the top step, and although not as consistent as

RACING CLOSE TO HOME IN ASIA LASTLY, NICOLAS Stati bobbed up for a win in the South East Asia F4 series in just his fifth ever car race.

As part of the AGI Sport team with Beeton, the former karter gave AGI team leader Adam Gotch his third win of the series and helped them claim the team’s title.

The West Aussie came from fourth to take his first International F4 win, and will be another to keep an eye on moving forward.

Ex-karter Alex Ninovic debuted in the Spanish F4 series. British F4 beckons this year ...

FURTHER PROMISING TALENT FOR THE FUTURE AMONGST THE title and race winners was a further host of future talent that will look to step it up in 2024, with plenty of podiums and promise shown.

Of note is former KA3 and KA4 Aussie Karting champion Alex Ninovic.

Whilst next year will see him in the British F4 with Carlin, he debuted in an open wheeler in the Spanish F4 series at Spa, taking P5 in his first ever race, and was a consistent top-10 runner for Carlin, taking a late season podium at Ricardo Tormo – his first in international racing.

Former FDA world finalist Gianmarco Pradel also had a good debut year in Europe, performing well at the satellite Formula Winter Series for German team US Racing.

He was a vice-champion to future F3 racer Kacper Sztuka and the rookie champion, taking six podiums in eight races in the Spanish based series.

He also took a podium in a full Italian F4 campaign with ten top-10s to finish 12th against the world’s best youth (including a rookie win at Mugello) whilst the season closing EURO 4

Quinn Armstrong was a front runner in USF Juniors ... Image: GAVIN BAKER PHOTOGRAPHY

34 I www.autoaction.com.au

Ex Aussie FFord, James Piszcyk won British F4 races and finished fifth in the title on debut.

series saw him take five top-10s in three rounds against the same field.

In the GB3 and GB4, Costa Toparis debuted in the former and, whilst he didn’t take a podium, he took six top-10s, and considering the family tragedy that he endured prior to the season starting, he did admirably and will be one to watch in 2024 with plenty of people on the inside having a big belief in his talent.

And in the latter British series, Jack Clifford was impressive straight out of Vic Formula Ford, only finishing outside the top-ten five times in 20 races for KMR Sport to finish seventh in the title race.

Griffin Peebles was a name that popped up on grids everywhere across Europe. His first international year saw him in the Italian, British and Spanish F4, as well as the EURO-4 as a regular for a host of teams like Tecnicar, Jenzer Motorsport and Argenti – he raced 39 times to gain good experience for 2024.

Patrick Heuzenroeder was another to bob up in a few series, finishing the year in GB3 with a podium in the final race for Elite Motorsport.

The bulk of his year was in the British F4 for Argenti, taking a podium and seven top-10 in a promising rookie year, whilst his late berth in a more F3 equivalent car shows there are eyes on him.

Finally, in the US F4, Sydney’s Lewis Hodgson took two podiums in seven rounds in a part-time campaign for Crosslink/Kiwi Motorsport.

Stay tuned into Auto Action’s dedicated coverage of Aussie youth racing overseas, where the off-season news for 2024 seats will be coming thick and fast.

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PRODUCTS AND INDUSTRY NEWS

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NATIONALS WRAP

CELEBRATING THE VICTORIAN STATE RACE SERIES 2023 WITH SIX rounds of racing on offer in 2023, racing in the Victorian State Race Series kept several titles undecided until the final rounds.

Proceedings started at Sandown in February with several eye-catching performances. Veteran racer Lee Partridge steered his Sabre 02 to an upset win in Formula Vee over eventual champion Reef McCarthy – his first win for 20 years.

In a similar vein, former Sports Sedan driver turned Improved Production pilot Danny Timewell (Holden VF Commodore) ticked all the boxes on route to his first race and round wins in the category which would see him go on to finish third in the standings after two costly DNFs at Phillip Island and Calder Park.

Winton’s switch from the Winter months to an Autumn event in 2022 was retained and proved to be a popular decision. Cadel Ambrose announced himself in Hyundai Excels with not only a maiden win but a clean sweep of the weekend. The teenager as always had his proud father and former Club Car driver Rohan Ambrose in his corner every step of the way throughout the season as he battled James Lodge and Harry Tomkins to secure the state title.

Three-time Improved Production champion Luke Grech-Cumbo (HSV Senator) provided an unexpected highlight

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Ballarat’s Joe Fawcett took a hard-fought win in the Formula Ford category.

T revor Lindsay in his pretty Triumph GT6 took the State honors in the MG & Invited British category. after suffering a brake failure at the end of the front straight, leading to a Dukes of Hazzard-style aerial moment in the infield and a hefty amount of damage to repair before the next round.

Phillip Island and HQ Holdens always delivers fantastic racing, and the ‘Flying Dutchman’ Rod Raatjes stole the show on Saturday with a last-to-first drive on Saturday. The veteran’s performance even made several of the Toyota Gazoo 86 Scholarship Series drivers in attendance take notice!

Historically, Phillip Island in May often brings inclement weather, which tends to bring out the drivers that revel in

Evergreen Rod Raatjes was the star in HQs for 2023. challenging conditions. While the only rain for the entire season lasted half a day, Formula Vee-regular Jake Rowe and two young Bendigo-based drivers (Ayrton Filippi and Charlee Richardson) showed their wet-weather talent as they pulled off several brilliant overtakes in the treacherous conditions.

A three-month mid-season break paved the way for August’s round at Sandown, where all eyes watched Sonic Racing’s Matthew Hillyer take a huge step towards the National Formula Ford title with Zak Lobko’s series of miscues all but taking him out of the championship picture as Joe Fawcett’s consistent season saw him take

strides towards the Victorian title.

However, not even the presence of 31 Formula Fords could upstage the 40car field of Saloon cars that descended on Sandown from all over the country to decide the 2023 National champion.

Super2-star Bradley Vaughan set a new circuit record on route to delivering the first title for a Ford driver in 12 years after holding off West-Australian Mason Harvey by less than a second.

Supercars star Thomas Randle wheeled out his Saab 93 Sports Sedan in pursuit of a September lap record at Phillip Island, but after a win on Saturday his efforts were cruelled by a flat tyre on Sunday, leaving

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A busy grid of RX8 Cup cars gets under way ... Image: MTR IMAGES, NEIL HAMMOND, SUPPLIED

FORMULA FORD 1ST: Joe Fawcett (310 Pts) 2ND: Jake Santalucia (289 Pts) 3RD: Edison Beswick (275 Pts) FORMULA FORD 1600 1ST: Richard Davison (488 Pts) 2ND: Peter Fitzgerald (361 Pts) 3RD: Mark Zellner (228 Pts) Jesse Bryan two-wheels his way to the BMW E30 title.

Images: REBBECCA HIND-REVVED IMAGES

IMPROVED PRODUCTION 1ST: Luke-Grech Cumbo (HSV Senator) (481 Pts) 2ND: Ian McLennan (Holden Monaro) (408 Pts) 3RD: Danny Timewell (Holden VF Commodore) (364 Pts) FORMULA VEE 1ST: Reef McCarthy (548 Pts) 2ND: Lee Partridge (458 Pts) 3RD: Nicholas Jones (437 Pts)

944 champion Chris Lewis-Williams took a fourth title after several years away from the category. eventual champion Francois Habib (Holden VZ Commodore) to bank valuable points before the Sports Sedan state title was decided at Island Magic in November.

Meanwhile, Adam Brewer shocked the 944 field with a maiden pole position, but unfortunately couldn’t convert it into a maiden race win, but duly announced himself as a driver to watch as he kept up with the perennial front-runners in the category.

The return of racing to Calder Park after almost 15 years levelled the playing field with only a minority of drivers having ever lapped the circuit in anger. While the fields were smaller than expected and some categories opted not to include it as part of their state championship, racing proved to be entertaining with only one major incident for the entire weekend.

After a series of mixed results for the season, South Australian Trevor Lindsay (Triumph GT6) walked away with the MG & Invited British Sports Cars crown despite not taking a win at the final round.

Mark Verdino took advantage of the level playing field with his first win in the Porsche 944 series and the round overall as three-time 944 champion Chris LewisWilliams picked up his fourth title in his first year back in the categories after several years away. Steven Devries The 2024 Victorian State Race Series kicks off at Sandown on February 17/18.

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SPORTS SEDANS 1st: Francios Habib (Holden VZ Commodore) (400 Pts) 2nd: Ben McLeod (Holden Commodore) (300 Pts) 3rd: Cameron McKee (Ford AU XR6) (250 Pts) SALOON CARS 1ST: Daniel Johnson (Ford AU Falcon) (375 Pts) 2ND: Adam Lowndes (Holden VY Commodore) (370 Pts) 3RD: Keven Stoopman (Ford AU Falcon) (346 Pts) PORSCHE 944s 1ST: Chris Lewis-Williams (564 Pts) 2ND: Cameron Beller (530 Pts) 3RD: Adam Brewer (470 Pts) BMW E30s 1ST: Jesse Bryan (352 Pts) 2ND: Royce Lyne (340 Pts) 3RD: Brian Bourke (337 Pts) HYUNDAI EXCELS 1ST: Cadel Ambrose (358 Pts) 2ND: Harry Tomkins (333 Pts) 3RD: James Lodge (310 Pts) HQ HOLDENS 1ST: Rod Raatjes (254 Pts) 2ND: Ryan Woods (232 Pts) 3RD: Gavin Ross (202 Pts) MG & INVITED BRITISH 1ST: Trevor Lindsay (Triumph GT6) (307 Pts) 2ND: Michael Trathan (MG Midget) (297 Pts) 3RD: Philip Chester (MG F) (282 Pts) HISTORIC TOURING CARS 1ST: Darren Collins (Ford Mustang) (192 Pts) 2ND: Geoff Munday (Chevrolet Camaro) (156 Pts) 3RD: Peter Meuleman (Ford Mustang) (155 Pts)

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FULL OF ACTION THE 2023 AMRS season was a notable one for the Hi-Tec Oils Super Series, being an expanded program from previous years and a wide range of on full show.

The Australian Trans Am category brought some big American muscle from earlier eras back to life.

After a competitive season where Mark Spencer, John Prefontaine, John English and Sean English all claimed round wins, one Mustang reigned supreme.

The was the #21 of Prefontaine, who was a consistent frontrunner all year and did enough to take out the title over Spencer by 68 points.

Prefontaine was at his best in Round 2 at collecting his only round win at Morgan Park but was also on the podium in Rounds 4 and 6 both at Queensland Raceway finale.

It was a special year for the Stock Cars Australia National Series which included a return to its spiritual home Calder Park’s Thunderdome.

Whilst the Stock Cars did not race there, the demonstration run that included former NASCARs and AUSCARs. Across the season no one could compete with Scott Nind, who was a dominant force in the ex Greg Biffle NASCAR Xfinity Series Mustang. He completed the season in style by sweeping the Winton finale.

Justin Barnes was a popular champion in the RX8 Cup, finally breaking through for a maiden crown.

Barnes clinched the crown by 47 points over Luke Webber after a campaign that included two wins from seven rounds.

It was sweet relief for the veteran, who has amassed more than 100 races in the category having raced since its inception.

Over that time Barnes has had many close calls to the championship, but was finally on the top step in 2023 after a consistent campaign where everything “came together.”

The distinctive Legend Cars Australia category took place around the country with drivers chasing success in both Pro and Pro Am. The season wrapped up at the historic Calder Park Raceway where Shane Tate took the honours at the slippery circuit, while in Semi Pro Chris Spicer impressed to overcome Ben Godridge and Nathan Predo.

However, the result was not enough to stop Goodridge from beating Spicer to the class championship.

Scott Nind took the Stock Car title.

John Prefontaine heads Alwyn Bishop in the Trans Am title contest.

There was also a competitive fight for Masters honours that was taken out by Bruce Duckworth with Darren Bradley and Scotty Melville completing the podium.

The Queensland based EFS Excel Cup Series took place across three rounds in 2023 and many drivers put their hands up.

No driver could take consecutive round wins as many had battles at the pointy end of the pack.

But two drivers, Jack Wood and Tyler Collins, emerged as the most consistent.

In the end an opening round victory was enough to propel Wood to the top, 74 points ahead of Collins, who won the finale.

Alice Buckley slotted into third, while Cam Wilson had a perfect record of winning the one and only round he started.

The Victorian Super TT Championship wrapped up at a sunny Winton Motor Raceway in November where Brent Edwards concluded his strong year in style.

Edwards won the Over 2-Litre Slicks class by 61 points over David Buntin having also taken victory in the finale by beating impressive rookie Max Thompson.

It was a tight Holden v Ford battle for final round honours in Over 2-Litre Treaded as Russell Deller held off Steve Nealie.

But Deller enjoyed a much bigger gap in the championship race, taking out the title by 51 points over Colin Bau. The last round of the season in Under 2-Litres Treaded proved to be a thriller with just one point the difference at the top.

In the end Rob Boaden just edged out Tim Molesworth with the result a perfect way to end a championship winning year.

Thomas Miles

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HERE’S TO YOU MR ROBINSON

WA DUO TRAVIS ROBINSON AND ANDREW PINTO WERE CROWNED MOTORSPORT AUSTRALIA OFF-ROAD CHAMPIONS IN 2023, WITH THE PRO BUGGY PAIR IN A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN IN THE COUNTRY’S MOST GRUELLING TITLE RACE. TIMOTHY W NEAL REPORTS ...

THE POINTSCORE showed a dominant 255 point victory by season’s end, but it was consistency that got the #13 Jimco Nissan-powered buggy over the line, with the champions finally getting a well deserved outright victory in the very final outing.

The five-round 2023 title swept across the bush, dust, and mud of Australia’s outer regions with visits to Queensland (Gold City 450), NSW (Pooncarie Desert Dash), NT (Finke Desert Race) SA (Loveday 400), and WA (Kalgoorlie Desert Race).

The season saw five different event winners in the end, including Aussie Off Road legend Toby Price taking out an unprecedented ninth Finke victory in the competition’s crown jewel – his third straight on four wheels to go with his six Moto category wins.

But after taking the championship lead in NSW, then a third straight outright podium at Finke (which included the class win), the title race was then iced in Round 4 at the Loveday 400, with Robinson and his Navigator Pinto capping a fairytale comeback after six years away for a maiden title.

Prolite Buggy class champion Mel Brandle finished second in the title outright race, whilst Travis’ brother Beau Robinson took third in the championship, 273 points in arrears, and only three points ahead of Pooncarie race winner Raana Horan, whilst James Cook rounded out the top-five.

Cook, the winner of the opening Gold City 450 round, also took out the heavily populated SXS Pro class title.

The Extreme 2WD title didn’t fall the way of third place finisher Robinson, with Nicholas Commins getting it done with two class wins.

Mel Brandle won Prolite Buggy, while finishing second in the outright title race.

In the smaller fields, the class titles went to Joshua Gaskin (Sportslite Buggy), Brad Geraghty (Super1650 Buggy) Sean Beck (Performance 2WD), Adam Jiear (Production 4WD class), John White (SXS Sport class) and Phillip Lovett Extreme 4WD.

TOUGH-COUNTRY GOING

AS STATED, it wasn’t until WA where the champions added the cherry to the cake, with three different classes covering the outright wins over five drivers.

History was made in the opening round (the inaugural Gold City 450) when Cook became the first ever SXS driver to win an AORC round outright alongside navigator Mitch Aucote, beating reigning champion Ryan Taylor with Robinson in third (second in class).

The trip down south to NSW then saw some class order restored, but it was a couple of NZ marauders in Raana Horan and Michael Connor who claimed their first win in Oz, at Pooncarie, by 10 minutes.

And whilst Robinson/Pinto secured P2 and the title lead, it was Brandle and Nick

Price who took their first outright AORC podiums.

The third round saw the Finke Desert Race head to Alice Springs for one of Off Road racing’s most remote races – but the cars component almost didn’t go ahead, with Motorsport Australia and the Finke organisers under the gun in relation to competitor and spectator safety at prior Finke events.

When the event got the green light, with safety changes made, Price and co-driver Jason Duncan set about marching to a dominant win.

The two-time Dakar winner, competing in the extreme 2WD class, overcame Greg Gartner with a clean sweep of the Prologue, and Days 1 and 2, with his Mitsubishi Trophy Truck falling just 0.4s short of his all-time course record set last year, completing this year with a time of 3:21:46.6.

Robinson again came through with the goods in outright third and a class win, seven minutes behind Gartner to be in control of his destiny for the SA round.

And whilst the season would see a fourth

outright winner at Loveday in nine-time AORC champions Shannon and Ian Rentsch, it was Robinson, fourth outright (and fourth in class) who stole the show with his maiden title.

“It feels good – all the years and lessons from the old man (Brian Robinson) finally paid off,” Robinson said, paying tribute to his late father after securing the title.

“It’s been a testing year, but we’ve got it all together … it’s amazing to have won the title.

“We have had lots of curveballs thrown at us this season, but we’ve just kept it together and it’s been a very hectic year – but we have come together as a team.

“No doubt, the old man was watching over us.”

They then capped off a consistently dominant AORC return with a victory in the final, as his brother tried but couldn’t cause an upset, whilst state and AORC competitor Shane Elphinstone finished third outright.

The event was also shortened after motorbike rider and 59-year-old Lance Fraser tragically lost his life on Day 1.

With only 121km to decide the winner in the WA classic, Travis topped his brother by just under two minutes.

The 2024 season gets underway in NSW this time around, with the Pooncarie Desert Dash set for April 19-21.

AORC STANDINGS T. Robinson (Pro Buggy) 472 Brandle (Prolite) 217 B. Robinson (Extreme 2WD) 199 Horan (Pro Buggy) 196 Cook (SXS Pro) 173

Consistency added up to championship victory for Robinson/Pinto. Left: Toby Price took out the Finke classic.

Far left: The SXS Pro title went to James Cook.

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AOC • ARC • YEAR IN REVIEW

completed family Bates/McLaughlin – Y SPORTS PHOTOGRAPH double . Image: EPIC

Reading/Youn g to Image: GEARS ok the Production title.

AND WHEELS PHOTOGRAPH Y

In the end, it came down to a single point ... Harry Bates and Coral Taylor in full flight ...

Image: TOYOTA PRESS ROOM

A STAGE OF BROTHERS HARRY BATES AVENGED HIS BROTHER TO TAKE BACK THE 2023 AUSTRALIAN RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP CROWN, ADDING A SEVENTH ARC TITLE TO THE CANBERRA FAMILY’S NATIONAL TROPHY CABINET. TIMOTHY W NEAL REPORTS …

IT ALL came down to a single point and 2.1 seconds and the final stage of the season, as Bates and co-driver Coral Taylor overcame a 23 point deficit to run down Lewis Bates and Anthony McLaughlin.

The #2 Toyota Yaris pair stormed home to win three of the last four rounds, giving Harry his second ARC title, and Taylor her fifth – four of which she won alongside Neal Bates – 15 years after her last.

Both the leading Toyotas largely dominated the season, with only the 2017 champion Nathan Quinn coming between them for a single win in the second round, in WA. The defending champions in the #1 Toyota took two wins for the year and did little wrong, but when their pursuers broke through in Gippsland in Round 3 a mechanically smooth run home saw an inverse of last season when Lewis randown his brother.

Third went to Eddie Maguire and Zac Brakey in their Skoda Fabia R5 (174 points in arrears), securing third over veteran Luke Anear in his Ford Fiesta Mk2, whilst impressive Tassie youngster Brodie Reading took fifth place to also clinch the ARC Production title in his first full season in the Subaru WRX STI. Eight points behind was impressive VIC youngster Troy Dowel (who’s father Justin won the VIC championship), whilst Quinn finished seventh after a tough run home, finishing just ahead of Peter Rullo, whilst Production Cup runner up Steve Maguire, and Daniel Gonzalez, rounded out the top-10.

Image: EPIC SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY

LAUNCESTON TO CANBERRA The six round season got rolling in Tasmania, and the #1 Toyota looked hot off the press for a title defence with a strong Heat 1 win and a consistent Heat 2 seeing them get over the line against Anear and Quinn.

For the eventual champions, the technical dramas from 2022 continued into the new season as they failed to finish Day 1 in their first ever outing together.

In Round 2, a late penalty for an early check in then cost Bates/Taylor their first win of the year after controlling much of the WA Forest Rally, with Heat 2 winner Quinn elevated into the outright lead in his first visit across the Nullarbor with co-driver Steve Winwood-Smith in the Hyundai i20 G4.

Bates/McLaughlin secured second over their stricken Toyota rivals with a Power Stage win stretching their early title lead.

Coral Taylor returned to the top step, with Harry Bates.

The championship then went the breadth of the country to Gympie in Queensland – a welcome return to the Sunshine State after floods saw last year’s event cancelled – where Bates/Taylor would take their first win together; Harry’s first win since June of ’22.

A rally of attrition saw Maguire/Brakey take a surprise second over Bates/ McLoughlin, whilst Production Cup champion Reading/Mark Young were impressive in outright fourth, their second top-five of the year.

Unfortunately for Quinn, his promising season was derailed at Rally Queensland with mechanical issues that would continue through the remaining rounds.

Rally Gippsland in VIC saw Bates/Taylor go back-to-back, whilst Taylor took a record 36th ARC win to surpass Peter ‘Possum’ Bourne for all-time wins.

They topped the #1 by 1 min 17s in the season’s only two-day combined

endurance rally over 16 Stages, with McGuire/Brakey taking a second straight outright podium.

The penultimate round saw the #1 strike back with his second win of the year, claiming the Adelaide Hills Rally to get on the front foot for the Canberra finale.

He denied his brother a third straight win, by just 4.4s, with a big Sunday performance, with the the #2 also incurring a late 25s penalty. The #5 Skoda pairing made it three straight podiums in P3, while a huge roll and a retirement from Reading also brought S.Maguire in the Production Cup equation.

The finale was a hometown battle of the brothers in the November contest and the contest.

A big spin from the #2 Toyota and a broken sway bar late in Heat 1 saw the #1 take control, heading into the Sunday with a 6s advantage. The two then exchanged stage wins in Heat 2 before a costly spin from Lewis saw Harry take the lead before the points leader struck back in the penultimate stage, leaving the 3.5km Power Stage as the season decider.

In the end the rally was decided by just 6s, whilst the title was decided by just 2.1s in the final stage thriller.

The 2024 season gets going with a return to the Rally Canberra on April 5-7.

ARC FINAL STANDINGS Bates/Taylor 531 Bates/McLaughlin 530 Maguire/Brakey 357 Anear/Read 303 Reading/Young 239

MOST WINS: Harry Bates (3) MOST HEAT WINS - Harry Bates (5) CLASS CHAMPIONS ARC - Harry Bates ARC (co-driver) - Coral Taylor Production Cup - Bodie Reading/Mark Young ARC 2WD Cup - Ben Hayes/Cathy Hayes Junior ARC Cup - Josh Wiedman/Nick Reid ARC Classic Cup - Tom Clarke/Ryan Preston

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ONE WAY TRAFFIC

THE 2023 Formula Ford Australia season was dominated by Matt Hillyer and Sonic Motor Racing Services (below).

Although Zak Lobko won the first race at Morgan Park, it did not take long for Hillyer to stamp his authority.

Car #2 then went on the charge, winning the four races at both the

Queensland circuit and Sydney Motorsport Park.

Despite the momentum, Hillyer hit a road bump at Symmons Plains where two incidents forced him to finish 13th twice as teammate Jake Santalucia picked up the spoils.

But the tough weekend did not throw

Hillyer off course as it proved to be a turning point.

He did not look back for the remainder of the year, winning all-but one of the following nine races.

The performances at Sandown and The Bend were particularly dominant given he also took pole, while the only driver to

beat the #2 over that period was Harrison Sellars at Phillip Island.

With the champion blazing into the distance, attention turned to the fight for second which eventually went to Santalucia who held off Lobko to make it a Sonic 1-2.

Thomas Miles

Image: SONIC MOTOR RACING SERVICES

THOMAS TAMES TA2 THE TA2 Muscle Car Series season was another enthralling affair, from the Winton opener to the Calder Park closer.

Jackson Rice drew first blood in the title race by taking the flag first in an exciting Winton opener but Lee Stibbs was promoted to the round win after the #7 was penalised for spinning the latter.

The stakes were raised with a new two-driver event at Hidden Valley where Dylan Thomas made his first move on the championship by teaming up with Tim Brook to be victorious as the top point scorer across the six-race weekend.

Although the championship contenders were starting to make some statements, a newcomer stole all the

applause at Queensland Raceway.

Nash Morris dominated the Two Days of Thunder event in his Supercheap Auto Mustang where rain was a massive factor.

The series stayed in Queensland to take on Morgan Park where Rice cemented his title credentials with a near perfect weekend collecting three wins out of four.

The penultimate round took place under the Sydney stars and another newcomer made their mark in the form of Jordan Cox, who was

unbeatable on debut.

But importantly Thomas salvaged some valuable positions having started lower down the grid which enhanced his championship case ahead of the finale.

The setting for the final round was none other than Calder Park where the Melbourne weather made life more difficult.

As Morris and Jarrod Hughes fought for the race wins, Thomas overcame a major scare in the morning warm up to fend off Rice and Josh Haynes and secure the TA2 crown.

Thomas Miles Dylan Thomas scored heavily in Darwin en route to the title.

Image: JOHN MORRIS PHOTOGRAPHY

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FORMULA FORD • TA2 • AUSSIE RACING • V8 SUPERUTE • APC • YEAR IN REVIEW

Image: SPEED SHOTS PHOTOGRAPHY

PRODUCTION CARS DO BATTLE

Joel Heinrich took his second title, taking three races drom four in Tasmania..

Image: AUSSIE RACING CARS

SMALL CARS, BIG BATTLES YET AGAIN the Aussie Racing Cars defied their size and produced plenty of entertainment across a season and ventured across both sides of the Tasman.

Joel Heinrich ended the season with the crown and started the successful campaign in the perfect way.

His #16 Mustang pocket rocket proved unbeatable for the CoolDrive combo Josh Anderson and Reece Chapman, while there was plenty of carnage behind them on the streets of Newcastle.

Queensland Raceway proved to be a more competitive affair as rookies

Brandon Madden and Rylan Gray made their mark.

But when the series took on Tasmania, Heinrich was back to his best, taking three of the four wins on offer to enhance his championship credentials.

Heinrich increased his victory tally to 10 by the time they arrived at Hidden Valley where a new name threw his name in the mix, Cody Brewczynski.

After coming close in Race 2, Brewczynski went back to back in the final two races to take the round on return.

He kept the good times rolling in

Townsville where he split the races with Chapman.

Four months later the season finale finally arrived but it was worth the wait being a special trip to Highlands in New Zealand.

To add to the occasion none other than Shane van Gisbergen also made the trip for his first taste of the pint-sized category.

It was no surprise to see SVG clean up and win all four races whilst Heinrich secured a second Aussie Racing Cars crown.

Thomas Miles

IT WAS another highly competitive contest in the big battleground that is Australian Production Cars.

The championship lived up to expectations and went down to the wire at the high profile finale at Mount Panorama.

Before then the season started at a sunny Phillip Island where Grant Sherrin drew first blood.

Four longer one hour endurance races awaited at SMP where it was Iain Sherrin’s turn to take the chequered flag, sweeping the round.

One of the grander occasions of the season arrived at Queensland Raceway where competitors took on the infamous Fight in the Night event around the Paperclip.

Coleby Cowham made his first move of the season by taking out the earlier race before racing under lights went to a new level.

The night race went down to the final lap where Iain Sherrin clawed the lead from Cowham’s co-driver Lindsay Kearns.

They resumed their rivalry at Sandown and The Bend where they also dictated terms, but Cowham/ Kearns emerged with a 33-point championship lead as Bathurst dawned.

With it being so close, the title arm wrestle was not decided until the final race in grand style.

After sweeping Saturday, Iain Sherrin (pictured) suddenly put himself in the box seat and a further P3 and victory on Sunday proved to be enough to snatch the crown from Cowham/Kearns.

Thomas Miles

BORG WINS DUAL CAB BATTLE THE V8 SuperUte Series enjoyed a breakout season with record-breaking fields and door-to-door racing, culminating in a thrilling title showdown on the streets of Surfers Paradise.

Once again it was the #1 of Aaron Borg, who reigned supreme but he had to work for it.

The season started in a big way with the biggest field ever at Wanneroo and Borg hit the ground running by collecting maximum points.

He continued his momentum with another round win at SMP where even more cars greeted the starter, but he opted to skip The Bend for a trip to Europe which opened the door to his rivals.

Suddenly the likes of Adam Marjoram and Ryal Harris were well in the mix of an extremely tight championship race.

After Borg and Harris shared the wins at Bathurst (pictured), just 26 points separated themselves and Marjoram heading to the finale.

Although Harris was left seething after getting tangled up with Gerard Maggs and David Sieders on the back straight, the title fight lived up to expectations.

It was not decided until the final lap when title protagonists Borg and Marjoram made contact at the hairpin.

Borg nudged his way past in a move that not only gained track position but also retained the #1 in memorable style.

Thomas Miles

Image: PETER NORTON/EPIC SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY

1: A. Borg 974 2: A. Marjoram 967 3: R. Harris 948 Most wins: A. Borg 9 Most round wins: A. Borg 4 Most Poles: A. Borg 4

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SPORTS SEDANS • TCM • YEAR IN REVIEW

GROWING THE LEGEND IT WAS a year to remember for the Precision National Sports Sedans as they returned to some of the biggest races in the country.

The racing lived up to the occasions as well with big fields featuring a variety of fire-breathing monsters taking on tracks such as Mount Panorama and Surfers Paradise.

Leading the way were the master and the rising star – Tony Ricciardello and Jordan Caruso.

It was evident they would be involved in a season-long arm wrestle from the moment the Sports Sedans first turned heads at Winton.

The series welcomed back Ricciardello and his iconic Alfa Romeo GTV and the pair reminded everyone of their quality by getting a first up win upon return.

Despite Caruso also responding with a rapid win of his own, it was the consistent Ashley Jarvis who claimed an emotional maiden round win.

Ricciardello and Caruso then went blow for blow at Queensland Raceway.

The reigning champion made a statement in the #1 Audi by fending off Ricciardello after some intense battles around the Paperclip.

At Sydney, the iconic Des Wall Cup was on the line where Ricciardello got his

Caruso and Ricciardello side-by-side at Winton. Image: JOHN MORRIS MPIX championship campaign rolling.

Despite taking sporadic wins in the opening two rounds, Ricciardello was yet to get his championship campaign to top gear but did so at the Masterblaster event.

Initially, Caruso looked the goods having won the first two races of the weekend, but with the Alfa on his tail, the trophy would go down to the third feature.

The Audi led early but was forced into retirement due to gearbox and engine issues, paving the way for Ricciardello to not only take the Des Wall Cup, but also

the championship lead.

All roads then led to Mount Panorama for the first National Sports Sedans meeting at the famous circuit since 1992.

Although Caruso turned heads with a stunning pole lap and Steven Tamasi also collected a victory, the Alfa Romeo remained the one to catch over a race distance.

Ricciardello held tough keeping his rivals at bay to score two important wins in his championship campaign.

This put him in the box seat when the

Sports Sedans surfed into Gold Coast after 26 years away and for a record-extending 12th time Ricciardello was crowned champion.

Although Ricciardello and the Alfa continued their legendary story, the finale was dominated by a new young gun in the form of Cameron McLeod, who soared to a clean sweep on debut in the MARC GT SS. After a season full of great cars, racing and comebacks, there is plenty of momentum surrounding Sports Sedans.

Thomas Miles

1: T. Ricciardello 523 2: J. Caruso 500 3: A. Jarvis 456 Most wins: T. Ricciardello/J. Caruso 5 Most Poles: J. Caruso 5 Most podiums: T. Ricciardello 12

JUNIOR BACK ON TOP

Johnson shows the way at Newcastle. Image: RACE PROJECT A FAST start propelled Steven Johnson to his fourth Touring Car Masters title – his first in four years.

Seven wins from the first nine championship races alone meant it was

always going to be tough to stop the BRUT Mustang from going all the way.

The season started somewhat slowly as a tight turnaround meant small fields took on Symmons Plains and Newcastle.

After Ryan Hansford took out the Trophy Race, just seven cars lined up on the grid for Race 1, dominated by Johnson, while John Bowe started his ‘Ciao for now’ season in dream fashion by winning the third and final race on home soil.

A fortnight later a slightly bigger field took on the streets of Newcastle that was swept up by Johnson after the Trophy Race went to Marcus Zukanovic.

The field slightly grew to 13 cars when they came to Winton in June where Johnson appeared to remain an unstoppable force.

He cruised to victory in the first two races but his charge to a cleansweep was disrupted by an object in the form of Bowe’s Torana.

The most successful Supercars driver at Winton added another chapter at the Action Track by fending off Junior Johnson by just six-tenths.

A trip to The Bend followed where a local newcomer upstaged all the regulars.

Joel Heinrich joined the field in a yellow Chevrolet Camaro RS and was instantly on the pace, taking out the debut Trophy Race by 4s.

Although reigning champion Ryan Hansford claimed an important win in the following sprint, Heinrich returned to winning ways and dominated the remainder of the weekend.

However, he did not return when the cars were dusted off after a threemonth hiatus ended at the Bathurst International.

This is where the intensity stepped up as Bowe kicked off his farewell with a Trophy Race victory at Mount Panorama.

And although Marcus Zukanovic survived the drama to take a celebrated maiden round win, Hansford’s consistency took the championship fight to Adelaide.

Being back on South Australian soil, Heinrich returned to both the category and winning ways, going on a three-peat.

Despite a Trophy Race triumph, Hansford was unable to do enough to stop Johnson from completing his journey to the championship.

After a season with just the two Supercars support rounds, bigger things are expected in 2024 from the popular category featuring many old favourites.

Thomas Miles

1: S. Johnson 1057 2: R. Hansford 976 3: C. Tilley 873 Most wins: S. Johnson 7 Most podiums: S. Johnson 14 Most poles: M. Zukanovic 3

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S5000 • TRANS AM • YEAR IN REVIEW

With defending champion Mawson sidelined, Aaron Cameron stepped up to take the championship.

Image: RACE PROJECT

TALE OF TWO MOFFAT’S HALVES TRANS AM It wasn’t totally smooth sailing, but Moffat tied up the title at Bathurst. Image: RACE PROJECT

THE 2023 S5000 season was one of two halves in which a late charge saw Aaron Cameron take out the Gold Star crown.

But earlier in the year there were minimal signs of a Cameron championship, as it started in familiar fashion.

Cameron had to settle for fighting for the minor positions on the podium at the season opener in Symmons Plains as Joey Mawson picked up from where he left off in 2022. Having won the previous two titles, the #1 88Racing driver was unchallenged across the entire weekend.

Mawson extended his winning streak in the Phillip Island opener before Versa Motorsport international Aussie Cooper Webster made his mark with strong back-to-back race wins.

When racing resumed in Winton, so did Mawson’s might as he recorded his second clean sweep in three rounds as bad luck hit Webster, who was caught up in some Race 2 chaos.

Despite the one-way traffic up front, young South Aussie Blake Purdie became the sixth different podium finisher in the first three rounds in a list that also included former F1 driver Roberto Merhi.

But easily on top of the list was Mawson, who had stood on the podium after all nine races and even had the chance to wrap up the title in Sydney.

He was on course to join the likes of Bob Stillwell, Alfredo Costanzo, Mark Skaife and Paul Stokell to take a hattrick of Gold Star crowns.

However, Mawson never got the chance to race in Sydney as his sensational season suddenly came to an abrupt end when he was suspended due to a fitness supplement investigation.

With the driver who led the championship by 77 points and had won seven of the nine races out of action, the race for the Gold Star was suddenly blown wide open.

The man who took the opportunity with both hands was Cameron, who swept up Sydney – a round also without Webster, who was overseas.

Jordan Boys was also in the mix, but in what would become a theme of the second half of the season, had plenty of speed, but not quite enough to climb to the top step.

The only driver who could challenge Cameron for the win was Webster and they went head to head at The Bend.

But the turning point of the year was qualifying at Adelaide when Cameron took pole while Webster missed the top 10 due to a gear selection issue.

As a result, Cameron cruised to the Gold Star crown with four straight wins, while Boys’ consistency also snatched second in the points from Webster.

Thomas Miles

1: A. Cameron 616 2: J. Boys 458 3: C. Webster 446 Most wins: J. Mawson/A. Cameron 7 Most podiums: A. Cameron 12 Most Poles: A. Cameron 3 Most Fastest Laps: J. Mawson 6 Tasman Series: A. Cameron

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THE 2023 Trans Am season quickly became all about James Moffat and his quest to write his name in the annals of Australian motorsport history.

The son of the legendary Allan has been racing at the top level since his Supercars debut as a co-driver in 2010, but a championship crown had always eluded him, until now.

From the moment cars first hit the track at Symmons Plains, Moffat was a cut above and stayed that way until the end.

The #34 GRM Mustang cleaned up the opener in Tasmania, but his performance was marred by a scary crash between Ben Grice and James Simpson.

The pair collided heavily at the final corner, sending Simpson’s Dodge airborne. Whilst both drivers thankfully emerged from the carnage unharmed, a tribunal investigation looked into the incident and declared the Race 2 a non-event and was critical of the event officials.

Things were much more smoother when racing resumed at Phillip Island as the tight arm wrestles for the lead took centre stage.

Guest driver Nash Morris stole the show and took two of the three wins on offer, but only with a combined winning margin of six tenths after a pair of thrillers.

Race 3 was particularly memorable as Morris and Moffat took the chequered

flag side-by-side with just 0.05s the difference.

Come Winton it was Lochie Dalton’s turn in the spotlight as he smashed the field in all three races.

But for much of the rest of the season, his dominant performance was under the microscope after both he and Moffat were disqualified from the entire round after GRM was found guilty of a technical breach surrounding the pedal setup.

This had a massive impact in the championship, sending Moffat and Dalton from the top to the back end of the top 10 in the standings ahead of the penultimate round.

But the results were reinstated after GRM won its appeal, which put Moffat back in the box seat despite Tom Hayman making a name for himself at QR and Morris getting more wins at SMP. Moffat appeared to be doing everything right until he almost saw his good work come to nothing in a nailbiting Bathurst finale.

The #34 was cruising in the lead until a mechanical issue sent it into the pits – retirement would have handed the title to Dalton.

But quick work by the GRM crew got Moffat back on track and he avoided the carnage to limp over the line and clinch a championship win he had been chasing for well over a decade.

Thomas Miles

1: J. Moffatt 1173 2: L. Dalton 1095 3: B. Holdsworth 972 Most wins: 6 Most Poles: J. Moffat 4 Most podiums: J. Moffat 13

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TCR • AUSTRALIAN GT • YEAR IN REVIEW

COMPOSURE IS KING THE TWO HMO Customer Racing Hyundais dominated the 2023 Supercheap Auto TCR Australia season, but only one could be crowned champion.

After the biggest TCR Australia season yet which welcomed the world, the consistency of Josh Buchan (below) was enough to pip teammate Bailey Sweeny at the post in a year-long battle.

The speed of Sweeny and the Hyundais was evident when the season started in February at Symmons Plains.

As Will Brown’s new Audi RS 3 LMS TCR struggled to turn a lap, Sweeny powered away to two commanding wins which set the tone for the season.

Phillip Island was where Buchan made his first move by converting pole position to victory in the opener before returning to victory lane in the finale.

His wins were punctured by Michael Clemente, who found some form by winning at back to back rounds in the Cupra Leon.

He was not the only driver to get a breakthrough success with Tom Oliphant giving Ashley Seward Motorsport a day to remember in Winton.

Despite the mixture of winners, normal service resumed in the Winton finale where Sweeny compiled one of the more dominant drives, winning by a huge 20s.

At the halfway mark of the season at Queensland Raceway, MPC finally got on top of its Audi and Brown made full use of the opportunity.

In the immediate aftermath of his shock Supercars move to Triple Eight, Brown perfected the ‘Paperclip’ to take two dominant wins.

He fell a second short of a clean sweep having been edged out by rookie winner Brad Harris in Race 2.

Now only one point separated the HMO teammates heading to Sandown where Sweeny appeared to land the killer blow.

As Buchan battled to stay in the top five, Sweeny excelled

and flew to two commanding victories.

This extended his lead to 30 points over his teammate and in the box seat when the World Tour arrived and added an extra challenge for the Sydney-Bathurst double header.

Brown had lightning speed at a slippery Sydney, taking two overall wins, while Buchan gained ground on Sweeny and Cameron threw his name into the mix by collecting a sixth straight second place.

This set up a fascinating finale at Bathurst where Sweeny carried a 23-point lead heading into the final day.

But a retirement and disqualification in Sunday’s two races saw Sweeny plummet from first to third, while Cameron won Race 2 and momentarily led the title race before his Peugeot stopped at Hell Corner.

As D’Alberto won the Bathurst round and kept up with the internationals, Buchan was the only championship leader left standing and reigned supreme.

Thomas Miles

1: J. Buchan 809 2: T. D’Alberto 759 3: B. Sweeny 748 Most wins: B. Sweeny/W. Brown 5 Most Poles: W. Brown 2 Most Podiums: A. Cameron 10

Image: RACE PROJECT

TALBOT FINALLY GETS THERE THE 2023 GT Challenge Australia season will be remembered as the year Liam Talbot finally broke through and clinched the crown.

But it was no simple journey to the top step after a tense three-way fight between himself, Geoff Emery and Yasser Shahin that was not resolved until the final race.

It was a season dominated by the big, iconic German brands with one of Audi, Mercedes or Porsche winning all 13 races.

Talbot made his intentions clear straight away by dominating the Bathurst opener with the help of Max Hofer.

But their momentum came to a sudden stop when Talbot collided with the lapped Justin McMillan.

This blew the race wide open and a thrilling three-way fight for the win unfolded eventually won by Shahin and Garnet Patterson, who held off Prince Abu Baker Ibrahim and Jamie Whincup by just a second.

Determined to respond from the opening racing disappointment, Talbot and Hofer did so in a big way by converting pole to a crushing 28s win.

Talbot leads into Turn 1, Perth ... Image: RACE PROJECT Come Phillip Island, Hofer was now racing alongside Talbot’s championship rival Emery with Fraser Ross his new partner.

But some new names were at the top of the timesheets with the Groves beaten, just,

by Ross Poulakis and Jayden Ojeda.

After five straight podium visits without a win, Emery finally stood on the top step with Hofer in Race 2 and achieved the feat in style, while Shahin and Talbot clashed but still collected trophies.

At the halfway mark just 21 points split the

top four drivers with Hofer leading Emery and Talbot.

Triple Eight was keen to join the winners list in Sydney as Richie Stanaway put in a storming drive, reducing a 20s deficit in the closing stages.

Despite the wind in Stanaway’s sails, Patterson somehow held on to secure an important win after a seven-minute shootout.

In what became a key trait of his season, Talbot collected another timely win in Race

2 at SMP as Emery/Hofer, plus both Triple Eight Mercedes found trouble.

This gave Talbot a vital two-point championship lead heading to QR where things intensified as he and Emery shared the honours across two exciting races.

With the help of Garth Tander, Talbot overcame a 15s penalty to win at the ‘Paperclip’ on the Sunday, an important response from losing significant ground to Hofer/Emery in the opener.

This set the scene for the Adelaide finale as just 22 points covered the top four.

The final round proved to be the Talbot v Shahin show as the pair and their respective co-drivers Mies and Matt Campbell dominated the two 27-lap races.

The #1 Porsche took out the opener but only just from the #65 Audi which hit back to claim a 0.4s win in race 2.

This took the pressure off in the final race that was controlled by Shahin/Campbell.

Although the Emery car snatched second from Talbot, third place was enough for the championship in a special finish to a nailbiting year.

Thomas Miles

1: L. Talbot 180 2: G. Emery 173 3: Y. Shahin/G. Patterson 158 Most wins: L. Talbot 6 Most poles: L. Talbot 4 Most podiums: L. Talbot/G. Emery 11 Am champion: B. Schumacher GT Trophy: R. Gracie

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PORSCHE CARRERA CUP • YEAR IN REVIEW

Walls and Hedge lead a packed field into Turn 1 at The Bend. Right: Adrian Flack hung on at Adelaide to take Pro Am. Below: Dale Wood cleaned up in Adelaide, and moved into third in the series.

Images: MARK HORSBURGH-EDGE PHOTOGRAPHICS

TENSE TUSSLE ONE OF the most competitive Porsche Carrera Cup Australia seasons went down to the wire as a pair of young guns fought until the finale for the crown.

Although the championship contest was fought between Callum Hedge and Jackson Walls, many others battled hard for victory with a record seven round winners in as many events to start the season.

With so much variety and close racing, plus a championship showdown that ended dramatically at the Adelaide finale, it was a season to remember for many reasons.

It all started under gloomy skies at a truncated season opener at Albert Park for the Australian Grand Prix where Walls and Max Vidau shared the points.

Racing was supposed to begin on Thursday but a high-speed crash between Indian Padayachee and Daniel Stutterd meant it was a non-event.

This forced drivers to wait until Friday when heavy rain became a factor and Vidau rose to the occasion.

The final race of the weekend saw Walls and Vidau go head to head again with the McElrea Racing driver now being victorious as Pro Am went to Adrian Flack.

Although a lot of action was crammed in, it could have been a much better race as the Safety Car was called when heavy showers arrived due to the farcical reason that an F1 pit walk was taking place and prevented teams from changing tyres!

Seventy-six days later the championship returned to a sunny Hidden Valley where Dale Wood made his mark.

Wood celebrated a century of Carrera Cup races by producing the perfect weekend, taking pole position, setting a new lap record before winning the all three races.

Pro Am was a more competitive battle with Sam Shahin, Rodney Jane and Adrian

Flack sharing the honours.

However, the round was won by Dean Cook as Tim Miles enjoyed the limelight of the podium for the first time in 23 years.

Jame also broke his own drought securing a maiden race win in 15 years.

The series stayed up north for a trip to Townsville where the heat was on at the front of the field.

No driver could dominate the weekend this time with the experience of Alex Davison proving decisive.

Hedge finished first in the opener and appeared to take the first win of his championship year, but lost it due to a post-race penalty.

This handed the win to Vidau as the likes of David Russell, David Wall, Walls, Fallon, Wood and Bailey Hall were all caught up in some chaos at Turn 6.

Although Vidau doubled up, he could not do enough to secure the round win as he dropped to fifth in a finale that was dominated by Davison.

Sam Shahin retained his lead in Pro Am where Flack completed a hat-trick of wins.

Across the first three rounds consistency had enabled Walls to enjoy a 20-point lead in the championship, but everything changed at The Bend.

Hedge was untouchable at the South Australian circuit, charging to not only a clean sweep, but also the series lead.

Walls appeared settled in second until the penultimate corner of the weekend when a lunge for the lead went wrong and a spin proved costly, losing 11 spots.

There was also high drama at Turn 1 when the likes of Vidau, O’Keeffe, Wall, Ryder Quinn, Chris Pither and Davison tripped over each other.

Pro Am was also unpredictable as a Jane spin allowed Shahin to take a win on his own circuit.

With the championship alive there was plenty to play for at Sandown which became the sandpit of Dylan O’Keeffe.

O’Keeffe had his time in the sun by collecting two wins, but the biggest headlines were created by Hedge.

With rival Walls parked on the back straight, Hedge made maximum impact by stealing the Race 2 win from O’Keeffe at the final corner.

Despite extending his points lead to 109 points, Hedge had a nervous time as the field took on Mount Panorama without him in America.

But Walls hopes of taking full advantage were hurt by a trio of guest drivers who

dominated the Mountain.

British SuperCup driver Harry King stole the show, winning all three races ahead of Aussie international Harri Jones and Kiwi Chris van der Drift.

However, consistency on the Gold Coast helped Walls reclaim the series lead in the penultimate round.

Although Hedge won the opener, he was left to rue short-cutting the opening chicane which allowed Walls to walk into the finale with a 21-point lead, while Hall made a name for himself taking the first two wins of his career.

Although Liam Talbot continued a four-race winning streak, Flack extended his tight Pro Am lead as tempers flared between Wall and Davison at the Turn 12 car park.

The stage was set for a showdown on the streets of Adelaide and it initially lived up to expectations as Hedge and Walls finished on the podium behind Wood in the opener.

When they lined up on the grid for the final race of the year, just two points was the difference, but what could have been an unforgettable battle proved to be an anticlimax.

Walls suffered a deflated left-rear tyre which sent his Objective Racing Porsche spinning into the wall on the exit of the Senna Chicane.

It was a heartbreaking way for his promising year to end, as third was enough for Hedge to take out the title despite missing an entire round.

Pro Am also went down to the wire but Flack held on despite both Cook and Shahin having more productive rounds.

The run of consecutive unique round winners came to an end as Wood collected his second clean sweep of the year and broke the streak in the eighth and final round.

Thomas Miles

1: C. Hedge 935 2: J. Walls 905 3: D. Wood 757 Most race wins: D. Wood 6 Most round wins: D. Wood 2 Most Poles: C. Hedge 5 Most Podiums: C. Hedge 14 Pro Am: A. Flack 1104

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SUPERCARS SUPPORTS Images: MARK HORSBURGH-EDGE PHOTOGRAPHICS, ROSS GIBB, PETER NORTON-EPIC SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY

GOING AT FULL THROTTLE

THE FIGHT for the 2023 Dunlop Series Super2 crown was all about redemption and it produced one of the most competitive contests ever, with countless drivers battling at full throttle.

After a host of young drivers made a name for themselves including Ryan Wood and Aaron Love who did enough to earn Supercars promotions, there were two left standing in a championship battle that went down to the final round – Zak Best and Kai Allen.

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For Best it was a case of first or nothing, mainly because he was sick of being second-best and 2023 was meant to be his time But in his way was Allen, who also had a score to settle.

The Blue Lake boy dominated the 2022 Super3 season all the way up to the finale on his home streets of Adelaide where a crash at Turn 8 saw the title snatched away from him.

Desperate to avoid the same pain

and bring a championship back to Eggleston Motorsport for the first time in nine years Allen, delivered.

Whilst they were the title protagonists, there were many other shining stars in a Super2 season that had drama at nearly every turn.

Not only had Supercars entered a new era in the season opener, but so did the Dunlop Series with the Gen2 ZB Commodores and

DUNLOP SUPER2 AND SUPER3 • 2023 YEAR IN REVIEW

Kai Allen retained some consistency over the deciding rounds to tie up the championship. Below: Perth was the start of Ryan Wood’s charge.

Below right: Sandown – Aaron Love defends from Wood and Vaughan.

Mustangs now the face of Super2.

Another unique challenge was the track, with almost the entire field having only seen Newcastle on TV. A rookie stole the show in the opener as Cooper Murray blew off the cobwebs from a year away from racing by chasing down Jack Perkins and snatching victory.

After finishing a solid third in Race 1, Race 2 was the start of what appeared to be Best’s path to the title.

Car #17 hit the lead from a strong start and was never troubled in a Safety Carshortened race.

Walkinshaw Andretti United rising star Wood showed his first sign of potential by taking pole, but it was all downhill from there.

The Kiwi dropped three spots off the line before a costly mistake at Turn 6 on lap six triggered a seven-car pile up.

However, Wood would produce a more emphatic response at the following round in Perth.

The trip out west also marked the change in format to 40-minute timecertain races, but it soon became all about the #25 Kiwi.

Lightning restarts were the secret to his success with his first move following an early stoppage caused by Eggleston team-mates Allen and Murray, who tangled at Kolb Corner.

Wood immediately snatched second and did not take long to steal the lead from Best before gapping the field to take an imposing maiden win in just his third race.

Completing the clean sweep was no easy task either, with Allen in control for much of the race.

But the Kiwi snatched a small window of opportunity with both hands by executing a smart restart to trump the eventual champion following a late SC. Although Wood would not be in championship contention, the breakout performance was enough to leave WAU breathless and put him on the path to Supercars.

If Perth was Wood’s breakthrough, then Townsville was where Allen arrived.

The teenager cemented the win with a fast start as pole sitter Aaron Seton bogged it down, while Best had to salvage ninth from a lowly grid spot as a strange crash between Jack Perkins and Brad Vaughan cut qualifying.

Allen backed up his win with pole but fell just short to Best in the race to enhance his championship case.

But his advantage started to unravel as the dramatic second half of the season developed.

Things got lively at Sandown where Wood returned to the top step and Love had dramas, being spun on Saturday before more craziness followed on Sunday.

Although multiple incidents on the opening lap created an immediate Safety Car, things escalated again when racing resumed as Wood, Love and Vaughan had an almighty scrap for the lead that ended in tears with the Petronas Mustang spun at high speed on the back straight.

Best also found trouble, finishing 13th and losing ground from a spin at Dandenong Road.

In the end it was Murray who emerged from the carnage to be the winner.

The dazzled field then had to get its head into gear for Bathurst where Love got his own slice of redemption.

After missing out on Sandown success, Love ensured he would get a winner’s trophy by pouncing on a mistake from Best as wheel to wheel contact with Allen ruled out Wood.

Love’s joy was short lived however, as a big quali crash at Reid Park ended his weekend.

The second race was all about Allen and Best, who went head to head up front.

The Eggleston driver made a major move by doing just enough to clinch a last-gasp win despite being second on the road as Best took the flag, but was relegated to second by just 0.8s due to jumping the start.

1: K. Allen 1437 2: Z. Best 1431 3: R. Wood 1296 Most wins: R. Wood 5 Most Poles: R. Wood 4 Most Podiums: Z. Best 8 Most Fastest Laps: R. Wood 7

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SHOOTING STAR AT JUST 18 years of age, Kai Allen continued his rapid rise by becoming the youngest ever Super2 champion.

Allen emerged victorious having displayed an impressive amount of composure and maturity across an intense seven-round season despite being a rookie in a tight title fight against the experienced Zak Best, who already had a year and a half of Super2 experience under his belt before the Eggleston Motorsport driver had even started his car racing career in 2021.

After a steady start in Newcastle with a fourth and a sixth, Allen appeared to have unlocked top gear in Perth.

He was at the pointy end in both races but on Saturday he clashed with teammate Cooper Murray and on Sunday he saw victory slip by letting Ryan Wood into the lead with an under par restart.

But since then, Allen was basically flawless, doing exactly what he needed to do as his rivals slipped up at differing points.

Across the final eight races, the #26 ZB Commodore never finished outside the top five and collected five podiums.

Townsville was where it all kicked off, taking his maiden race win unchallenged, while a second place on Sunday was enough for a maiden round win.

Consistency and calmness then proved decisive across the final three rounds where Allen soared and Best slumped due to mistakes.

A pair of fourths were important as Allen avoided the chaos in Sandown, while he survived wheel-to-wheel contact with Wood to get a podium in the Bathurst opener and returned to the top step the following day as Best jumped the start.

This meant it all came down to Adelaide where it had all gone wrong in Super3 12 months earlier.

But on this occasion Best was the heartbreak runner-up as a composed podium and fifth spot was enough for Allen to lift the Super2 trophy in front of his friends and family.

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SUPERCARS

CONSISTENCY IS KING WHILST CAMERON McLeod (above) had the outright speed and collected a string of poles and wins, it was Jobe Stewart who reigned supreme in Super3.

Stewart emerged on top via a near relentless run of consistency with his Image Racing VF Commodore appearing at the pointy end of the field in almost every race.

He was on the pace early in the opening rounds where he and McLeod enjoyed some back and forth battles and scored two wins each.

Due to a penalty relegating McLeod to fifth in Race 1, Stewart emerged with the points lead but this was under threat as they arrived at Sandown following the #92 Nissan’s dominant trip to Townsville.

But this was where the championship significantly swung in Stewart’s favour.

As misfortune hit McLeod who retired from both races, Stewart stayed out of trouble and scored back to back wins.

This meant that whilst McLeod went on four-peat across the final two rounds, there was no stopping the Mount Gambier teen from taking the title.

He pushed his impressive run of consecutive top two finishes to 10 races at Bathurst.

Despite showing strong one-lap pace by taking both poles, it almost came unstuck in Adelaide.

Contact from Matt Chahda in the opening race saw him limp to fourth which was his worst result of the year.

On Sunday he suffered a rear suspension failure but still held onto second to end a relentless year positively.

With 11 podiums from 12 races, no one could match the relentless consistency of Stewart.

This meant 30 points was the difference heading to the final round where more mistakes would be costly for Best.

As Wood flew to another clean sweep, all eyes were on the title protagonists and a 15s penalty for pushing Nash Morris into the tyres proved disastrous for Best.

It forced him from fourth to 14th and capitulated Allen to a 33-point lead.

Best now needed to produce something special and had a crack by soaring into the lead off the line.

But once Wood got past, he could not find a response and with Allen in fifth, it meant the Benalla driver was second best once again.

Instead it was Allen who was celebrating as the youngest ever Super2 champion.

TWO-HORSE RACE

FROM THE moment the Super3

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season began on the streets of Newcastle, it was clear two drivers were in a league of their own.

Jobe Stewart and Cameron McLeod were at the top of the timesheets in a field full of famous surnames in opening practice and by qualifying they were half a second clear of the rest.

This set the tone for a back-and-forth battle for track position that went on across all six rounds.

Their rivalry was on in the opening race when the pair jostled for position until the final lap when McLeod launched a move on Stewart at the hairpin for the win.

However, after outbraking himself and making contact with Stewart, a penalty relegated McLeod to fifth.

He then hit back on the following day to get his maiden win in the Gotzinger Altima with a fine performance, but with Stewart following his every move

the Image Racing driver won the round.

The fight for third was close too with Ryan Gilroy edging out Jett Johnson.

Even less separated the leading pair at Perth however where things escalated and each race was not decided until the death.

McLeod took another pole, but Stewart hit the lead with a lightning start. He remained in control until the 35th and final lap when the Nissan snuck past the Holden at the ‘Bowl’.

But just like Newcastle, the final-lap move was deemed too aggressive from the stewards and Stewart was named the winner.

McLeod then had work to do in Race 2 where he started fourth with Stewart on pole but needed just three laps to surge to second.

By the penultimate lap he was again on the tail of the #999 and the time the move was clean giving McLeod a long awaited maiden win.

DUNLOP SUPER2 AND SUPER3 • 2023 YEAR IN REVIEW

Boosted by the success, McLeod was untouchable in Townsville, getting every pole, fastest lap and win on offer.

He also showed strong pace at Sandown but through a rotten piece of luck, his championship dream vanished.

McLeod was flying in the opening race, on track for the Super3 win and an outstanding sixth overall until a costly team error which saw his Altima ran out of fuel with just half a lap to run.

Then, on the following day, he was in the middle of some opening lap chaos and damage relegated him to a second

straight retirement.

Stewart inflicted more pain by going on to take both wins and take a near unassailable lead in the championship.

This meant that although McLeod won the final four races at Mount Panorama and Adelaide, Stewart did enough to wrap up the championship in the penultimate race.

It also allowed Johnson to snatch second in the standings from McLeod despite the latter having double the amount of podiums.

Thomas Miles

1: J. Stewart 1686 2: J. Johnson 1476 3: C. McLeod 1449 Most wins: C. McLeod 8 Most Poles: 9 Most Podiums: J. Stewart 11 Most Fastest Laps: C. McLeod 10 Cam McLeod (left) leads Super3 champion-elect Jobe Stewart.

McLeod had the pace; Stewart had the consistency, and built up a handy points bank at Bathurst (below) as McLeod played catchup... Right: Adelaide’s Turn 1 provided its usual heart-stopping Super2 moments ...

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SPEEDWAY

Chase Randell and Aaron Reutzel.

James McFadden wheelies at Mount Gambier.

Cam Waters – turning left ...

Mascedo on the pole line, heading to Avalon victory ... Images: RAY RITTER

A GOOD START TO THE YEAR FOR JOCK

blazed on, utilising the cushion that had developed on the high line to record back-toback wins by 2s over Texan Reutzel, who built a gap over the pack of Egel, Jordyn Charge and Chase Randell.

THE SUMMER of speedway hit top gear over the festive period as some of the biggest names took on the annual South Australian and Victorian-based Sprintcar Speedweek.

Although a high-calibre field hit the dirt from Murray Bridge to Warrnambool, no one could match reigning Australian champion Jock Goodyer … Auto Action’s THOMAS MILES reports.

MOUNT GAMBIER – ITS A HAT-TRICK OF WINS FOR GOODYER

MURRAY BRIDGE – ROUNDS 1 AND 2, GOODYER MAKES HIS MARK

DRIVERS DESCENDED on Murray Bridge as another busy Speedweek dawned, with 22 in contention for the overall crown and many others also looking to make an impression.

The opener took place on Boxing Day on a fast and narrow track due to a wet build up and local Ryan Jones was a notable omission from the A-Main having only finished fourth in the B-Main.

Although Goodyer proved to be the dominant driver, Chase Randall initially looked the goods.

He took the lead at the drop of the green flag ahead of Aaron Reutzel and appeared in ominous touch as he controlled the field for the first 15 laps.

But then disaster struck when a flat front right tyre sent him into the Turn 1 wall and a barrel roll.

Just prior to the race-changing accident,

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The Mount Gambier Speedweek podium.

Reutzel had been caught by Goodyer, which meant the #1 was in the lead when racing resumed.

Reutzel could not match Goodyer’s pace and dropped to sixth as Lachlan McHugh charged to second place and Chad Ely and Matt Egel got in a tangle at Turn 2.

Despite scoring a well-deserved win, Goodyer wished his battle with Reutzel could have lasted much longer.

“I feel for Chase,” Goodyer said post-race.

“I think they will have a long night putting another car together – it was a case of wrong place, wrong time.

“I think he got caught up with Keke (Falland), but we had a great battle.”

Goodyer carried his momentum into the second night of action at Murray Bridge where the likes of Steven Caruso, Glen Sutherland and Luke Dillon suffered incidents prior to the big race.

When the 30-lap A-Main began another stoppage arrived as early as lap four when Chad Ely and Sutherland came together on the back straight.

With the GEM driver tumbling all the way down to Turn 3 the red lights were required.

Despite the early interruption, Goodyer

DESPITE A change in scenery, there was no change at the top of the leaderboard as Goodyer took a hat-trick of wins at the David Vears Memorial at Mount Gambier’s Borderline Speedway.

There was plenty of hype circling the ‘Bullring’ as respective Aussie and American World of Outlaws stars James McFadden and Carson Macedo joined the field.

Macedo had displayed some early pace by winning a heat, but his night ended early after a pre-race incident on the main straight with Chris Johns.

This meant Goodyer enjoyed a near untroubled run to the chequered flag, leading all 35 laps on his way to a 2.5s win.

There was plenty of jostling for position behind him however, and one major casualty was Tate Frost, who shot up to third before crashing out at Turn 2 and bringing out the reds.

Dillon was also among the early leaders before he spun and lost ground in the early laps.

McFadden started seventh before getting a move on, rising into the top four within seven laps before the Hodges Motorsport machine finished third behind Goodyer and Brock Hallett.

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Australian Champion Jock Goodyer dominated the Christmas/New Year series.

Below: #35 Jamie Veal won on New Year’s day ... Image: COREY GIBSON. Below left: Round 4 podium – l to r – Reutzel, Macedo, Hallett.

Even though Goodyer was the clear class of the field, he revealed his relief at finally conquering Borderline and to lift a trophy dedicated to Borderline Speedway stalwart Vears, who raced in the 1960s to 1980s and was a longtime volunteer at the track.

“This is my first win at this track (Borderline) so it’s good to finally tick that off my list,” he said.

“Its also pretty cool that it also included the memorial race for David Vears, so to win those races is always nice.”

AVALON – THE WINNING STREAK IS OVER

JOCK GOODYER’S Speedweek streak came to an end at Avalon Raceway when Macedo made his World of Outlaws skills count.

Macedo had shown strong pace all night and started the first Victorian meeting from pole position.

However, he was upstaged by Marcus Dumesny off the line as he surged into the lead and did not let it go for the first 18 laps.

But just when Dumesny looked on course for victory, he ran into the lapped Bobby Daly

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and contact sent the #47 Max Dumesny tribute livery dramatically flipping out of the lead.

He was not the only high-profile retirement, with McFadden also stopping on the back straight after contact with Reutzel on the exit of Turn 2.

Following Dumesny’s demise, Macedo took the lead and did not look back, driving to a special win.

Hallett collected another second place and was joined by Reutzel on the podium – and although Goodyer’s streak came to an end, he still made an impression, rising from ninth to fourth.

Macedo was pleased to repay his supporters by scoring a win on Aussie soil.

“I must thank Sean and Felicity Dyson for this great opportunity to race in Australia,” he said.

“After what happened at Mount Gambier, I’m just glad we got a win on Speedweek.”

WARRNAMBOOL – A HOME HERO VICTORY

BIG CHEERS could be heard from the crowd at Warrnambool’s Premier Speedway as Jamie Veal took a popular hometown victory.

Veal prevailed from pole position after 35 laps of intense racing to kick off the new year.

However, it was far from a simple journey to victory lane as McHugh set the standard initially.

McHugh led from the start and was flying around Sungold Stadium to a near-certain win.

However, his dominance disappeared in heartbreaking fashion.

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With just seven laps to go before the chequered flag, McHugh’s right rear tyre popped, sending him into retirement.

One big name who was not being slowed down was McFadden, who went from 11th to a strong podium finish in third.

Ahead of him was Veal and Goodyer, with the latter applying the pressure on multiple occasions but had to settle for second with a Speedweek title in his hands.

Another driver who impressed the crowd was Supercars star Cameron Waters, who is coming to grips with life on the dirt.

After B-Main appearances in Mount Gambier and Avalon, Waters stepped it up in the #V6 Chief Racing entry at Premier Speedway.

The Tickford Racing driver fought against some of the biggest names in speedway and came away with an impressive fourth place, which he described as his “most satisfying run yet.”

But the biggest cheers were saved for Veal, who was delighted to see his strong form carry on.

“It’s a bit of a relief to finally get a win here this season,” Veal said.

“We haven’t been off the podium, and we now have a handy lead in the Track Championship.

“This car has been so consistent here all season so it’s a good sign for what’s to come later in the month.”

Meanwhile, Goodyer was elated with such a consistent campaign.

“Going into the week I knew it was going to be tough so to win Speedweek for a second time is cool,” the champion said.

“Hopefully we can build on it again next year to make it even bigger.”

With the Speedweek out of the way, teams only have the best part of a fortnight before chasing the prestigious Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic on January 19-21.

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SPEEDWAY

BROWN CLAIMS BIG SPEEDCAR CROWNS PARKER PARKS IN VICTORY LANE FOR

PRO SPEEDCAR WEEK OPENER

– however the dices through the field proved exciting with many positional changes.

At the fall of the chequered flag Currie held on for the runner-up position and Robert Heard took the final podium step in third.

Kaidon Brown took a thrilling win in Round 2.

Image: RAY RITTER

BROWN’S DOUBLE DOWN FOR SERIES CROWN

THE BEST Speedcar drivers in the nation, plus visiting Kiwis, a total of 28 competitors, rolled into the Murray Bridge Speedway for Round 1 of the highly anticipated Pro Speedcar Week. The wild and wingless series was contested over three nights of competition run through both South Australia and Victoria boasting a massive $60,000 prize pool of cash and contingencies over the four rounds.

Running to the popular North American USAC format, the event started with qualifying, which is very important in the points system, followed by a single qualifying heat for each competitor and then followed by two B Main events as a last chance to scramble into the 30-lap A Main event for the top 20 competitors.

Victorian Nick Parker headed the timesheets with a nimble 13.649s and the top 10 were separated by a mere 0.498s, with the first 22 cars all within a second, which made the for electrifying action throughout the evening.

The three heats were claimed by New South Welshmen Matt Jackson, Rhys Birkett and Tasmanian Luke Redpath, and the two B mains went to Kaleb Currie and Cody Nash.

There were two successive red light stoppages at one third race distance, the first when Mitch Saunderson inverted his ride in Turn 3 and at the restart expat Kiwi Jay Waugh catapulted through the

air in spectacular style and crashing heavily, taking Alice Springs racer Garth Thompson out with him.

Pole Position Parker showed the field the quickest way home although Kaidon Brown applied strong pressure over every inch travelled in the 30-lap final. Kiwi Currie salvaged the final step of the podium after Ryan Jones and Travis Mills both retired after holding down fifth and third with only two laps remaining.

BROWN GOES TO TOWN IN THE SECOND ROUND! For Round 2, the teams travelled across the border to the Southern 500 Speedway, Portland. West Australian Cody Nash kicked started his night off in the best way possible, claiming quicktime.

Former national champion Nathan Smee proved a welcome addition to the 27-car field, claiming the opening heat with Kaidon Brown and Kaleb Currie the remainders. The Duo of B Mains were shared by Nash and Nick Parker.

Brown and Currie shared the front row for the 30-lap final while Smee split the pairing moving to second as Currie led the way. A determined Brown regained second and the lead duo traded solid blows in the second stanza of the race until a yellow light stoppage for the spun machine of Dillon Ghent.

The final eight laps saw Brown open a handy gap as he raced to Victory Lane

Simpson Speedway played host to the revised third and final round of the PSW Series, run in conjunction with the Victorian Speedcar Championship, attracting the largest field of the series with 29 competitors taking to the Clayway.

The meeting was run under a more traditional Australian format, with hot laps followed by two heats, a single B Main and the top 20 competitors going into the 30lap Feature event.

Kaidon Brown was on a mission, claiming both of his heat races to earn Pole Position for the final alongside Cody Nash.

However Nash’s promising run would be short lived, dropping back to fourth on the opening lap before tangling with Justin McMillan which led to a multi-car pile up – Kaleb Currie rolled over while Luke Redpath and Zoe Pearce were tagged by the rolling Currie.

The restart saw the previous two round winners nose-to-tail as Brown led Nick Parker. Things were shaping up for a winner-take-all run to the line; Nathan Smee was also in the mix as the trio opened a handy gap.

But, in traffic, Brown stretched the margin, leaving the duo to dog-fight for the minors as they traded positions. Smee eventually took the upper hand as the race hit two-thirds race distance before the race came under cautions for the Pearce entry.

A further caution period set the scene for a green, white, and chequered finish as Brown raced to Victory Lane, securing the Energy Hire WA Pro Speedcar Week Championship and Victorian title. Jay Waugh made the most of the restarts to claim the runner up position with Smee third. Paris Charles

GEE TAKES OUT IAN BOETTCHER CLASSIC MITCHELL GEE pocketed the $10,000 on offer with a dominant display at the Hi-Tec Oils Toowoomba Speedway for the Super Sedans Ian Boettcher Classic.

The second generation racer (right) led all 36 laps in the Barellan Freighters Q11 from pole position in the New Year’s day event, leading home Brisbane’s JJ Hamilton and Rockhampton’s Matt Williams.

Gee took it by only 0.354 in the end “We finally got #1 … and at a blue ribbon event too,” Gee said in Victory Lane.

“Huge credit to my dad who has only been able to test this new car over three

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meetings, and with this meeting being only our second feature event completed.”

He contended with reigning champ Darren Kane on the front row, who fell back early, with Vic racer Ash Bergmeier giving chase.

After Williams then got into P2 by lap 12 in the RK3 Sedan, he then closed the gap before a red flag dropped after Bob McCosker flipped after heavy contact.

At the green light it was Hamilton who got the jump for second, keeping on Gee’s bumper until the chequer, with Williams holding third over Queensland Champion Brad Pascoe, with NSW racer Zac Brims in fifth. TW Neal

Phil Watson takes the win.

WATSON WINS IN RENMARK

A LARGE and festive crowd ventured to Renmark’s Riverland Speedway for the last blast to see out the 2023 calendar year. The Calperum Hill Street Stock Challenge headed the event with the racing starting with time trials, something unique for the Sedan class.

Curtis Brown topped the time sheets and was the only competitor to break into the 16-second bracket posting a 16.827s.

The final race proved to be a thrilling affair as the front runners traded places over the duration of the final that would see the red lights blaze for the mobile inferno of David Zeimke’s Holden Commodore. The race went down to the wire with Carey Weston chasing Phil Watson; Weston was hindered by the lapped car of Jack Littlehales and retired on the final lap. Watson went on to take the win with Jayden Ruhs and Brown for the podium.

The Modified Sedans was won by Mildura’s Trevor Logan over Matthew Richter and debutant Madalyn Uren.

The Wingless Sprints also provided plenty of action with Anthony Tapley proving too strong over Jason Bolitho and Slade Petry for the podium.

The two Junior Sedan finals were claimed by Decklan Bolitho (Top Stars) and Seth Greig (New Stars) and the Classic Sedans turned back the hands of time with a series of spirited demonstration runs. Paris Charles

SRA – MOTHER NATURE WINS AGAIN THE VICTORIAN SRA Sprintcar Series is currently going through a challenging season. The 12-round 2023/24 season launched on October 21 at the Moana Speedway and, from the eight scheduled rounds run to date, three of them have been washed out. The latest cancellation was at Horsham’s Blue Ribbon Raceway on Saturday January 6, when steady rain began falling as lightning cracked in the distance just after the completion of Hot Laps.

The next round is scheduled for Portland Speedway on February 3 and the Championship series will climax for the 12th and final round on March 16 at Warnambool’s Premier Speedway. At time of writing, it is not clear if any of the cancelled rounds will be rescheduled for later in the season.

Lightning and thunder roll across Horsham’s Blue Ribbon Raceway. Image: PARIS CHARLES

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NEW YEARS EVE SPEEDWAY AT BAIRNSDALE ENTERTAINS BAIRNSDALE SPEEDWAY Association hosted a New Years Eve race meeting to entertain motorsport fans prior to the start of 2024.

On a warm day which saw several races endeding early, and once the dust was settled the winners included Chase Ingram from Warragul, Mal Siely a local Bairnsdale man, Josh Thomas the clubs number one Standard Saloon competitor, Alistair Bastian from Lucknow, and Troy Wilson from Lakes Entrance.

In the Junior Standard Saloon series, it was Jack Stewart from the Latrobe Valley who claimed a win in the first of three qualifying races with Dylcan Sweet having his best race day since he began competing.

Chase Ingram rounded out the three heat race wins.

Leading every lap in a 12-lap final, Ingram went on to claim the win in front of Sweet, Tannah Lee from Bairnsdale, Tom Braz, and Stewart.

Mal Siely won the first heat in Limited Sportsman before Darren Adams who finished second in heat one reversed the result in the second heat race. The final held over eight laps, saw Siely finishing one and a half seconds in front of Adams, Daniel Hurley, and Chris Woeltjes.

In the Standard Saloon racers, it Thomas who has an outstanding win rate at Bairnsdale Speedway went on to win the 15-lap final from Stewart, Jack Braz, David Streeter, and Jack Yeomans.

Sprintcar action would see a handful of local stars in action with Kyle Stathopoulos also joining the fray.

Image: DMT SPORTS MEDIA Alistair Bastian (above) claimed victory in Heat 1 before Koby Noonan claimed the win in the second.

In the 20-lap final, veteran Mark Laity sat in second for much of the race before Noonan passed him to chase Alistair Bastian out in the race lead. Bastian went on to win by just .603s from Noonan, Laity, Ethan Bastian, and Rod Dennison.

Division 2 Hot Rods were having an important hit out prior to their upcoming Victorian title at Bairnsdale and Trafalgar racer Rob Tatterson claimed a terrific win in the first heat race by just .102s in the end from Troy Hutchison from the Latrobe Valley.

Lakes Entrance racer Ben Crittenden rolled his car whilst in third putting him out of the race meeting.

Troy Wilson from Lakes Entrance won Heat 2 by less than half a second before going on to lead every lap in a 10-lap final to defeat Hutchison Rob Tatterson, Andrew Tatterson, and Melissa Tatterson.

Dean Thompson

CORBETT AND HARDY CLAIM THE RICHES

driver to win the biggest ever paying V8 Dirt Modified event in Australia.

“It was quite a tough feature race, and it was unfortunate what happened to Seiton (Connor Young) out in front, as he was doing a solid job all weekend – but at the same time, I’m glad that I was able to be in a position to benefit and go on and take out the win.”

Image: BUTCHER PHOTOGRAPHY THERE WAS certainly no shortage of action over the Christmas-New Year period at Grafton Speedway.

In the Super Dirt Series for V8 Dirt Modifieds it was the Coffs Harbour based Chris Corbett who picked up the $5,250 winners’ purse and Matt Hardy claimed the $3,000 to win the Andrew Walker Memorial for AMCA Nationals, in what was the largest paying events for both V8 Dirt Modifieds and AMCA Nationals.

V8 DIRT MODIFIEDS Corbett had luck on his side on his way to Super Dirt Series glory and after two hard-fought nights, youngster Seiton Connor Young was the standout performer and by virtue of this he sat on pole position for the feature race and led for 28 laps ahead of main challenger and fellow front row starter Chris Corbett.

With just two laps remaining, Connor Young made an error and collected the wall in Turn 1 while working his way around a lapped car, ending his race.

Corbett was able to power away at the restart and dominate the final two laps and score the win. Second, was veteran Andrew Pezzuti, while the podium was completed by local Joshua Rose in third (above).

Although Corbett had a bit of luck when he scored Super Dirt Series glory, he was rapt to become the first

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ANDREW WALKER MEMORIAL FOR AMCA CARS Honouring local AMCA National racer Andrew Walker who was tragically killed in 2005 at the age of 41, this season’s Andrew Walker Memorial was the biggest ever running of the annual event with a prize pool of $10,000.

Former Australian Champion Matt Hardy emerged the winner after he outpaced pre-race favourite and passed Andrew Walker Memorial winner Tony Blanch in second and Paul Reeves in third. Hardy took control of the feature race on lap 20 after impressive long-time leader Jai Jones crashed out following contact with a lapped car. Once in control of the lead, Hardy, was never headed, despite the best efforts of both Blanch and Reeves over the final 10 laps.

Another driver competing was international TA2 Racing talent Nathan Herne. The latter was making a cameo AMCA Nationals appearance and he managed to quickly get up to pace in the unfamiliar class throughout the two nights of racing.

After a challenging two nights, Matt Hardy was thrilled to come away with Australia’s biggest ever paying AMCA Nationals event.

“It’s an honour to win such a prestigious event like the Andrew Walker Memorial. I had my work cut out for me throughout the weekend, as I was 10th in points after the opening night, so it was very pleasing to be able to fight my way back and come away with the win.”

Grafton Speedway: for news on upcoming events you can visit their website at graftonspeedway.com.au

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SPEEDWAY

WA V USA SPRINTCARS

Rico Abreu heads the points tally to date. Top left: Brad Sweet missed the opener but is catching up fast! Opposite: Star-studded Perth podium.

Below: All go at Bunbury ...

Images: RICHARD HATHAWAY

AMERICANS LEADING THE WAY AN AMERICAN invasion has taken place in Western Australia where the visitors and locals have been racing for young and old this summer.

The 2023/24 USA v WA Sprintcar Speedweek has been a hit with big crowds and brilliant racing taking place across five rounds. Although the Americans have taken out four of the five races so far, the battle for the title is tight heading to the final round as AA went to press..

Rico Abreu leads the way having scored two victories en route to compiling 724 points, but he is only eight ahead of impressive local Callum Williamson.

They are the only drivers beyond 700 points with Dayne Kingshott, Brock Zearfoss and Cory Eliason rounding out the top five.

Five-time World of Outlaws champion Brad Sweet has shown his skills by taking two wins, but is down in 16th in the points due to a costly DNF and missing the opener.

If the previous five rounds are anything to go by, the stage is set for a thrilling finale at Perth Motorplex this Saturday night.

The Americans drew first blood thanks to Abreu, who charged from seventh to win the Boxing Day battle in the WA capital.

On his comeback from health issues Williamson was straight back on the pace and started from pole, but lost the lead off the line to Luke Oldfield. Meanwhile, Abreu needed just three laps to soar from seventh into the top three and by the halfway mark he made race-winning moves on both Williamson and Oldfield in consecutive laps.

Despite the momentum being behind the 1.32m tall racer, Oldfield never left his tail and kept the pressure on.

But Oldfield’s race was wiped out due to a heartbreaking DNF with five laps to go.

After the late caution, Abreu held off Williamson by 0.9s to open the Speedweek in a big way.

Having missed the first race, Sweet stamped his authority on the series by winning a classic less than a day after completing his 19-hour flight.

The ‘Big Cat’ won a thrilling three-way arm wrestle for the win against Abreu and Williamson. The trio trio sliced and diced in a thrilling battle that contained 12 lead changes within 15 laps which left the packed crowd on their feet.

Williamson led early and initially built a gap over Sweet but lapped traffic significantly disrupted the leader’s drive.

On lap 12 Sweet launched an aggressive move to snare the lead on the inside, only for the # 3 to launch a series of counterattacks.

With 16 laps left Abreu joined in the fun and he and Sweet eventually made contact when fighting for the lead through Turns 3 and 4.

But this proved to be the defining moment as Sweet won the battle and drove clear to secure the victory across the final seven laps.

After finishing off second best at Perth, Abreu got redemption by returning to the top step in the first race at Bunbury Speedway.

The New Years Day contest witnessed another intense battle for the win as Abreu went head to head with Oldfield.

Oldfield led either side of an early red flag caused by a crash between Trent Pigdon and Brent Farrer, who exchanged some words in the aftermath.

As Sweet’s charge from 11th to sixth came to an end with 17 laps still to run, attention to the front as Abreu had caught and passed Oldfield.

However, Oldfield did not back down and

pressed the two-time Chile Bowl winner all the way to the flag and fell a second short despite a side by side encounter.

The first race of 2024 in Perth was one for the locals as a WA driver finally overcame the Americans.

The driver to break the drought was Williamson, who had been in the top four all Speedweek but finally broke through to take a long awaited win.

He had to earn it, however, with Sweet on his tail across the final 15 tense laps.

Sweet sensed his moment with six laps to go and dived down the inside but the American was unable to enjoy track position due to a red flag caused by Oldfield’s heavy crash at Turn 4.

As a result Williamson led the restart and held his nerve to take the win he had been waiting for.

Despite the near miss, Sweet made sure he would be on the top step at the following race in Bunbury.

The #49 NAPA driver treated the crowd to some of his finest work, charging from fifth to first within 10 laps as the car “came alive once the track got slick”.

After Sweet drove into the distance, it became a fight for second with Pigdon a further 1.8s adrift, while Cory Eliason hit the pit wall hard.

The final round of the USA v WA Speedweek will take centre stage at Perth Motorplex this Saturday night, January 13, and will be broadcast on 7plus.

Thomas Miles

USA v WA Speedweek points: 1: R. Abreu 724 2: C. Williamson 716 3: D. Kingshott 694 4: B. Zearfoss 674 5: C. Eliason 666

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DAKAR RALLY • 2024 AFTER 2 STAGES

FLAG DROPS ON ’24 DAKAR RALLY

THE 46TH EDITION OF THE DAKAR RALLY HAS GOT UNDERWAY FOR THE FIFTH TIME IN SAUDI ARABIA, WITH A NEW ROUTE TRAVERSING 7974 KM OVER 12 STAGES. TIMOTHY W NEAL REPORTS ...

THE 2024 World Rally-Raid Championship Dakar opener has laid out a course with 60% of it covering new terrain for the bikes and cars.

It also incorporates a new stage in the Saudi Kingdom’s vast dune-heavy Empty Quarter (the 48-Hours Chrono Stage) where drivers, riders, and crews are spread over eight separate bivouacs, and are required to stop at 4pm on the dot over each of the two days and proceed to the nearest designated rest site.

Competitors then resume at 7am each morning to cover the required 600km of Special Stage time, with the cars and bikes to follow separate routes to enhance navigation difficulty.

As AA closed for print, competitors had completed the Prologue and two stages to end up in Al Duwadimi, heading East to West, having already travelled 1,351 km (904km timed). Here’s where the field stood …

KALAHARI FERRARI OUT FRONT

BOTSWANAN HERO Motorsports rider Ross Branch (the Kalahari Ferrari) is heading the Moto category, leading Honda rider and Stage 2 winner Chilean Jose Ignacio Cornejo Florimo by 2min 55 sec.

A further 7:15s off the lead is American Honda rider Ricky Brabec, with the Monster Energy team occupying 2nd4th with Pablo Quintanilla heading 2023 world champion Luciano Benavides of Husqvarna.

Aussie riders Daniel Sanders and Toby Price of GAS GAS and KTM respectively, occupy sixth and eighth, split by 2017 winner, Brit Sam Sunderland, with Frenchman Adrien Van Beveren and Czech rider Martin Michek in 10th.

The Prologue was taken out by Spaniard Tosha Schareina in a time of 17.35.9s, with the Victorian born Sanders 12s behind

him in his return from a serious leg injury, whilst Branch settled for third.

It was a tougher than usual Prologue with dry sand making the going tough, as well as some navigational obstacles The rider of note to struggle after crashing early was American Skyler Howes, who broke his navigation tower to start the rally on the back foot.

Stage 1’s Al-Ula to Al Henakiyah route saw Branch come out on top through the canyons and dry sand, with the volcanic soil and rocks of the second half of the stage proving tough.

A notable casualty of the opener was Schareina with a broken arm after 240 km, whilst his teammate and noted airline pilot Branch romped in for a 10:54s win over Brabec and Mason Klein.

Aussies Sanders and Price sat ninth and 16th, with the latter (and two-time winner) 23:20 back after gearing issues set him back.

Stage 2 (192km special) saw Cornejo Florimo take a 5:59s win over Benavides with Quintanilla close in third, and whilst Branch was over 11 mins in arrears he kept the overall lead.

Riders were challenged by dunes for the

first time, with dirt tracks in abundance on the run home.

Klein was a notable rider to encounter mechanical issues, losing two hours.

Both Sunderland and Price fought back on the overall gap finishing sixth and seventh at just over 7min back (overall: 17:24s, and 19:39s in sixth and eighth).

SAINZ SNR HEADS UP FOUR WHEELERS

CARLOS SAINZ Snr took the early lead after Stage 2 with fellow Spaniard Lucas Cruz as his navigator, with the Team Audi Sport pair leading Overdrive Racings Yazeed Al Rajhi/Timo Gottschalk by 01:51s.

WRC legend Sebastien Loeb occupies third in his quest for Dakar glory, 04:17s back from the lead.

It was another racing and rally veteran, Swede Mattias Ekstrom, who topped the prologue, with last year’s Dakar winner and world champion Nasser Al-Attiyah struggling outside the 10.

Ekstrom led the way with 16m30s, 23s over Seth Quintero and Loeb.

Stage 1 saw Sainz play second fiddle to Belgian Guillaume De Mevius in the

Toyota Hilux, 01:44 over the Spaniard, his first ever stage in the T1 class.

Both Loeb and Al-Attiyah suffered punctures to be 19th and 22nd.

Stage 2 was notable for French Dakar legend Stephane Peterhansel (14 time winner) taking the 50th stage win of his career.

The 58-year-old was 30 minutes off the lead going in after punctures in Stage 1, but the Audi driver enjoyed the lack of rocks to take a slight 29s win over Loeb, whose blistering Stage 2 was enough to catapult him into early contention to be outright third, 04:17 back on Sainz, who – despite being 17 minutes back in the second stanza – took the overall lead.

Aussie team Glen Brinkman and Dale Moscatt sit back in 23rd in the T3.1 class, three hours back in the French PH-Sport car after finishing 33rd in Stage 2.

Daniel Sanders is currently the leading Aussie in the bike section, sixth outiright. Above: Carlos Sainz Snr heads the four-wheeld contest, while Ross Branch is a couple of minutes clear in the two-wheeled contest. Right: Sebastian Loeb isn’t far off the car lead, four minutes behind Sainz. Images: MOTORSPORT IMAGES

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TEST YOUR MOTORSPORT KNOWLEDGE ACROSS

DOWN

3 How many IndyCar races did Scott Dixon win in 2023?

1 Which Aussie has scored the most Formula 1 race wins? (surname)

4 How many times did Gil de Ferran win the CART Series?

2 How many TCR World Tour rounds will take place in Australia this year?

8 What nationality was De Ferran?

4 Ayrton Senna took three podiums for what team in 1984?

9 Who is the most recent driver to score a podium with the Sauber F1 Team? (surname) 11 Who has secured a co-drive alongside James Courtney at Cooldrive Racing in 2024? (surname) 12 Who will drive for the PremiAir Racing supported Super2 team in 2024? (surname) 16 In what country is the 2024 Dakar Rally taking place?

18 How many times has Scott Dixon won the IndyCar Series?

20 With the departure of Shane van Gisbergen, who is now the winningest Supercars Championship driver on the grid? (surname) 21 What manufacturer is Toby Price riding for in the Dakar Rally?

5 Promising youngster Kimi Antonelli is a junior driver for which Formula 1 team?

6 Who won the car class of the Dakar Rally in 2023? (surname) 7 Two Formula 1 races have taken place on new years day, the South African Grand Prix in 1965 and 1968, who won both? (surname) 10 With what team did Gil De Ferran win the Indy 500?

13 Which manufacturer is fielding its electric E-Tron vehicle in the Dakar Rally?

14 Jenson Button will race which brand of Hypercar in WEC this year?

15 Who did Gil De Ferran beat to the line in the 2003 Indy 500? (surname)

25 How old is Scott Dixon?

17 Who beat De Ferran to the 2003 IndyCar title? (surname)

26 What is the new title sponsor of the Sauber F1 Team?

19 Which former F1 Team Principal has been knighted in recent weeks? (full name)

27 What brand is Sebastian Loeb racing the Dakar Rally with this year?

22 Which F1 manufacturer has the highest number of race wins with Pirelli tyres?

28 Which Australian will ride for the Intact GP team in Moto2 this year?

23 Which F1 team did De Ferran work for in 2023?

29 Who became the first driver to win three straight Bathurst 12 Hours in 2023? (surname)

24 Which Australian has signed to race for ART Grand Prix in the FIA Formula 3 Championship this year? (surname)

2023 Motorsport Crossword Answers - 1 down – eight, 2 across – six, 3 across – MSR, 3 down – Mostert, 4 across – Waters, 5 down – Rovanpera, 6 across – five, 6 down – Ferrari, 7 down – fifth, 8 down – nineteen, 9 across – Hamilton, 9 down – Hamilton, 10 across – Stanaway, 11 down – martin, 12 down – fourteenth, 13 across – Armstrong, 14 across – Binder, 15 across – one, 16 across – Verstappen, 17 down – Toyota, 18 across – ten, 19 across – Hidden Valley, 20 down – second, 21 across – forty-three, 21 down – four, 22 across – Sainz, 22 down – sixth, 23 across – Palou, 24 across – third, 25 across – three

We take a look back at what was making news in Auto Action 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50 years ago

1974 THE RACING season was already in full swing at the start of 1974 as the Tasman Championship began at Levin.

The Australian Gold Star runner-up Johnnie Walker took the first up win in the Lola T330 Repco.

Despite starting down in 10th, he took victory but only just as he kept Kiwi Alan McCully at bay by just half a second.

The cover also had McCormack’s newlook Valiant Charger featured prominently, while Peter Brock and Michelle Downes announced their engagement.

1984 AUTO ACTION’S own columnist at the time Garry Rush drove to a sixth national title at the 1984 Sprintcar Nationals in Rockhampton.

Rush overcame George Tatnell and John Walsh in the 40-lap final where he opted to use the ‘Gambler’.

It was his sixth title overall and fourth in a row.

The promoters of the Bathurst 1000, the Australian Racing Drivers Club confirmed Group A machinery would be eligible for that year’s Great Race.

Group A regulations were already set to be introduced to the ATCC in 1985, while the ARDC also revealed its intention of running a round of the World Touring Car Championship at Mount Panorama.

58 I www.autoaction.com.au

1994 PETER BROCK was coming back to the factory Holden squad after seven years away.

Following the major announcement, HRT honcho Tom Walkinshaw believed Brock still had lots of racing left in him and provide the base to launch the team to greater success. “He is still very quick and will add a dimension to the team that has been lacking.” After recently snatching the Formula 1 Grand Prix from Adelaide, organisers were keen to announce a second major meeting at Albert Park involving touring cars. A 2-litre Asian Pacific Touring Car Championship meeting was planned to come down under and open the Albert Park circuit when completed in 1995 following the category’s first race to be held at either Phillip Island or Sandown.

2004 TEAM BROCK was no longer in V8 Supercars after the nine-time champion pulled his support from Kees Weel’s team after the 2003 season.

The team had run under the name Team Brock in 2003 but following Brock’s departure it reverted back to PWR Racing.

Despite the news Weel said “the time is right to win some races” as Bright was armed with a new VY Commodore and he did exactly that.

For the first year without Larry behind the wheel at all, his Perkins Engineering squad expanded to a four-car operation, while Williams revealed the ill-fated ‘walrus-nosed’ FW26.

2014 FANS WERE ‘up in arms’ after broadcasting V8 Supercars stepped into a new era following the announcement of a new $241m TV deal. For the first time the entire season would be broadcast exclusively on Fox Sports while just six rounds stayed on returning free-to-air partner Channel 10 from 2015 onwards. Fox Sports remains the major broadcaster of Supercars, but many fans did not welcome the announcement with one writing “want to kill the series? Easy, just make people pay!” But there were no doubts fans were fully united in supporting Michael Schumacher after he suffered serious head injuries from a skiing accident in the French alps. When AA went to press he was in a stable, but critical condition under an induced coma which he remained in for 250 days. His condition since has been kept private by his family with a team of 15 doctors looking after the F1 legend.

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1993 Daihatsu Charade

2022 Ford Mustang

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1993 Nissan GTS-T

2021 Mustang Mach 1

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