The SRO GT World Challenge Australia championship reached its conclusion on the streets of Adelaide, returning to the circuit for the first time since 2017. The draw of the Adelaide Parklands Circuit brought a record 20-car entry to the series, including international drivers drafted in to fill slots vacated by drivers involved in the Supercars and Super 2 championships over the weekend. The race format was slightly modified, with three 40-minute races making up the format for the weekend.
Christopher Mies was drafted in to partner Yasser Shahin in the #1 The Bend Motorsport Park Audi R8, who went in to the round 11 points ahead of Liam Talbot and Fraser Ross in the #65 Shannons Insurance Audi in the battle for Pro-Am honours. Kelvin van der Linde featured in the #24 C-Tech Laser Audi R8, partnering Tony Bates, while there was also a change at Triple Eight Race Engineering;
Nick Foster filling in next to Prince Jefri Ibrahim in the #888, still in the championship hunt. Also in Pro Am were the return of the #88 Triple Eight Race Engineering Mercedes of Prince Abu Bakar Ibrahim and Jamie Whincup.
Additional entries came in the form of a pair of Bentley Continentals out of Trading Garage, in both the new- and old-spec. Mike Bailey and Brett Hobson piloted the new-spec #38 entry in Pro-Am, while Matthew Belford took the older-spec #14 out for the Trophy class. Also joining in the Am class was Ash Samadi in the #22 Melbourne Performance Centre Audi, and the Koundouris brothers, James and Theo, at the seat of their #47 Supabarn Audi. The Am class was completed by regular runners Matt Stoupas in the #23 KFC Audi, the sister KFC Audi #2 of Higgon and Stokell, Marc Cini’s #9 Hallmarc Audi, and a pair of Mercedes; the Ram Motorsport #45 of Sheargold and Walden, and the #101 Harrolds Racing AMG of Ross Poulakis.
Trophy class saw the addition of Scott Taylor in the #222 Scott Taylor Motorsport Porsche 997 GT3R, while Brad Schumacher moved into the #55 Valmont Racing Audi alongside Sergio Pires, in an effort to defend his Trophy-class title from Launch Racing’s Michael Kokkinos. In GT4, the #102 of Con Batzios and Sam Brabham returned, while Paul Morris replaced his son Nash in the #19 Daimler Trucks Brisbane entry alongside Mark Griffith due to Nash’s Super 2 commitments, and newly crowned Porsche Sprint Cup champion Tom Sargent joined the grid in his Porsche Carrera Cup car, competing in GTC.
Qualifying got underway on Friday morning, with a pair of sessions to set the grid for the first two of three races over the weekend. Unfortunately, the first session, for Am-drivers only, was brought to a halt after only one set of flying laps, due to a massive crash for Prince Jefri Ibrahim in the #888 Triple Eight Race Engineering Mercedes.
Prince Jefri fishtailed under brakes coming out of turn 13, and speared off track to driver’s left, making heavy contact with the concrete barrier dead on the front of the AMG. While Prince Jefri was okay, the car was decidedly less so, and was scratched from the rest of the weekend.
The session resumed with 3 minutes remaining, but was halted with no further laps set due to another incident – Paul Stokell losing the #2 KFC Audi through the Senna Chicane and spinning into the tyre barrier. While the #2 missed the next qualifying session, the Audi was back on track later in the weekend.
This gave Talbot the pole, ahead of Shahin and Bates, in an Audi 1-2-3 for the first race.
It was another Audi 1-2 in Qualifying 2, this time with Kelvin van der Linde taking pole from Christopher Mies. Van Der Linde set a 1:17.6 to be 7 tenths ahead of the field. There was more incident, with Jamie Whincup crashing in the Senna Chicane after getting out of shape over the turn 1 kerb. The #88 Triple Eight Race Engineering Mercedes was tipped into a slide off the kerb, then collected the larger kerb in the middle of the chicane, pitching the car right, then left, and into the tyre barrier. Despite the incident, Whincup qualified in 3rd, and the car was able to be repaired for Race 1 later in the day.
Race 1 on Friday afternoon saw Talbot take the early lead in the #65 Shannons Insurance Audi, looking to extend a gap to cover the additional Pit Stop time for taking pole. He was able to stretch a gap of over 8 seconds before the pit window opened, while those behind had difficulty contending with traffic. Tony Bates in the #24 C-Tech Laser Audi managed to stick with Yasser Shahin, despite a moment at turn 8, making contact with the outside wall.
Talbot, Bates, and Prince Abu Bakar Ibrahim elected to pit at the opening of the pit window with 25 minutes remaining, leaving the #1 The Bend Motorsport Park Audi R8 of Yasser Shahin on circuit in the lead of the race. Shahin put in his fastest laps of the race, allowing the team to pit with a clear pit
lane, and Christopher Mies emerged in the #1 ahead of Fraser Ross now in the #65, and then Kelvin van der Linde in the #24 in third place.
Van der Linde made short work of Ross, passing on the inside at turn 9, and set about reeling in his Audi stablemate for the lead of the race. An attempt on the lead at turn 9 almost ended in tears, with van der Linde making contact with the rear of Mies’ machine at the apex, but both drivers managed to escape out the other side. Mies was able to hang on, taking victory in the #1 The Bend Motorsport Park Audi, and extending Yasser Shahin’s lead in the championship. Van der Linde and Tony Bates finished second in the #24 C-Tech Laser Audi, while Fraser Ross and Liam Talbot rounded out the podium.
They were the only Pro-Am cars that finished, as both the #88 Triple Eight Race Engineering Mercedes and the #38 Trading Garage Bentley retired. The #88 pulled into the pits with 4 minutes remaining without power, while the #38 Bentley retired after collecting the tyre bundle on the turn 1 apex.
Am class went to Ross Poulakis in the #101 Harrolds Racing Mercedes, despite a 10 second time penalty for crossing the pit-entry chevrons during his pit stop. Poulakis pulled into the pits very late, locked the wheels, and tagged the outside wall of the pit lane in an incident reminiscent of David Coulthard’s F1 incident in 1995. However, Poulakis suffered only minor damage, and completed the race on the lead lap. He won from the #2 KFC Audi of Higgon and Stokell, with post-race penalties deciding the podium in favour of Marc Cini in the #9 Hallmarc Audi. Cini was given a 10 second penalty for tagging Matt Stoupas into a spin at turn 4, but Ash Samadi in the #22 Melbourne Performance Centre Audi was given a 15 second penalty for making contact with the #19 Daimler Trucks Brisbane Mercedes of Paul Morris at Turn 4, dropping him to fourth.
Trophy was won by Brad Schumacher and Sergio Pires in the #55 Valmont Racing Audi finishing 6th overall, ahead of Tom Sargent in the GTC Porsche in 7 th . The result extended Schumacher’s lead in the Trophy championship, while Matthew Belford was a retirement in his #14 Trading Garage Bentley after contact on lap 1. GT4 was won by the Harrolds racing duo of Batzios and Brabham, after Morris and Griffith were delayed due to contact with the #22 Audi at turn 4.
Saturday morning’s race 2 saw an early safety car due to an incident for Matthew Belford on the exit of the Senna Chicane on lap 1. Belford in the #14 Trading Garage Bentley Continental was side-by-side with Matt Stoupas in the #23 KFC Audi coming through the chicane, with replays showing the Audi tagging the kerb on the turn 3 apex. While there may or may not have been contact with Belford’s Bentley as a result, the two cars spun on the exit of turn three, with Stoupas spinning to driver’s left and escaping the wall, while Belford spun to driver’s right, and made heavy contact with the concrete, requiring recovery, and a 10 minute safety car to clean up.
The race resumed with 26 minutes on the clock, and turned into a shootout between factory Audi drivers Kelvin van der Linde and Christopher Mies at the head of the field. The pair traded laps, working their way deep into the 1:17 bracket, before the pit window opened. Meanwhile, Fraser Ross was working his way through the field in the #65 Shannons Insurance Audi, bringing the car up to 4th place before the pit stops.
The gap at the head of the field was 2 seconds before Mies decided to come into the pits with 18 minutes remaining. However, Mies overshot the pit entry, diverting across the kerb at turn 14 and back onto the race track, earning the #1 The Bend Motorsport Park Audi a 10 second penalty in the process.
Combined with the loss of time due to the mistake, the #1 car returned to the track 6 seconds behind Liam Talbot’s #65 Audi, who was a further 12 seconds behind the #88 Triple Eight Race Engineering Mercedes of Prince Abu Bakar Ibrahim. Tony Bates in the #24 C-Tech Audi held a comfortable lead, while Talbot set about reeling in the #88 to gain more points in his task to keep the championship alive.
Talbot reeled in the 12 second gap in only 5 laps, setting lap times in the 1:19’s to be 3 seconds a lap faster than Ibrahim. It took a lap to execute, but Talbot put the #65 into second on the entry to turn 1, and maintained that position to the end of the race.
The race was called a minute early due to a substantial crash for the #55 Valmont Racing Audi with Sergio Pires at the wheel. Broadcast cameras showed the #55 buried under the tyre barrier driver’s left on the entry to turn 13, with the #2 KFC Audi of Higgon spun into the pit entry on driver’s right.
Replays showed Pires attempting to pass Higgon on the inside of turn 13 while Higgon was being lapped by Shahin, with the cars making contact front right to left rear, firing the #55 straight across the track and into the fence. Ultimately, both cars were DNF’s, while Pires was extracted from the tyre barrier and diagnosed with a broken collarbone. We wish Pires all the best with his recovery!
While Bates and Van der Linde crossed the line first, they were given a 5 second penalty post-race for a safety car restart breach. This relegated them to second, and promoted Talbot and Ross to the race victory in the #65 Shannons Insurance Audi, with Bates and van der Linde second in the #24 C-Tech Audi, and Prince Abu Bakar Ibrahim and Jamie Whincup Third in the Triple Eight Race Engineering #88 Mercedes. Mies and Shahin could only manage fourth in the #1 The Bend Motorsport Park Audi, giving Shahin a 17 point gap over Talbot and Ross, with 17 points on offer in the final race of the weekend.
The top 5 was rounded out by the Am-Class winner of Ross Poulakis in the #101 Harrolds Racing Mercedes, from the Koundouris brothers in the #47 Supabarn Audi. Tom Sargent in the #147 Tegra Australia Porsche GTC won Trophy, ahead of Michael Kokkinos in the #8 Launch Racing Audi, while GT4 was won by the Daimler Trucks Brisbane pair of Griffith and Morris in the #19 Mercedes.
Sunday morning saw the final race of the championship, with the grid set by combined points over the weekend so far. Talbot lead from Shahin into the Senna chicane, with Bates and Prince Abu Bakar following. The race again saw an early safety car, with the #23 KFC Audi of Matt Stoupas in the fence on the exit of turn 9. Replays showed Stoupas defending from Ross Poulakis in the #101 Harrolds Racing Mercedes, with the pair making contact on the exit of the hairpin, interlocking wheels, which then fired the Audi left, over the kerb and into the concrete.
The 10 minute safety car interruption saw the pit window open just as the race went to green, with most cars pitting on the restart lap. It was Mies in the #1 The Bend Motorsport Park Audi who emerged from the lane ahead, with a 13 second gap to Ross in the #65 Shannons Insurance Audi, followed by van der Linde, and Brett Hobson in the #38 Trading Garage Bentley Continental.
Van der Linde was on the move after the stops; a slight mistake out of turn 5 for Ross saw van der Linde seize the opportunity, setting up the switch-back through turn 6, and passing Ross through turn 7, allowing Hobson to follow through to take 3rd . Jamie Whincup joined the battle in the #88 Triple Eight Race Engineering Mercedes, as Ross fought back against Hobson, taking third back a lap later. However, the #24 was given a 1-second stop-go penalty for not completing their compulsory pit-stop time, dropping van der Linde from second back to 6th place.
There was another safety car interruption with 8 minutes remaining; a puncture for Ross Poulakis in the #101 Harrolds Racing Mercedes saw him spin at turn 4, making contact with the inside wall on corner exit. After a 5 point turn to face the right direction, it was clear that the car couldn’t continue, and he parked up on driver’s left on the approach to turn 5. Recovery of the stricken Mercedes took 5 minutes, setting up a three-lap dash to the line.
Mies cleared away from the field while Ross, Whincup and Hobson navigated the backmarkers.
Kelvin van der Linde was on a charge, passing Hobson for 4 th with a lap remaining, and almost sending it down the inside of Whincup at turn 9 on the final lap. Whincup was wise to the move and blocked the Audi, forcing van der Linde to swing back to the outside, almost losing control of his car in the process.
But no-one could reel in the #1 of Mies and Shahin, who crossed the line to take victory and seal the GTWC Australia Championship for Yasser Shahin. Fraser Ross held on to second in the #65 Shannons Insurance Audi, with he and Liam Talbot runners-up in the championship. Whincup and Prince Abu Bakar Ibrahim finished third in the #88 Triple Eight Race Engineering Mercedes, ahead of Bates and Van der Linde in the #24 C-Tech Audi, and the #38 Trading Garage Bentley of Bailey and Hobson completed the top 5.
RAM Motorsport won the Am category; Sheargold and Walden in the #45 winning by 2 seconds over the #2 KFC Audi of Higgon and Stokell, ahead of the Koundouris brothers in the #47 Supabarn Audi, with the top 5 in Am completed by Cini in the #9 Hallmarc Audi, and Samadi in the #22 Melbourne Performance Centre Audi. Poulakis and Stoupas were retirements after their respective incidents.
Trophy-class honours went to Tom Sargent in the #147 Tegra Australia Porsche Cup car, ahead of Michael Kokkinos in the #8 Launch Racing Audi, and Scott Taylor’s #222 Porsche. Second for Kokkinos was enough for him to secure the GT Trophy Championship in his first year as a competitor. GT4 was won by Con Batzios and Sam Brabham in the #102 Harrolds Racing Mercedes GT4, with the championship secured by Mark Griffith in the #19 Daimler Trucks Brisbane Mercedes GT4.
GT Racing returns to Australia next year with the return of the Liqui Moly Bathurst 12 Hour in it’s traditional February timeslot.
