GTWC Australia headlined the GT Festival Sydney for Round 5 of the championship at Sydney Motorsport Park. The 3.91km circuit, with its permanent light installations, allowed for a Saturday race under lights to kick off the weekend, before Race 2 on Sunday afternoon rounded out the action for the penultimate round of the series.
Coming into the weekend, it was the #1 Kelso Electrical Audi pairing of Brad Schumacher and Broc Feeney leading the championship, holding a slim 10 point lead over the #44 Geyer Valmont Mercedes AMG by Tigani pairing of Sergio Pires and Brendon Leitch, locked on the same points as Mark Rosser in the #268 BRM Audi.
The 15 car field saw two additional entries for the penultimate round of the championship; returning to the Am class for the first time since 2024 was the #45 RAM Motorsport/GWR Australia Mercedes AMG of Michael Sheargold paired with Brett Hobson, both making their return to the championship, while a new entry arrived in the form of the #81 Earl Bamber Motorsport Porsche 911 991.2, featuring Porsche Carrera Cup competitors Tom McLennan and Andrew Georgiadis for their debuts in GT3 machinery.
Saturday afternoon’s qualifying saw great conditions for GT cars, and a tale of two front-row lockouts for two different manufacturers. In Qualifying 1, setting the grid for Sunday’s race, it was a Team BRM Audi 1-2, with Alex Peroni putting the #268 example on pole, only 0.0186 of a second ahead of Ryan Wood in the #88 Wolfbrook Motorsport car. Jayden Ojeda was only just behind in the #66 Move My Wheels by Tigani Mercedes AMG, slotting into third, 0.0707 away from Peroni, while the championship leading #1 Kelso Electrical Audi could only manage 7th Broc Feeney missing out on his final run, and 4 tenths away from the leader.
The Am-driver Qualifying 2 saw a reversal of fortunes, with the three Tigani Motorsport Mercedes AMG’s locking out 1, 2 and 3 on the grid. Shane Smollen took his maiden pole in GTWC Australia, with a 1:26.6942 enough to put the #56 Kollosche AMG over a tenth ahead of the field. He was followed by Pires in the #44 Geyer Valmont Mercedes-AMG, with Lucchitti rounding off the top 3 in the #66 Move My Wheels Mercedes-AMG. The #268 BRM Audi of Rosser completed row 2, with Brad Schumacher putting the #1 Kelso Electrical Audi into 5th on the grid.
Race 1: Smollen and Targett breakthrough for maiden victory; Geyer Valmont Mercedes-AMG DNF.
Under the floodlights, Saturday night’s race 1 saw drama from the first lap. The #44 Geyer Valmont Mercedes-AMG dropped all the way to the tail of the field from second on the grid, with Sergio Pires forced to bring the car in to retire; a huge blow for the team who were sitting in second in the championship.
This left Shane Smollen in control of the field in the #56 Kollosche Mercedes, and he broke away to a 3 second gap ahead of Mark Rosser, who held a train of cars behind the #268 Team BRM Audi after a great start. One of those cars was the #1 Kelso Electrical Audi of Schumacher, who ran wide at Turn 3 and dropped further down the order to 7th place.
The gaggle of cars behind Rosser threatened to boil over and eventually it did. A slow run through the sweeping Turn 1 for Rosser saw Lucchitti force the #66 Move My Wheels Mercedes up the inside at Turn 2, with contact between the two cars sending Rosser wide. Both Elliot Schutte and Andrew Georgiadis benefit ted, with Rosser dropping to 6th, behind the #26 Arise Racing Ferrari and #81 Earl Bamber Motorsport Porsche.
As the drivers handed over to their Pro counterparts, it looked to be a Mercedes battle out in front; Smollen handed over to Oscar Targett in the #56, with Jayden Ojeda right behind in the #66. Further back was Jaxon Evans now in the #26 Ferrari, with Alex Peroni on his tail in the #268 Audi, then Tom McLennan dropped into 5th in the #81 Porsche.
The two Mercedes broke away out in front, while Evans struggled to keep with them in the #26 Ferrari. Targett managed the race well, and kept Ojeda at bay, before a drive-through penalty was given to the #66 Move My Wheels Mercedes-AMG for a violation of pit stop procedure. This took the pressure off Targett, with Ojeda returning to the track after his penalty down in 7th position.
From there, Targett held a comfortable lead, and brought the #56 Kollosche Mercedes AMG home for the first win of the season for Targett and Smollen. Second place went to Peroni and Rosser, after Peroni made a great move around the outside of Evans’ Ferrari through turn 3. The podium catapulted the #268 Team BRM Audi into second place in the championship, right behind the leaders.
Third went the way of the #88 Wolfbrook BRM Audi of Steve Brooks and Ryan Wood, while the Arise Racing Ferrari of Evans and Schutte dropped down to 4th, just managing to hold off the resurgent #1 Kelso Electrical Audi of Feeney and Schumacher.
Trophy went the way of Stoupas and Stokell in the #2 KFC Audi despite a penalty, while the #45 RAM Motorsport/GWR Australia duo took home Am honours.
Race 2: Kelso Electrical extend their championship lead with controlled victory
Sunday afternoon’s Race 2 saw the #268 Team BRM Audi convert pole to the race lead through lap 1, with Peroni able to hold off Ryan Wood in the team car, who tried to put the #88 Wolfbrook Audi around the outside at turn 3. A small moment through turn 1 the next lap opened the door for Wood, who sent a move down the inside of Peroni at Turn 2. The two Audi’s made contact in the transition from turn 2 to 3, but both continued with Wood taking the lead, and Peroni dropping to third behind Leitch’s #44 Geyer Valmont Mercedes-AMG.
Wood got to work trying to build a gap enough to offset the additional 5 seconds the #88 would have to spend in the pits thanks to their third place in Race 1. He managed to stretch out to a large enough lead, with Leitch sitting in second, while Feeney had worked the #1 Kelso Electrical Audi into third after passing Peroni on the main straight.
But there was drama immediately after the pitstops for the #88 Wolfbrook Audi. On his outlap, Steve Brooks ground to a halt on the exit of the turn 8 hairpin, bringing out the safety car. Brooks managed to get the #88 Audi moving again, but only as far as the pit lane, where it was retired in the garage. The team indicated that the issue was a broken driveshaft, as a result of the wheel-to-wheel contact early in the race with the #268 Team BRM Audi.
This left the #1 Kelso Electrical Audi in position to lead the field on the restart, and Brad Schumacher executed it perfectly to stretch out to a comfortable lead over Pires’ #44 Geyer Valmont Mercedes-AMG. Third place on the restart was Cameron Campbell, who was well positioned for the best result of the season for the #23 Zagame Autosport Ferrari, but a spin at turn 3 saw him drop down the order.
It was Mark Rosser who sat third after Campbell’s spin, but the #268 Team BRM Audi was under significant pressure from the rest of the field. Ultimately, Valentino Astuti was the one to make the moves through the field, putting the #2 Trading Garage Audi into third place in the last 5 minutes of the race.
But out front, Schumacher was untroubled and secured victory for the #1 Kelso Electrical Audi, with Pires bringing the #44 Geyer Valmont Mercedes-AMG home in second. Astuti brought the #2 Trading Garage Audi home third – the first podium of the season for himself and Darren Currie – while Rosser led the rest of the pack home; the #268 Team BRM Audi fourth, from the #181 Onlyfans Ferrari, the #26 Arise Racing GT Ferrari, the #81 EBM Porsche and the #56 Kollosche Mercedes AMG, all within 2 seconds of Rosser.
Winning Trophy was once again the #24 KFC Audi of Stokell and Stoupas, while the #45 RAM Motorsport/GWR Australia Mercedes-AMG took Am honours.
Sunday’s victory extended the #1 Kelso Electrical Audi’s championship lead for the round, with Feeney and Schumacher sitting on 146 points – a 14 point lead over Mark Rosser in the #268 Team BRM Audi. The DNF on Saturday significantly hampered the #44 Geyer Valmont Mercedes-AMG pair of Leitch and Pires, who now sit on 119 points – 27 points off the lead – with only one round remaining. They’re not entirely out of it yet; last season saw a 30-point deficit overhauled in the final round, but it will still be a tall order for the #44 to be considered a championship contender.
With 52 points on offer – one point for each pole position, and 25 points for a win – the championship is far from over. Pole position points could be crucial; if the #268 Team BRM Audi wins from the #1 Kelso Electrical Audi in second in both races, it would see the two Audis finish level on points.
The final round for GTWC Australia will take place on the streets of the Adelaide Parklands Circuit, supporting the Supercars Adelaide Grand Final, on the 26/29 of November.
Images courtesy of SRO Australia/ Jack Martin
