After a spectacular battle at The Bend Motorsport Park in April, teenage racing sensations Max Vidau and Cooper Murray will continue their tussle at round two of Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge Australia this weekend at Sandown Raceway.
The opening 2018 event at Tailem Bend provided some of the best battles in the series’ decade-long history, with Vidau ending the weekend as the series’ 25th different outright round winner. Race one winner Murray and Vidau (race two and race three victor) also became the 32nd and 33rd different race winners in GT3 Cup Challenge history.
The last time the Melbourne-based duo faced-off at Sandown was in Formula Fords, and Vidau is eager to continue to battle in identical 911 GT3 Cup race cars.
“I’ve always liked Sandown in the Formula Ford. I haven’t been there in the Porsche yet but, as there are plenty of bumps and kerbs, I think it will be a really good experience when racing there in the GT3 Cup car. There’s some really tough competition in the series, especally from Cooper, so I’m looking forward to continuing the battle at Sandown” said Vidau.
“I’ve always liked Sandown when racing there in the Formula Ford. I haven’t been there in the Porsche yet, though as there are plenty of bumps and kerbs, I think it will be a really good experience in the GT3 Cup car,” said Vidau.
“There’s some really tough competition in GT3 Cup Challenge at the moment, especally from Cooper, so I’m looking forward to continuing the battle at Sandown this weekend.”
Trailing the leading Pro pair at The Bend was Simon Fallon, who claimed pole position and placed third for the round. Fallon return at Sandown along with fellow Pro racers Luis Leeds, Jimmy Vernon, Chelsea Angelo and Dan Day.
The battle in Pro-Am will heat up this weekend at Sandown. With class leader Sam Shahin completing his one-off appearance at The Bend, his departure opens the door to several rival Pro-Am racers to grab the top spot in the class.
Danny Stutterd enters the Melbourne round as the next best Pro-Am ranked driver after placing second at The Bend, 28 points ahead of third placed Ben Stack.
The nine-car Pro-Am class continues to be the largest in the field with the return of Michael Loccisano, Shane Barwood, Rob Woods, Michael Hovey, Brett Boulton and Ross McGregor, who moves to fifth in the list of most round starts in his 25th GT3 Cup Challenge appearance.
Pro-Am also includes series newcomer Sam Fillmore. While Fillmore is a GT3 Cup Challenge debutant, he has recent experience in the GT3 Cup race car in both the 2018 Bathurst 12 Hour and 24H COTA USA 2017 endurance race at Circuit of the Americas.
Six cars will make up the Class B field this weekend, which includes reigning class champion David Grieg. The Queensland based driver missed the opening round in South Australia but returns at Sandown, as does part-time GT3 Cup Challenge participant Tony Martin. The duo join fellow Class B runners Tom Taplin, Phil Morriss, Christian Pancione and Richard Bloomfield, who currently leads the class standings following his success at The Bend.
The sprint round of Porsche Michelin GT3 Cup Challenge Australia will feature two practice session on Friday, qualifying and race one on Saturday, followed by two races on Sunday, both of which can be viewed via live stream at the Shannons Nationals website – thenationals.com.au.
Race Schedule
Friday May 11, 2018
11:20am Practice 1(30 minutes)
1:45pm Practice 2 (30 minutes)
Saturday May 12, 2018
11:00am Qualifying (20mins)
2:55pm Race 1 (20 minutes, laps TBC)
Sunday May 13, 2018
9:10am Race 2 (20 minutes, laps TBC)
1:40pm Race 3 (20 minutes, laps TBC)
Entry List: Round 2, Sandown Raceway
1. #2 Dan Day (Pro) Tectaloy UNLMTD Racing
2. #7 Jimmy Vernon (Pro)
3. #9 Tony Martin (Class B) The Triffid Bar + Venue
4. #10 Michael Loccisano (Pro-Am) Hallmarc
5. #21 Shane Barwood (Pro-Am) Melbourne Orthopaedic Group
6. #23 Daniel Stutterd (Pro-Am) The Porsche Broker
7. #26 Tom Taplin (Class B) Taplin Real Estate
8. #27 Sam Fillmore (Pro-Am)
9. #29 Rob Woods (Pro-Am) Platinum Night Club Broadbeach
10. #36 Cooper Murray (Pro) Lodge Bros Racing
11. #38 Chelsea Angelo (Pro) PAYCE/Wilson Security
12. #57 Richard Bloomfield (Class B) Okey Dokey
13. #65 Ben Stack (Pro-Am) DNA Racing
14. #73 Michael Hovey (Pro-Am) Triffid Bar & Venue
15. #76 Christian Pancione (Class B) VCM Performance
16. #77 Max Vidau (Pro) Sonic/Bob Jane T Marts
17. #84 Brett Boulton (Pro-Am) Bold Living
18. #87 David Greig (Class B)
19. #88 Phil Morriss (Class B) Morriss Racing Services
20. #96 Simon Fallon (Pro) Sonic Motor Racing
21. #99 Ross McGregor (Pro-Am) Southern Star Windows
22. #230 Luis Leeds (Pro) OPS Gateway
