The Novus Glass TA2 Kings Of The West has kicked off with a brilliant battle between Nathan Herne in the Blue Gold Industries Dodge Challenger and Jarrod Hughes in the AC Delco Ford Mustang with Hughes eventually taking the victory by 1.5 seconds over Herne and Hodson at Carco.com.au Raceway this afternoon. 

Hughes started off the weekend well by taking pole position but it was Herne that got the jump  as the lights went out for the race start with Herne and Hughes putting on show running nose to tail lap after lap until Hughes got the run out of the famous turn 6 bowl pulling side by side in a classic drag race down the final corner where Hughes prevailed and went on the win the opening salvo. 

Third place went the way of Super 2 driver Ayrton Hodson in the Eye Spy/ Ashley Jarvis Racing  Mustang who patiently watched the two front runners but never challenged them deciding to play the long tyre game with 3 races still left to run across the weekend.  

Flying the flag for the WA racers was Clinton Rayner who drove a superb race bringing the No. 76 Rayner Racing Camaro across the stripe for fourth place and now takes the lead in the race for the Kings of The West Masters Trophy for the best placed driver over 45 years of age. 

Drama ensued with just minutes to go when local peddler Jason Pryde spun at turn 7 then knocked an oil line off the oil cooler as he rejoined the circuit, eventually spinning out of the race at turn one. 

While the race continued, the entire field did an incredible job to keep their TA2 cars on the circuit through turn one enabling the race to run green for the full 20 minutes. 

The Novus Glass TA2 Kings of the West will enjoy another 3 races across the weekend, two tomorrow with the finale of the weekend on Sunday where the 2025 Novus Glass Kings of the West will be crowned. 

All races can be seen live on Fox Sports and Kayo across the weekend but also keep up to date with the news and results by following TA2 Racing Australia on Facebook, Instagram and Tik Tok. 

QUOTES

Jarrod Hughes - #118 AC Delco Mustang. 

“ I was annoyed that Nathan got the jump on me at the start but I was happy to follow and watch to see where I might be able have a crack at him and after a few laps I could see his tyres were burning up so I just bided my time then went for the over under pass out of turn 6 and the full pass at turn 7 and got the job done”. 

“It was a ripper battle, and I can’t wait for the rest of the weekend.” 

Nathan Herne - #29 Blue Gold Industries Dodge Challenger

“I did the best job I could with what I had but I’ve struggled to get the feel and speed out of the car since changing tyres for Qualifying. 

“We’ll see if we can find any other issues overnight but either way we’re just going to have to do the best we can and tomorrow is another day and we’ll have a real crack because it’s a long way to come to WA to come second.” 

Ayrton Hodson - #32 Ashely Jarvis Racing/ Eye Spy Mustang

“This track is awesome fun and just sitting back and watching the two front boys I learnt a lot so I reckon I know where I can pick some time for the rest of the weekend and will hopefully be making it a three way battle in the next race.”

Clinton Rayner - #76 Rayner Racing Camaro

“If I’m honest I’m over the moon to come home in fourth place against some of the East Coast boys and now I’m here I’m not going to give it up easily so for the next three races I may just be the widest TA2 Camaro in history.”

Toyota 86 racer Alice Buckley will join the grid for the TA2 Muscle Car Series with backing from GM Australia and New Zealand, commencing with this month’s round of the Hi-Tec Super Series at Queensland Raceway.

GM has revealed the stunning Chevrolet Racing colours that Buckley will campaign on her TA2 Camaro, as she joins Super2 racer Jarrod Hughes in representing GM in the quickly expanding category. Hughes is the current TA2 Muscle Car series leader after the first three rounds from Mustang drivers Ben Gomersall and Josh Thomas.

Matt MacKelden, TA2 National Category Manager, is excited about Buckley joining the field.

“Alice has been very impressive to date in the Toyota 86 series, and a welcome addition to the TA2 family. Along with 17-year-old Kiara Zabetakis, it’s fantastic for the sport to have two young females racing in the series, both in Chev Camaro’s. We welcome GM’s direct involvement as a testament to how relevant the TA2 series has become as a genuine feeder category and look forward to Alice’s debut at the next round.”

After entering a new multi-year engine supply arrangement with HCC Pty Ltd, the owners of TA2 and the National Trans AM series, Chevrolet Racing General Manager, Chris Payne, said the company is pleased to be supporting young driving talent.

“We could not be happier to support Alice and her entry into TA2 Racing,” he said.

“GM is extremely proud to support talented young drivers and help them develop from the grassroots level through to the top levels of motorsport.”

GM ambassador Craig Lowndes was on hand for the launch at Queensland Raceway which also featured Jarrod Hughes, and his Chevrolet Performance/AC Delco backed Camaro.

“It’s fantastic that GM continues supporting the next generation of motorsport talent”, Lowndes said. “I’ve spent a lot of time crossing paths with Alice and also Jarrod Hughes at countless GM events and race meets, and it’s great to see the hard work they have put in is reaping rewards.”

Buckley also expressed her excitement at the opportunity of stepping up to the TA2 Muscle Car Series.

“I can’t wait to get behind the wheel of the TA2 Chevrolet Racing Camaro,” she said. “It’s exciting to step into a new category and I would like to thank GM for their continued support of me in my journey.”

Round Four of the TFH Hire Muscle Car Series - presented by Maritimo Luxury Yachts will be held at Queensland Raceway 27^th - 29^th June, televised live on SBS, Foxsports and Kayo, while this weekend will see the Novus Glass TA2 Kings of the West non championship event as a Supercars support for the Bosch Power Tools Super 400 in Perth.

The non Championship “Novus Glass TA2 Kings of the West”  event being held at the Bosch Power Tools Perth Super 440 Supercars event at Carco.com.au Raceway June 6-8 has attracted a 14 car field, with drivers from a diverse range of racing back grounds including Speedway Legend Robbie Farr,  Supercar Super 2 stars Jarrod Hughes and Ayrton Hodson,  twice National Trans AM Champ and former TA2 Rookie of the Year Nathan Herne as well as healthy list of local competitors such as sprint car star  Jason Pryde, former TA2 Western Series Champ Ron Moller and defending TA2 King of the West Brett Niall. 

In a last-minute call to support the Western Australia event, Robbie Farr said the opportunity to race in front of a W.A crowd that has always given him amazing support over the years was an offer too good to pass up. 

“There’s huge support for me and Speedway in Western Australia with passionate fans and I’m hoping they come to the track to say g’day as I’m only just starting my “flat track” career and it would great bring them along for the journey with me,” said Farr. 

“These TA2 cars are great fun and unfortunately I missed the round last weekend in Sydney due to a prior commitment so I’m itching to get back in the car at Carco.com.au Raceway.” 

Farr will be joined by Dunlop Super 2 drivers Jarrod Hughes and Ayrton Hodson with Native NZ driver Hodson saying the opportunity to experience a new track was too good to pass up. 

“We raced a TA2 Mustang at the Bathurst 6 Hour with Ashley Jarvis Racing over Easter this year and had an absolute ball, so when Ash called up and asked if we’d like to go again in Perth we jumped at the opportunity, said Hodson”.  

“Supercars is where we want to be so I want to get as many miles as I can to stay sharp between Super 2 rounds, plus it looks like a great track and we’re looking forward to it.” 

The TA2 Kings of the West event was previously held in 2022 over two rounds at Wanneroo and Collie Motorplex with local driver Brett Niall taking the honours in his TA2 Camaro and said that having the event back at W.A as part of the Supercars event was brilliant and he couldn’t wait to get behind the wheel. 

“The pace is certainly faster since we last ran a TA2 Kings Of The West event and looking at the entry list I reckon it will be a massive challenge to defend the title but it’s really pleasing to see the popularity of the cars and I reckon the fans will enjoy them as part of the weekend,” said Niall

 “The Novus Glass TA2 Kings of the West” will see an outright winner crowned as well as the highest point scoring driver over 45 in the master class. A 20 minute practice session, followed by a 20 minute qualifying session and 4 x 20 minute races held across the weekend at the Bosch Power Tools Super 440 starting Friday morning with television coverage on Kayo and Fox Sports. 

ENTRY LIST 

#4 Mark Crutcher, NSW, Ford Mustang 

#13 Jarrod Hughes, QLD, Ford Mustang

#14 Jason Pryde, WA, Chev Camaro 

#18 Robbie Farr, NSW, Chev Camaro 

#32 Ayrton Hodson, NZ, Ford Mustang 

#50 Graham Cheney, NSW, Chev Camaro 

#54 Brett Niall, WA, Chev Camaro

#71 Domain Ramsay, VIC, Chev Camaro 

#76 Clint Rayner, WA, Chev Camaro 

#77 Ron Moller, WA, Chev Camaro

#98 Allan Letcher, WA, Chev Camaro 

#129 Nathan Herne, NSW, Dodge Challenger 

#225 Jackson Callo, WA, Chev Camaro  

SCHEDULE 

FRIDAY
Practice 1 - 9:00am (20 mins)

Qualifying - 11:00am (20 mins)

Race 1 - 2:40pm 

SATURDAY 
Race 2 - 8:35am

Race 3 - 12:05pm

SUNDAY
Race 4 - 10:20am

IES Camaro driver Tim Brook again clocked the fastest time in qualifying with a 1m35.1620s lap, dominating rival Josh Thomas in the #69 TFH Racing Mustang by seven tenths of a second. It was the Mustang drivers best TA2 qualifying effort to date, during Round Three of the Hi-Tec Oils Super Series round at Sydney Motorsport Park. 

Rookie Diesel Thomas spun on oil in qualifying and tagged the wall at Turn 8, causing the Queenslander to start the opening race of the day from the rear of the grid 

Brook made a clean start off pole, but it was series leader Ben Gomersall who snuck up the inside into second place at Turn 1. Soon after there was contact between Gomersall and Hi-Tec Oils Camaro Brad Gartner, with former speedway star Danny Reidy also going off into the gravel trap on the run down from corporate hill.

Circo Master Class frontrunner Graham Cheney limped back to pitlane on lap 3 with a broken diff, while a four-car battle mid-pack ensued between Domain Ramsay, Des Collier, Diesel Thomas and Hayden Jackson. Two laps later Thomas, coming through from the back of the grid scored a two-for-one deal by passing Collier and Ramsay at Turn 6.

As Gartner went to complete lap 7, the South Australian ended up wide at the final corner with steering arm damage that ended his race prematurely.

Brook took the win, his third of the weekend, ahead of Josh Thomas in second and debutant Brock Paine in third, his first podium on his TA2 racing debut.

The final race of the day under lights saw the leaders go four wide into Turn 1 with Paine sneaking up the inside of Brook to take the lead, with Tom Davies and Josh Thomas going to the outside.

Mid-pack, multiple cars came together when Kiara Zabetakis clipped the damp grass on the edge of the track, spearing left into Danny Reidy with Gartner and Cheney also caught up in the fracas. Zabetakis ended up stranded at Turn 1 with heavy crash damage, Cheney stopped at Turn 2 with both needing recovery under Safety Car.

Reidy and Gartner returned to pitlane for repairs, while Cheney and Mark Crutcher both retired due to damage; the latter’s Mustang suffering a broken right-front wheel after Davies spun in front of Crutcher at Turn 2. Gartner was the only driver to return to the track, finishing 11th by race end.

On the restart, rookie Paine led the field ahead of Brook and brothers Josh and Diesel Thomas respectively as the field settled down for the majority of the race. In the final three minutes, Brook  made a run on Paine coming out of Turn 2 to take the race lead, holding on for the win to make it 4 from 4.

Paine finished a strong second place, his best on debut, while Diesel Thomas passed his brother Josh for a podium place by half a second. Josh Webster finished in fifth in a strong comeback after a frustrating day yesterday.

Diesel Thomas won the Hyperco Hard Charger Award by passing 13 cars in Race 1 today, plus the rookie of the round award, Brock Paine was awarded the Wilwood Big Braker award for his first outing in a TA2 car to finish 4^th, and Danny Reidy picked up the AC Delco Feel the Love award and $5000 worth of AC Delco power tools.

Round 4 of the TFH Hire TA2 Muscle Car Series - presented by Maritimo Luxury Yachts will be held at Queensland Raceway from June 27-29 for a single driver event, before returning to the Ipswich circuit a month later for a two-driver Round 5 from August 15-17.

QUOTES

Tim Brook, #118 IES Motorsport Chev Camaro
“What a weekend! Got the worst start of all four races in that last one, I just buzzed the rears and next thing Brock [Paine] was on the inside and Josh [Thomas] was on the outside and it all got loose into Turn 1. But a ripper race and Brock drove well, so did Diesel. It’s good to see some young talent giving us a bit of a hustle and making me work hard when I needed to. Thanks to IES Motorsport for letting me have a steer this weekend.”

Brock Paine, #33 Brock Paine Motorsport, Chevrolet Camaro 
“It’s unreal. Coming into the weekend, I would’ve been thrilled just to finish inside the top 10. After yesterday, even that felt like a long shot. So to end up on the podium, in third—that’s just unbelievable.”

“I’m not sure I had the pace to challenge the front two, but we managed our tyres well over the weekend, especially with that DNF yesterday. That definitely helped us today.”

Diesel Thomas, #18 TFH Racing Ford Mustang
“We’ve been chipping away all weekend for that podium result. We had an off-track excursion in qualifying this morning which sent us to the rear of the grid which we weren’t too happy about, but we made our way from P20 to P7 in Race 1 today which we were so happy about. 

“Coming into Race 2 we got a great jump off the start and made it up to P3 by turn two. When the safety car came out we knew we had to just maintain the position which is also my best ever result in TA2. We now know we have the pace to keep up with those front boys so I definitely have more confidence going into QR.”

IES Motorsport’s Tim Brook has dominated the opening day of Round 3 of the TFH Hire TA2 Muscle Car Series - presented by Maritimo Luxury Yachts at Sydney Motorsport Park, taking the clean sweep with pole position and two race wins.

Brook put the #118 Chev Camaro on pole position with a time of 1m34.1400s; a stellar start to his campaign while standing in for series points leader Jarrod Hughes, who is unable to compete this weekend due to other commitments. 

In the opening twilight race, Brook led the field into Turn 1 with Ben Gomersall close behind in second, while Dodge driver Hayden Jackson moved from sixth to third in the opening few corners.

TFH Racing’s Josh Thomas consistently applied pressure on Tom Davies for fourth but wasn’t able to pass before a safety car was called on Lap 3.

It was drama for Marcos Ambrose Racing’s Josh Webster who dropped a tail shaft, scattering debris down the front straight and ending up down the escape road at Turn 1. Rookie Brock Paine was caught up in the aftermath, picking up debris and causing the front left tyre to delaminate and ending the Queenslander’s race.

Racing resumed with three minutes to go, and three flying laps left for Brook to hold onto the lead; a lead that was 7/10ths ahead of Gomersall prior to the yellow flags came out.

On the restart, Jackson slid sideways into Turn 1 and dropped to sixth, while Domain Ramsay also went off due to oil on the track, almost rolling into the sand trap before continuing on and finishing a lowly 16th. Mark Crutcher also had an off-track excursion and fell back to the rear of the field.

On the penultimate lap TFH Racing’s Josh Thomas was able to pass Davies around the outside at the hairpin and finish on the final step of the podium, while out front it was Brook who took the chequered flag by a mere 0.4seconds over Gomersall in second.

The 25-minute Race 2 held under lights saw Brook again capitalise from pole, with Hi-Tec Oils Chev Camaro driver Brad Gartner moving up three places on the start to be up into second out of Turn 1.

Josh Webster pulled into pitlane at the end of the opening lap, disheartened after a stellar effort by his Marcos Ambrose Motorsport team who rebuilt the #200 Autofix Mustang to get out on track in time.

Jackson and Cameron Laws came together at Turn 5 before Gomersall and Gartner also clashed at the back of corporate hill, with Laws and Gomersall both served with 15 second penalties.

Domain Ramsay and Michael Coulter failed to finish while Gartner and Davies continued to battle for position lap-after lap in the closing stages of the race.

Despite Gartner’s fightback efforts, he just missed the podium finishing 4th outright behind the Brook, Gomersall and Josh Thomas, all finishing in the same positions they finished Race 1. 

After a disastrous first race, Brock Paine recovered strongly to finish inside the Top 10 in ninth, while Diesel Thomas was the best of the rookies in fifth and Graham Cheney first of the Circo Master Class drivers in sixth.

Day two of the Sydney Sundown event at Sydney Motorsport Park sees qualifying at 12.30pm, followed by Race 1 at 5.10pm and Race 2 at 8pm under lights.

QUOTES

Tim Brook, #118 Road Active Suspension, Chevrolet Camaro
“It’s been absolutely fantastic to be here this weekend. I’m super stoked to have taken pole position and backed it up with two race wins, it’s honestly more than I ever expected when the day started.”

“The competition has been tough, so to come out on top is incredibly rewarding. I’m just really grateful for the team and everyone who’s supported me. It’s been an awesome experience, and I’m having such a great time out there.”

Josh Thomas, #69 TFH Racing, Ford Mustang
"Converting my best qualifying position in my TA2 career into a podium finish in Race 1 and 2 is unreal. We’ve been pushing hard to find pace and consistency, and to finally see it come together like this feels incredible. The team put in a massive effort, and I can’t thank them enough for giving me a car that could fight at the front.”

Tom Davies, #42 Hotel Exchange Kilcoy, Ford Mustang
“We’ve been struggling quite a bit with car setups and finding the right lines, but we still managed to fight our way up to third. Race 2 was intense, there was a spin, oil on the track, and we really had to dig deep just to stay on the tarmac.”