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.”

A stacked field of 19 TA2 cars will take to Sydney Motorsport Park under lights this weekend for Round 3 of the TFH Hire TA2 Muscle Car Series - presented by Maritimo Luxury Yachts. 

Championship leader Jarrod Hughes will be absent from the grid due to GT4 commitments, with highly experienced Tim Brook stepping in to pilot the #118 Chevrolet Camaro in his place.

Despite missing this round, Jarrod Hughes continues to lead the championship standings with a narrow seven-point lead over Super 2 driver Ben Gomersall, who took out the round win at Bathurst, while Marcos Ambrose Motorsport’s Josh Webster sits in third.

Joining the grid this weekend are several New South Wales locals looking to impress on home soil including, Michael Coulter, Kiara Zabetakis, Hayden Jackson and Cameron Laws who will all be pushing for a strong result in front of their home crowd.

The Hi-Tec Oils Team will enjoy a home round as well, with Brad Gartner making his return to the TA2 grid after sitting out Round 2 at Bathurst. Gartner is hoping for a strong performance at Sydney Motorsport Park to put last year’s tough outing behind him, where a mid-race incident with Mark Crutcher marred his weekend.

Speedway star Domain Ramsay is gearing up for a massive triple-header of racing, which will kick off at Sydney Motorsport Park before heading west to Perth for a special appearance alongside the Supercars and then making the trek north to Darwin for Round 3 of the Trans Am Championship.

Making hisTA2 Muscle Car Series debut this weekend is 2024 Formula RX8 champion Brock Paine in a Chevrolet Camaro as he takes his first step into the high powered TA2 category. 

Warren Wadley will also be back  after a monster crash at Bathurst, along with  Steve Wilson  making his first appearance since Queensland Raceway last year driving the #3 Wilson AutoSport Chevrolet Camaro. 

The Circo Master Class will be hotly contested by leading contenders Graham Cheney, Mark Crutcher and Domain Ramsay.

Rounding out the field for Sydney are series regulars Danny Reidy, Tom Davies, Josh Thomas, Des Collier and Diesel Thomas. 

Round 3 of the TFH Hire TA2 Muscle Car Series - presented by Maritimo Luxury Yachts will feature four races over the weekend, taking place from May 30-31. Fans can catch all the action live on SBS Viceland  free to air, Fox Sports, and Kayo Sports. 

QUOTES

Domain Ramsay #81 C&H Trucking Chevrolet Camaro 

“I’m really excited to kick off this triple-header in Sydney this weekend. The main goal for me is to get more seat time in these cars and keep building my experience. It was also a great excuse for a road trip, being able to do three big events and three different cities in four weeks is pretty cool.” 

“Racing at Perth and Darwin as part of the Supercars program is an unreal opportunity. I’ve only ever raced at those venues in a sprint car, so to now hit the tarmac in a TA2 car is really exciting.”

Hayden Jackson #81 Team RSG Dodge Challenger 

“We made some really positive changes to the car at Bathurst that gave us a lot of confidence, and the ongoing development of the Dodge is definitely heading in the right direction.”

“We feel like we’re building momentum and are well overdue for a strong result. Racing in front of a home crowd at Sydney makes it even more special, so we’re aiming to deliver something to be proud of.”

“Night racing brings a completely different challenge, it’s definitely tougher because your braking and turn-in reference points are harder to spot in the dark, but the lighting facilities at Sydney are next level. I am excited to get stuck into it on Friday.” 

Brad Gartner #22 Hi-Tec Oils Chevrolet Camaro 

“After missing round 2 at Bathurst, my main goal in Sydney is to stay clean. Obviously, I have the luxury of being able to drop the round I missed, so hopefully I’ll have a good run and we’ll plan the rest of the year off that.”

“I’ve always had a decent car at Sydney, last year was my debut in the Hi-Tec Oils Camaro, which was one to forget with two DNFs, but we finished the rest of the year off good and fast wherever we went, so hopefully we can do that again this year and the fact that I missed Bathurst won’t matter.” 

“Night racing isn’t easier nor harder but it’s really cool. Under lights the atmosphere is always awesome at Sydney. Everything feels faster, the cars look cooler, it makes for good TV and great racing, everything under lights is incredible and I am excited for it.” 

ENTRYLIST 

#3 Steve Wilson, Wilson Autosport, Chev Camaro

#4 Mark Crutcher, Crutcher Developments, Ford Mustang

#5 Danny Reidy, Desert Palms Alice Springs, Chev Camaro

#9 Cameron Laws, Racing Academy, Ford Mustang

#11 Michael Coulter, Turps Tippers, Ford Mustang

#18 Diesel Thomas, TFH Racing, Ford Mustang

#22 Brad Gartner, Hi-Tec Oils, Chev Camaro

#33 Brock Paine, Hutchinson Builders, Chev Camaro

#35 Ben Gomersall, Unit Racing/TFH Racing, Ford Mustang

#42 Tom Davies, Exchange Hotel Kilcoy Ford Mustang

#51 Graham Cheney, IES Motorsport, Chev Camaro

#63 Des Collier, TFH Racing, Ford Mustang

#69 Josh Thomas, TFH Racing, Ford Mustang

#71 Domain Ramsay, C&H Trucking, Chev Camaro

#81 Hayden Jackson, Team RSG, Dodge Challenger

#88 Warren Wadley, Wadley Property Group, Ford Mustang

#118 Tim Brook, Road Active Suspension, Chev Camaro

#121 Kiara Zabetakis, KRT Motorsport, Chev Camaro

#200 Josh Webster, Autofix, Ford Mustang

SCHEDULE 

Friday 

Practice 1 - 10:35am

Practice 2 - 11:45am

Qualifying - 2:25pm

Race 1 - 5:40pm

Race 2 -8:05pm

Saturday 

Qualifying -12:30pm

Race 1 - 5:10pm

Race 2 - 8:00pm

BROADCAST 

Friday 

Live Stream Hi-Tec Oils Super Series Youtube & Facebook 2pm-5pm 

SBS Fox Sports & Kayo Sports 5pm-10pm

Saturday 

Live Stream Hi-Tec Oils Super Series Youtube & Facebook 1:30pm-5pm

SBS Fox Sports & Kayo Sports 5pm-10pm

Reigning Formula RX8 Champion Brock Paine is set to take the next big step in his motorsport career, making his TA2 Muscle Car Series debut this weekend under lights at Sydney Motorsport Park for Round 3 of the TFH Hire TA2 Muscle Car Series presented by Maritimo Luxury Motor Yachts.

The Queensland-based driver will line up as a rookie in the field this weekend, marking his first-ever drive in a TA2 car and says he is super stoked to be joining the series.

“I am really excited to be joining the series this weekend. It’s obviously a big step up from what I’ve raced in the past.”

“I’m really looking forward to the competition, there are a lot of quality drivers in the field, and I can’t wait to prove myself against them.”

After a dominant season in the Formula RX8 category, the 23-year old said he is ready to step up to the high-powered TA2 grid.

“Winning the Formula RX8 championship was a huge milestone, but now it’s time to push myself even further. The TA2 cars are a big step up in power and competition, but I’m confident in the work we’ve put in to get here.”

Paine has completed several test days in preparation for his debut, building confidence behind the wheel of his V8-powered TA2 Camaro. While practice has been promising, he acknowledges there’s no substitute for real race conditions.

“The biggest thing I have found so far is getting used to the car positioning as it’s a left hand drive vehicle, as everything else I have driven has been right hand drive.”

“I feel really comfortable in the car, I have had a few test days but there is no real way to know until we get out on track this weekend.”

While this marks his first TA2 start, Paine is entering the weekend with a focused mindset and a clear performance goal.

“I put a fair bit of pressure on myself on race weekends to do well, but as this is our first round in these cars, if we can be inside the top 10 by the end of the weekend, I think the whole team will be pretty stoked with that.”

Round 3 of the 2025 TFH Hire TA2 Muscle Car Series - Presented by Maritimo Luxury Motor Yachts kicks off May 30-31 at Sydney Motorsport Park. Friday and Saturday’s races can be watched live and free to air on SBS Viceland, simulcast on Fox Sports and Kayo Sports. 

The sale of the National Trans AM Series from the Australian Racing Group to HCC Pty Ltd has been completed with the new owners taking control of the series, effective immediately, and planning underway for another large field at Round 3 of the Trico Trans AM series as a support to the Supercar Hidden Valley event in Darwin next month.

HCC Pty Ltd, (Hadley, Crutcher, Cheney), a new syndicate formed by regular TA2 competitors Paul Hadley, Mark Crutcher and Graham Cheney also purchased the TA2 Muscle Car Series from founder’s Peter and Dayna Robinson earlier this year.  

Up to 30 Trans AM entries are expected for the Northern Territory event, while negotiations completed this week will also see the TA2 spec cars replace TCR as a support category at the upcoming Western Australia Supercar round at Carco.com.au Raceway. This will be a one-off non-championship event for the “King of the West” title.

“All the formal paperwork with Motor Australia has been signed regarding the transfer of ownership, settlement has been completed, and we are now focussed on growing both the Trans AM and TA2 Muscle Car platforms. We have already invested in a much larger trailer to service both series on track with parts and components, expanded staffing where required, ordered more new cars from Howe Engineering in Michigan, confirmed supply of Chevrolet crate engines as well as Holinger Engineering for the supply of an optional gearbox to the original G Force for both series,”  HCC’s Mark Crutcher explained.

“My role is to head up the new entity and continue the expanding trajectory for both categories and as well as being a quick driver, Graham has a good engineering and racing head and will support the technical side with ongoing product development.  Paul brings an enormous breadth of business skills to the table, I believe we are a very complementary team.”

The recent 41 car field for Round Two at the Hi-Tec Oils Bathurst 6 Hour was a record grid for the series so far, and there’s strong competitor interest in both the Trico Trans AM and the TA2 Muscle Car Series, both serving a different level of competition. With round 3 of the Hi Tec Oils Super Series taking place at Sydney Motorsport Park at the end of May.

Following TCR’s withdrawal as a support category to the Perth Supercar event, HCC will step in with a field of TA2 spec cars as a one-off event.

“Due to our previous King of the West titles in Western Australia, there’s quite a number of cars and drivers already in Perth that are keen to compete. Previous WA champions Brett Niall and Ron Moller have entered, along with speedway star Jason Pryde and we are confident of delivering a field of up to 15 cars. We plan to send 3 or 4 cars from the East over to Perth to top up the field. It will be a super busy time between TA2 and Trico Trans AM with Perth, Darwin, Sydney and Queensland Raceway all in a space of 5 weeks!” said TA2 Category Manager Matty Mack.

In a dominant performance by the TFH Team, Mustang driver Todd Hazelwood was the overall National Trans AM round winner while Ben Gomersall claimed the TA2 Muscle Car maximum points haul after Race Two of the combined championship round at Mt Panorama this morning. All positions are provisional at this stage due to post race investigations yet to be heard.

The race was red flagged when Mustang driver Jordan Cox slammed the wall after hitting an oil patch while running second in the Dipper, setting off a chain reaction that ultimately blocked the track.

James Golding made the best of his pole start to lead into Turn One, Elliot Barbour who started on the second row was hung out to dry on the outside of Turn 1 dropping back to 15^th, while TA2 lead runner Jarrod Hughes sat in 5^th behind Nathan Herne.

Jordan Cox made a move on Todd Hazelwood for 2^nd into the Chase while Ben Grice sent it down the inside on Jarrod Hughes for 5^th into Turn, however losing control under brakes taking both out of contention.

Rookie Charlie Nash ended up bunkered in the gravel after damage to the front end, with the safety called at the end of Lap 1 and Hi-Tec Oils Camaro driver Robbie Farr pitted to tape up the driver’s side door with the race going green again on Lap 4.

National Trans AM reigning champ Todd Hazlewood passed Cox for second on the re-start and then James Golding with a superb run-down Conrod Straight taking the lead into the Chase.

TA2 racer Aaron Prosser was served with a 5 second penalty for overlapping at the re-start while Jordan Cox passed Golding’s GRM Mustang up Mountain Straight for second place on Lap 5.

Across the top of the Mountain, it all came undone when Cox hit the wall hard in the Dipper, taking out Adam Garwood and ultimately setting off a chain reaction that blocked the track and caused officials to shut down the race due to the lengthy clean up. Reports had oil on the track from Skyline to the Dipper which may have contributed to the incident overall.

With the race declared after only 6 laps, Hazelwood maximised his weekend efforts to take the overall win from Golding and former TA2 Rookie of the Year Nathan Herne.

Due to Hughes finishing well down as a result of the Turn 1 slam dunk from Grice, TFH Mustang driver Ben Gomersall ending up with the TA2 winner’s trophy.

The Circo Master Class was dominated by TA2 regulars Graham Cheney, Paul Hadley and Mark Crutcher and Team RSG Dodge driver Hayden Jackson won the $500 Hypercoil Hard Charger Award with a 16-spot gain in Race 2 from grid 40.

Cameron Laws for the Racing Academy was awarded the Rookie of the Round Award, while NZ young gun Ayrton Hodson won the Wilwood Big Braker Award for his first impressive appearance on Mt Panorama.

Results are still provisional at the time of posting, however Jarrod Hughes and Ben Gomersall continue to dominate the TFH Hire TA2 Muscle Car Series - presented by Maritimo Luxury Yachts series points after the second round. Hi-Tec Oils Brad Gartner was a non-starter this round however will be back for Round Three at Sydney Motorsport Park under lights at the end of May. 
 

QUOTES 

Ben Gomersall, #35 Unit Racing/TFH Racing Ford Mustang

“I am super stoked to come away with the Race 2 win and an outright win here at Bathurst. The Unit Racing Mustang has been quick all weekend. There was a fair bit of action in there last one so I was just trying to manage to pick our way through the field and stay out of trouble, but overall was good to come home with a win.”

Josh Thomas, #69 TFH Racing Mustang 

“I had a great weekend in Bathurst, it is actually my first outright podium in the TA2 series and I am so pumped about that. A 41 car grid it was very chaotic at times but the racing was awesome and it is good to be here with everyone. Huge thank you to my team and sponsors, I can’t wait for the next one at Sydney Motorsport Park.”

Graham Cheney, #51 IES Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro

“It was a pretty good day here for me at Bathurst after the mistake I had yesterday but today was definitely an interesting race. It was very tricky with all the oil that was across the top of the mountain, but I was very lucky not to put it in the wall. It was awesome to see this many cars here for the weekend with lot’s of good racing.”