The GC Marine Australian Prototype Series gets its 2022 season underway at the Shannons Motorsport Australia Championship later this month with Sydney Motorsport Park to host its first round of the year.
Although it’s been almost one year since the series last held a round, many of its big names are touted to attend the round in the hopes of a strong start to a potential full campaign
One of those drivers already confirmed to compete is series veteran, Phillip Hughes, who will once again pilot the Radical SR8 he purchased ahead of what would have been the 2021 season.
It was a forgettable weekend for Hughes and the SR8’s debut last with his new car having multiple problems, including gasket issues and a broken crankshaft.
Having had the past year and a lockdown to fix the issues, the Englishman seemed to have fixed all issues ahead of Sydney.
“Last year’s round was an absolute shocker and everything that could have gone wrong, went wrong,” Hughes said.
“I have since gone from a 3.0 litre engine to a 2.7 litre V8 and although it doesn’t have as much horsepower, the car is more reliable and the series’ new parity laws mean you don’t have to be the fastest to do well.
“The car is still fast, so I believe I should be qualifying around that fifth to seventh mark.
“With that said, I do believe I am top of the car mechanically so we should be right. I am still learning it because it’s a monster car that drives much different to an SR8 – it drives like a sledgehammer, whereas I prefer to thread the needle.
“However, I have now driven it at enough circuits to have it dialled in and now I am just familiarising myself with the new setup changes.”
Hughes will make up the series’ Class 1, where he will be up against the most powerful cars on the grid, including the Group 6SR and Group 2PCN cars, which are made up of the familiar Wolfs and Wests.
The full class outline for the Series can be found here.
Outside of being keen to see the updated version of his new car in full flight, Hughes was excited to just get racing again.
“We’re all busting to get to Eastern Creek and see each other again,” Hughes added.
“I can’t wait to see many of the same competitors who have been doing it for a while. Even though I have stayed in touch with many of them, I am just excited to see them all in the flesh again.
The opening round of the GC Marine Australian Prototype Series will be at Sydney Motorsport Park on 27-29 May.
Tickets for the event are available at www.motorsporttickets.com.au.