The sixth round of the Shannons SpeedSeries at Sandown International Raceway is fast approaching, with six national categories gearing up for three days of jam-packed action next weekend.
The September event will take place almost exactly 12 months on from the Shannons SpeedSeries’ last visit to the popular Victorian circuit in 2022, where much like this year, six categories went head-to-head in a thrilling weekend of racing.
Click here to secure your tickets, with free entry for kids aged 15 and under, and general admission tickets from $30.
Three exciting categories will return from the 2022 edition of the event, including Supercheap Auto TCR Australia, National Trans Am Series and the Mobil 1 Australian Production Car Series – who will this time be joined by Monochrome GT4 Australia.
While they will not feature on this year’s line-up, Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS, Gulf Western Oil Touring Car Masters and Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia all wrote new chapters in their thrilling title races.
Despite the heavy rain, competitors and spectators alike were flooding in for a fantastic weekend of racing, with action aplenty across the three days.
In Supercheap Auto TCR Australia, Aaron Cameron had a point to prove after having just been named a Team Australia representative for the 2022 FIA Motorsport Games, taking victory in a dramatic opening race ahead of 2019 champion, Will Brown.
Captured at 2022 Speed Series – Round 6 – Sandown on 20220917 by Jack Martin Photography.
It was a disappointing start to the weekend for Ben Bargwanna, but the Victorian was able to bounce back with a Race 2 win, while Brown backed up two podium finishes with a victory on Sunday afternoon in Race 3.
It was a weekend to remember for Nathan Herne in the National Trans Am Series, with a first and second-place finish enough to seal the 2022 title ahead of rival, Owen Kelly.
With the first race of the weekend being cancelled due to heavy rainfall, Herne put himself in prime position for the title by taking victory in Race 2, before sealing the deal in Race 3 despite Kelly being first to take the flag.
The other returning category from that meeting is the Mobil 1 Australian Production Car Series, which will this year be joined by Monochrome GT4 Australia.
Last year, the hours were split across the category’s two races between the experienced Cameron Crick and eventual champion, Drew Russell taking respective victories.
Crick outlasted the rest of the field in remarkable fashion in a race that saw six drivers fail to finish the race, Russell would come home to finish in second but would then dominate the only other race of the weekend in a light-to-flag performance.
There were three other exciting categories taking part in the action-packed weekend, one being Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS.
Despite the opening race being cut short, Shane van Gisbergen and Prince Jefri Ibrahim were the first on the winner’s board with a convincing victory over Yasser Shahin and Garth Tander.
After falling short by nine seconds in Race 1, Shahin and Tander got their revenge by taking Race 2 in dramatic fashion, with Tony Bates spinning out on the final corner of the race to lose the lead.
Captured at 2022 Speed Series – Round 6 – Sandown on 20220916 by Jack Martin Photography.
The Gulf Western Oil Touring Car Masters was one of the unlucky categories to miss out on an official race on Saturday, however, it didn’t stop Danny Buzadzic from taking honours in the Trophy Race ahead of Tony Karanfilovski.
Luckily, the category was able to hold both its races on Sunday, with Adam Bressington topping John Bowe in a last-lap thriller earlier on in the day before the latter fell short of a rapid Ryan Hansford, who took honours in the third and final race of the weekend.
The intense title battle between Thomas Sargent and Ryan Wood in Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia continued, with the duo alternating victories in their two classified races.
It was Wood who would take bragging rights after Race 1, finishing one second ahead of Sargent after the latter was forced to make his way through the grid from fourth place.
However, the eventual champion would soon get his revenge by taking victory in a wet Race 2 that saw both contenders towards the rear of the grid after a late tyre change.
The 2023 edition of Sandown will be the sixth round of the Shannons SpeedSeries season, and will take place on 8-10 September.
Click here to secure your tickets, with free entry for kids aged 15 and under, and general admission tickets from $30.
