Monochrome GT4 Australia held its first ever race at Hidden Valley Raceway on Saturday afternoon, which went off with a bang as a fairly clean outing saw plenty of action and history made in style.
Silver Cup
Will Exton and Jack Johnson have claimed their first ever Monochrome GT4 Australia Silver Cup victory after converting a brilliant strategy from the Team Soutar Motorsport outfit.
Behind the wheel of the #114 McLaren Artura GT4, Exton and Johnson ended up claiming a victory of almost four seconds over the #35 Miedecke Motorsport with Lubrimaxx Ford Mustang GT4 of Blake Tracey and George Miedecke.
Rounding out the class podium was the #62 Wallis Motorsport Ford Mustang GT4 of Sam Paley and Jack Wallis after the pair crossed the line a further eight seconds behind.
Having started on the front row alongside the #48 Purdie Racing Audi R8 LMS GT4 of Blake Purdie, the pair’s victory came off the back of a brilliant strategy during the pit stops, allowing them clear air to build a solid lead.
Exton delivered a near-faultless run during the first half of the race as he stayed within reach of the leading Audi before Purdie came into the pits, with Exton then charging out to a bigger lead before handing the car over to Johnson.
With Purdie and Stewart having a longer pit stop, it opened up the door for Johnson to come out into the race with a hefty lead over Miedecke of almost seven seconds.
While Miedecke ended up bringing the gap down to two seconds and even getting to within six tenths of a second, Johnson weathered the pressure before charging away in the final stages.
Making up the top five for the race in Silver Cup were Aaron Cameron and Lachlan Dalton in the #27 Ford Mustang GT4 and Multispares teammates Cam McLeod and Mason Harvey in the #227 Ford Mustang GT4.
Silver-Am
Lachlan Evennett and Andrew Torti have secured their second Silver-Am Cup win in as many rounds after guiding the #88 CAMM Quarries and Concrete Racing GR Supra GT4 to a nail-biting win of just eight tenths.
Having started the first race in fourth, a strong run from Evennett in the opening stint put the pair to within the lead right before the pit stops before a fast pit stop saw Torti come out with the lead.
A smart drive from Torti saw him bring the car home having fended off late challenges from the returning Dean Campbell in the #118 Method Motorsport Ford Mustang GT4 he is sharing with Cody Burcher – the Queenslander producing a stellar run to pass a number of cars during his stint.
Rounding out the Silver-Am podium was another returning crew with Aaron Seton and Jason Gomersall in the #1 Gomersall Motorsport Ford Mustang GT4 – the pair almost 10 seconds behind.
Just missing out on a podium was the #75 Tufflift Racing by TSM McLaren Artura GT4 of Zac Soutar and Glenn Nirwan. The former had started the race from pole position thanks to a commanding lead earlier today, but dropped down the order following the pit stops.
While Nirwan managed to get himself back within podium contention, contact with the #7 Slatterys / McElrea Racing BMW M4 G82 EVO of Jay Murray ended any hope of a podium as they had to settle for fourth.
Despite the disappointment, Nirwan starts Race 2 from Pole Position, giving the pair a good chance of securing their first victory in the series.
Am Cup
Jarrod Keyte has continued his brilliant start in the Am Cup after taking out a well-deserved victory, having guided the #21 Ekebol MPC Ford Mustang GT4 to the chequered flag in top spot.
Running in the class for the first time this weekend on his lonesome, Keyte overcame the hot conditions to cross the line ahead of the second-placed Glenn Walker by one-and-a-half seconds.
With the title fight in the class heating up, Walker’s second place behind the wheel of the #14 Gomersall Motorsport Ford Mustang GT4 proved crucial in his charge as he edged out fellow contenders Nathan Callaghan and Chris Lillis by just over a second.
The #64 Method Motorsport Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS CS started the race from pole position after Callaghan produced a brilliant qualifying lap earlier in the day – however, he faced constant pressure from Walker in the opening laps of the race.
Walker eventually got the pass on Callaghan during the stint and remained ahead until he went into the pits for his mandatory pit stop, coming back out in third behind Keyte and Lillis.
While Keyte remained unchallenged for the rest of the race, having leapfrogged from third to first following the pit stops, Lillis eventually succumbed to the late charge from Walker, who made a last-gasp pass on the final lap to snatch second place.
Comfortably rounding out the top five for the class was Bailey Love in the #17 Love Racing by TSM Mercedes-AMG GT4 and Nathan Murray in the #5 Morris/McElrea Racing BMW M4 GT4 G82 EVO.
Monochrome GT4 Australia continues tomorrow with Race 2 at 11:30am ACST.
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