DAVID RUSSELL has charged to his second Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia Championship round victory in style at Mount Panorama, sweeping all three races for the first time in his career to deliver a perfect Panorama performance for TekworkX Motorsport.
Meanwhile, round runner-up Dylan O’Keeffe’s strong weekend – coupled with a disaster for erstwhile leader Harri Jones – delivered the Dexion / RAM Motorsport / GWR Australia driver the championship lead for the second time this season with just two rounds remaining.
O’Keeffe’s brace of Equity-One Professional class podium finishes ensured he stormed to the top of the points, while Marco Giltrap celebrated a career first Porsche Carrera Cup podium at the same venue where he clinched his Michelin Sprint Challenge title two years ago.
In the Pro-Am class, Matt Belford claimed the sixth round of the championship with wins in the first two races and second in the Sunday finale, following home Matt Slavin who was second overall. Rodney Jane was third for the round however now has a significantly reduced lead in the Pro-Am championship standings with two to go.
Russell’s race three victory didn’t come easy despite leading away from pole position and gapping the field in the opening laps of the Sunday sprint race.
A broken brake balance cable mid-race saw O’Keeffe close on the lead and set the pair up to battle for the line.
While the latter attempted several passes, Russell’s defence was steadfast as he held on to claim career race win number 22 and his second round win – his first since Taupo in 2024.
With O’Keeffe second, Giltrap secured third position in both the race and round after spending much of the opening laps fending off a spirited challenge from Hamish Fitzsimmons, who was another to enjoy a career-best weekend.
Giltrap scored his first Carrera Cup trophy while Fitzsimmons’ weekend ended in fourth overall for the Jamec Racing / MPC squad.
The race three top-10 was rounded out by the brothers Wood – Dale in front of Glen – and a charging Angelo Mouzouris. Marcus Amand was next, the polesitter starting the race 24th and ending the opening lap in 12th position following a flying start.
He then picked off several more to work his way well into the top 10 in a stout recovery drive following his disappointments in races one and two.
Max Vidau – in his best race since returning to the championship yet – and Oscar Targett completed the top-10.
At the opposite end of the spectrum the weekend was brutal for the man who led the championship coming into the weekend, Harri Jones.
Penalised after crossing the line in second position in the opening race, Jones’ could only manage 10th position in race two – ensuring he started back in the pack for race three.
That risk proved high as he was caught in a lap one, turn one crash after Clay Osborne clipped Bayley Hall at Hell Corner as the field sorted themselves out.
Hall spun across the road and into the path of Jones’ #1 entry, damaging the car enough to force him out of the race.
The non-finish was Jones’ worst Carrera Cup race since the 2024 Adelaide finale’ opener – by which point he had already claimed his second Carrera Cup title – and was enough to ensure O’Keeffe wrestled the championship lead away once again.
Their arm-wrestle for Carrera Cup supremacy will continue in Surfers Paradise in two weeks time.
Hall’s non-finish was similarly costly for the Porsche Michelin Junior championship leader, dropping him from third to fourth in overall championship as a result – Russell climbing into the championship top three for the first time this season.
The Pro-Am battle was between Matt Slavin and Matt Belford on Sunday, the latter copping damage early in the race and dropping his front splitter – making his car hard to drive and giving Slavin the advantage.
He’d go on to claim the win however Belford’s two wins in the opening races were enough to ensure he sealed the deal to claim the round victory and a substantial haul of championship points.
With Slavin on the Bathurst podium for the second consecutive year, Rodney Jane’s consistency shone through as the Pro-Am championship leader banked enough points to secure the final step on the podium.
With two rounds remaining, Jane continues to lead the Pro-Am Championship by a now reduced margin to Matt Belford, with Matt Slavin moving to third place.
The next round of the Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia Championship will return the championship to the streets of Surfers Paradise and three races at the Boost Mobile Gold Coast 500, on October 24-26.
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