The penultimate round of the 2024 First Focus Radical Cup Australia Series is well underway, with a full day of on-track action on Saturday now complete. Saturday's racing has set the stage for a highly competitive weekend, starting with an early morning qualifying session where Josh Hunt put the #47 on pole for the second time this year ahead of two 25-minute sprint races.
Peter Paddon (#31 First Focus Radical SR3 XXR) and Barton Mawer - driving with Terry Knowles in the #68 Ausnets entry - both picked up race wins today, with the series leader sealing the deal in race one, and Mawer getting the job done in race two.
Starting from the front of the grid in race one, Paddon and his closest championship rival Cooper Cutts (#16 Terry Cutts Racing) both got off to a flying start, with the pair jostling for position throughout the first lap.
However, Paddon pulled ahead as they crossed the control line, where he began to eke out a small margin over Cutts.
Tigani Motorsport’s Justin Tigani, who would go on to finish third, was right in the mix for the majority of the race, with the leading pack creating a comfortable buffer over the rest of the field.
Mark Brame (#42 Focus Motorsport) was next across the line in fourth, with Volante Rosso’s Jamie Day rounding out the top five.
Putting the #47 on pole thanks to a tremendous effort in this morning’s qualifying session, Josh Hunt looked to be on for the race two win. Having spent the majority of the race fending off the #68 of Bart Mawer, however, with just two minutes to go, the Shared Runway/Volante Rosso Radical SR3 XX would come to a halt on the track at Turn 2.
Hunt was able to limp home with suspected engine issues, but not before bringing out the Safety Car, and creating a one-lap dash to the finish line. A highly experienced Radical racer also struck trouble early in the race. Forced into a spin, the #34 Champion’s Racing/GWR entry of Stephen Champion stalled on the track. A broken starter motor meant a tow back to pitlane.
Race two was another strong performance for Justin Tigani in fourth place, with fellow Sydney local Mark Brame in fifth place, ahead of Volante Rosso GT racer Jamie Day in sixth.
Seventh and eighth belonged to a pair of GWR Radicals, Jon Collins (#17 the PPF Studio) and #2 Ash Samadi, respectively.
Arise Racing’s Chris Reindler, who fielded an additional practice entry on Friday and is now back to his regularly scheduled co-driving duties with Bryce Moore in the #28, was ninth, and Nick Kelly (#99 Industrie/GFMS) rounded out the top ten.
In this morning’s qualifying session, Hunt picked up where he left off in Friday's Practice three, immediately putting the Shared Runway/Volante Rosso Radical SR3 XX at the top of the timing charts, where he would go toe-to-toe with Paddon throughout the session.
Round 4 of the 2024 First Focus Radical Australia Cup continues tomorrow with two more 25-minute sprint races. This is just the second time in series history that the four-race format has been used, the last time delivering three winners from the four races – will we see a similar result this weekend?
You can watch both of Sunday’s races live thanks to Channel 7 as part of the as part of the Shannons SpeedSeries ColorSpec Race Sydney. You can stream Race 3 (10.35am AEDT) live on 7plus and also catch Race 4 (2.45pm AEDT) on 7mate/7two.