Action Motorsport

KINGSLEY'S IMPRESSIVE CARRERA CUP DEBUT

Wed, 28 Mar 2012 00:24:00 GMT

Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge competitor, Matt Kingsley made an impressive debut in the Carrera Cup Series at the Clipsal 500 Adelaide. He was on the pace from the very first practice session with a top five placing. He went on to better this placing with fourth in qualifying which positioned him on the second row of the grid for his very first Carrera Cup race.

Kingsley got a great start off the line and mixed it with the likes of Davidson, Baird and Richards for the opening few laps. He was sitting comfortably in fourth when third gear decided to let go which meant that he was forced to retire from the race. The Action Motorsport team then had the huge task of dropping the gearbox out of the #50 car and replacing it with a loan gearbox from Porsche Cars Australia in time for race two the following morning. It was midnight by the time the loan gearbox was in the car and ready to go for race 2.

The team were back at the circuit by 7am the following morning further preparing the car for Race 2. Again Kingsley got a great start of the line albeit this time from the rear of the grid. It was a great, sensible drive from the Gold Coaster who carefully picked his way through the field. He had a great dice with Tweedy for fifth place but could not quite get the job done with his rapidly deteriorating tyres. That particular set of tyres had already been punished during qualifying and race 1 and therefore were not in great shape. Matt crossed the line in sixth place which is quite impressive considering his start from the rear of the grid.

The impressive driving continued in the final race with Kingsley passing Tweedy cleanly in the first corner. He went on to execute an exciting passing manoeuvre on Heimgartner through the fast turn 8/9 section of the circuit which elevated him up to fourth position. He was all over the back of the #27 car of Gaunt for a solid four laps before finally making a clean move past him at turn four and moving into third position. The blocking by Gaunt had cost Matt some race pace and had allowed Davison and Baird to pull away from the pack. Kingsley maintained his fast pace to bring the #50 car home in third place to the absolute delight of his Action Motorsport Team.

Photo by Nathan Wong

GOLD COASTER MATT KINGSLEY RETURNS TO THE STREETS OF ADELAIDE FOR PORSCHE CARRERA CUP DEBUT

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 01:20:00 GMT

Gold Coaster Matt Kingsley will make his City Index Porsche Carrera Cup debut at the Adelaide Clipsal meeting March 1-4. Kingsley is stepping up to the premier Porsche category to replace team owner and driver Ray Angus, who is unable to compete at this round due to business commitments. Ray believes Matt is the perfect choice to take his place in the Inca Motorsports GT3 Cup Car.

Kingsley is incredibly excited to be competing in the Carrera Cup and to take a major step up in his racing career “This is a great opportunity to step up to the premier Porsche class. It’s a real honor to compete alongside V8 Supercar legends Craig Baird and Steven Richards”

Kingsley’s achievements include winning the 2009 GT3 Cup Challenge Series in his 2002 model 996, and being runner up in 2010, again in his older model 996, after winning 9 races consecutively. With a solid foundation and an incredible run of success in recent years in the Porsche feeder series, Kingsley is set to make his mark on the Porsche Carrera Cup class.

Kingsley makes his first return to the Adelaide Clipsal since the 2008 V8 Ute series, when he was involved in a sickening multiple car, high speed accident which hospitalized him for 6 months and put his racing career into jeopardy. Kingsley made a miraculous recovery from his injury and has been racking up steady wins since the accident. Recovered and full of confidence Kingsley is excited and highly prepared to race in this prestigious event.

As the premier support category to the V8 Supercars, The City Index Porsche Carrera Cup is a highly competitive championship with a mix of young up and coming drivers, semi- professional racers and some of the biggest names in the sport competing.

Action motorsport is seeking sponsors to support Matt Kingsley in what is guaranteed to be an exciting Pro Class debut. Sponsorship space available for the Clipsal Round includes the bonnet and the rear wing which is available for signage.

To be a part of this exciting event and support a promising Gold Coast driver, contact the following for information regarding sponsorship:

LAGO AND KNIGHT SECURE GT3 CUP CHALLENGE TITLES

Thu, 17 Nov 2011 02:05:00 GMT

Roger Lago has been crowned the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia Champion, as Jeff Bobik and 996 Cup Class champion Terry Knight took class honours at Phillip Island’s season finale.

The fight for the 2011 title came down to the final race, with Lago and Bobik both in contention to take the outright series win. With Lago only having to finish in the top 10 to claim the title, his fourth place secured the reigning champion his second GT3 Cup Challenge title in as many years.

Bobik had a perfect day in the Porsche category, claiming two convincing race wins at his home circuit.

Sunday's opening race saw Bobik beat Ivan Klasan, Lago, Phil Morriss and 996 Cup Class race winner Knight to the chequered flag.

Bobik and Klasan again finished one-two in the final race of the season, followed by Phil Morriss, Lago, Jon Trende, Steve Kepper, John Modystach and repeat 996 Cup Class race winner Knight.

With three wins throughout the season and 13 top three finishes from 18 races, Lago secured his second straight outright GT3 Cup Challenge title by 13 points over Bobik, along with the 997 Cup Class crown.

“This series win is pretty special. It’s been fantastic coming from being a club racer to winning two GT3 Cup Challenge titles,” said Lago.

“To go back-to-back is really nice. I think I won this year more on my own credit and form than last year. Jeff Bobik pushed me all the way, but you’ve got to finish every race and that’s what I did.

“For me, this year was all about having the great car prepared for every round and being physically fit as well, so you can relax in the car, which allows you to be mentally tougher. Also, my race engineer Don Kington deserves just as much credit, because he’s done a fantastic job. He’s been with me for four years and I owe him a lot because he prepares the car beautifully, while all I have to do is rock up and drive.

“It was also pretty special winning the Jim Richards Endurance Trophy this year, especially being the first year of the award.”

While Bobik narrowly missed out on the Porsche title, he was pleased with his Phillip Island performance.

“After yesterday’s mishap where I left the car in neutral at the start, today’s two race wins were the icing on the cake for the round,” said Bobik.

“I was confident heading into the weekend, more so than usual. This is my home track and I knew I just had to go as hard as I could. It was really up to Roger to make a mistake, which he never seems to do.”

Meanwhile, Terry Knight, having secured the 996 Cup Class crown after Saturday’s opening race, took a clean sweep of class race wins to dominate the Victorian round.

“I’m really happy about the round win but, more importantly, I’m happy to have wrapped up the 996 Cup Class.

“I’ve had four years in 996 Cup Class now so I’d really like to have a crack in the 997 Cup Class, and as I now have permission, so we'll have a look at it.

Knight finished the season with nine 996 Cup Class race wins from the series’ 18 races, placed ahead of Indiran Padayachee and Paul Bolinowsky in the 2011 class standings.

Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia will next race at Mallala Motor Sport Park on April 13-15, 2012.

KNIGHT SECURES CLASS CROWN WHILE KLASAN CLAIMS RACE WIN

Sun, 06 Nov 2011 22:59:00 GMT

Ivan Klasan has taken his first race victory of the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia season at Phillip Island in Saturday’s race one, while Terry Knight’s 996 Cup Class race win was enough to secure him the 2011 class crown.

Klasan started the 10-lap opening race in second before gained the lead from pole-sitter Jon Trende early in the opening lap.

Klasan pulled away at the front to eventually take the chequered flag, finishing over five seconds ahead of his nearest rival Steve Kepper, who was contesting his first GT3 Cup Challenge race for the 2011 season.

Behind the leading duo, Jeff Bobik was the driver to watch in the 10-lap event.

Starting fifth on the grid, Bobik had a slow start to the race, with his car in neutral when it was time to take off.

Bobik dropped to 16th before eventually charging back through the field to secure third position by the chequered flag, finishing ahead of Phil Morriss, Roger Lago, John Modystach and seventh-placed John Goodacre.

Meanwhile, Klasan was pleased with his first race win of the season at his favourite circuit.

“I’m obviously pretty happy with the win. I am also happy with my pace throughout the race, especially as this field is pretty tight,” said Klasan.

“I had a reasonable start and got into the lead by turn two, and that was that. I controlled my pace from there and went on to win.

“Phillip Island is my favourite track and it’s been very kind to me in my racing. Generally if my car is good and my confidence is there we are usually on the pace.”

Meanwhile, Terry Knight, who finished eighth outright in the race, was the best placed 996 Cup Class driver, which was enough to secure him the 996 Cup Class title.

“We’re all very happy with how we went in the race,” said Knight.

“I managed to drive my way through the field and had great pace which I am happy about, especially seeing as our qualifying was rubbish earlier in the day.

“I’m also stoked with the 996 Cup Class title win. I’ve done four years in the 996 Cup Class so I’ve served my apprenticeship and have had some great people around me to help secure the class win.”

Behind Knight, Jan Jinadasa and John Morriss rounded out the top ten for the race, while Matt Kingsley’s weekend ended early after gearbox issues forced him out of the race when placed fourth.

Knight’s 996 Cup Class title win means Indiran Padayachee has secured second in the class for the season, while Kingsley’s failure to finished allowed Paul Bolinowsky to move into third in the season’s 996 Cup Class points with two races remaining.

Lago continues his lead in the Outright and 997 Cup Class standings, holding a gap of 32 and 36 points over Bobik in the respective classes.

Sunday’s racing from the Shannons Nationals Motor Racing Championships, including race two and race three of Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia, will be streamed live on www.itvlive.com.au.

GT3 CUP CHALLENGE SET FOR THRILLING PHILLIP ISLAND FINALE

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 01:09:00 GMT

Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia will this weekend hold its final round of the 2011 season at Phillip Island, with Roger Lago and Jeff Bobik set to battle for the outright title win.

With 15 races behind them this season, both Lago and Bobik have claimed three race wins, along with 10 and 11 top three race finishes, respectively; an impressive performance in the competitive one-make series.

Reigning champion Lago enters the event as the outright title favourite, holding a lengthy 36 point lead over Bobik in the outright standings and a 38 point lead in the 997 Cup Class.

Behind the leading duo, a hard fought battle for third in the outright standings will see Terry Knight (Type 996), John Goodacre (Type 997), Phil Morriss (Type 997) and Jon Trende (Type 997) enter the series finale just 39 points apart, while Morriss and Trende will compete for third place in the 997 Cup Class standings.

Meanwhile, series stalwart Knight will enter this weekend as the firm favourite to win the 996 Cup Class title.

Knight looks to have all but secured the 996 Cup Class crown, holding a 64 point lead in the class with a total of 94 points on offer this weekend.

If Knight is successful in his 996 Cup Class pursuit, it will be his first outright or class title in the category to date, while his attendance at the Phillip Island round will see him contest every round of the all-Porsche category since its 2008 inception.

Knight’s only challenger for the 996 Cup Class title is consistent performer Indiran Padayachee. Having attended every round of the 2011 season, Padayachee has quietly accumulated a significant amount of points each round to secure himself a top two finish in the 996 Cup Class standings.

Joining the duo in the 996 Cup Class are two series returnees – Matt Kingsley and Bill Pye.

Kingsley has endured a tough season in GT3 Cup Challenge, which included an accident at Mallala that saw him miss the next round at Eastern Creek. The Queensland based driver further missed the last round at Sandown to focus on the Phillip Island finale.

Kingsley will not only aim for class honours, but the outright round win. Kingsley has secured four outright race wins in the season so far; more than any other driver in the 2011 season.

Pye is another 996 Cup Class competitor rejoining the series. Pye will be one of five drivers lining up at Phillip Island to have raced in the first ever Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia round in 2008 – also including Knight, Trende, Paul Bolinowsky and Anthony Skinner – and last competed in the all-Porsche category at the opening round of the 2009 season.

Bob Thorn will return to the series for the Phillip Island round after competing in the season’s opening two events at Wakefield Park and Mallala. Steve Kepper is another addition to the field, having contested select GT3 Cup Challenge events in the past before making his first 2011 appearance in the category this weekend.

Sunday’s racing from the Shannons Nationals Motor Racing Championships, including Race 2 and Race 3 of Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia, will be streamed live on www.itvlive.com.au.

Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia – Race schedule

Saturday November 05
10:05am Practice 1 20 minutes
12:45pm Qualifying 1 20 minutes
3:55pm Race 1 10 laps

Sunday November 06
10:00am Race 2 10 laps
1:00pm Race 3 10 laps

TRENDE AND KNIGHT SECURE SANDOWN VICTORY

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 01:09:00 GMT

Jon Trende has taken outright victory in round five of Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia at Sandown International Raceway, while Terry Knight claimed the 996 Cup Class win after Kane Rose’s Race 3 misfortune.

Trende started Sunday with victory in Race 2, finishing ahead of Jeff Bobik, Race 1 winner Rose, Roger Lago, Ivan Klasan, Hugh Gardiner, John Modystach and Terry Knight in eighth.

Trende was again leading the field in Race 3 when Saturday victor Rose left the circuit at the high-speed turn eight, making heavy contact with the armco barrier. Rose was uninjured from the accident, however his Porsche 996 Cup car suffered substantial damage.

The race was subsequently finished under safety car and Trende claimed his second race victory of the weekend, along with the 997 Cup Class and Outright victory from the Sandown round.

Behind Trende, Bobik claimed second place, which secured him second for the round in the 997 Cup Class, with the third-placed Lago finishing third for the round in the 997 Cup Class.

Gardiner finished Race 3 in fourth, ahead of Klasan, Phil Morriss, Terry Knight, Rob Knight, Indiran Padayachee and Peter Boylan in tenth.

“I’m very happy with the round win,” said Trende. “It was a great weekend, the car was fantastic and I managed to keep it on the track for all three races.

“I wasn’t surprised about my speed, I put it on pole position so outright speed hasn’t really been an issue; the issue has been with consistency, which is where I’ve needed to improve.

“This result definitely gives me confidence for Phillip Island given my speed and consistency this weekend.”

Meanwhile, 996 Cup Class winner Terry Knight was pleased with the class win, but rued the fact it came at the expense of fellow competitor Rose.

“It’s a bitter sweet win; I feel like it’s a little undeserved,” said Knight.

“I certainly wasn’t up to Kane’s pace but I’m happy to mix it with Roger Lago on Saturday and beat him home legitimately for the first time this year; that was a big buzz.

“I definitely didn’t expect this win before the weekend. I thought I was going to stay close to the lead pack and watch Kane leading them all home because he’s a great driver.

“Like a few of us, he’s light on budget so you’ll see the good aspects of this category come out in the coming weeks when everyone will try to help out to get Kane back on the track.”

Behind Knight, Padayachee finished second for the round in the 996 Cup Class points with Rose in third.

The round results leave Lago with a commanding lead in the 997 Cup Class while Terry Knight has extended his points gap at the top of the 996 Cup Class.

The final round of the 2011 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia season will be held at Phillip Island on November 5-6.

KINGSLEY WINS MORGAN PARK ROUND, LAGO SECURES JIM RICHARDS ENDURANCE TROPHY

Sun, 14 Aug 2011 23:41:00 GMT

Roger Lago has secured the Jim Richards Endurance Trophy at Morgan Park at the fourth round of Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia, while Matthew Kingsley took a clean sweep of race wins at the Queensland event.

After starting the event with pole position and a Race 1 win on Saturday, Kingsley continued his fine form on Sunday a further two race wins.

Kingsley charged to the lead at the start of Sunday morning’s Race 2 and quickly pulled a gap on his nearest rival Jon Trende. Further behind, a four-car incident involving Brad Rankin, John Morriss, Phil Morriss and Jan Jinadasa brought out the safety car early in the race. Once the race resumed, Kingsley again gapped the field to claim his second win of the weekend ahead of Trende and John Modystach in third – his best result in the category – followed by Terry Knight and John Goodacre.

Kingsley then took victory in the 36-lap Race 3, which was the third and final race of the Jim Richards Endurance Trophy, in addition to the endurance-style races held at Wakefield Park and Mallala.

Kingsley lost the lead to Trende at the start, but regained the front position later in the opening lap before again pulling a gap to his rivals. His lead would soon diminish though after a safety car was called to allow officials to extinguish a grass fire at turn six.

When the race resumed, Kingsley continued his form at the front to take his third win for the weekend.

“It was a better result that I could ever dream of for my return to the track. The car was very impressive throughout the race meeting. We just pegged away a little bit at a time to make the car better,” said Kingsley.

“Towards the end of the stint the 997s were pretty quick so we tried to keep the tyres in good condition and get to the finish line. But the car was fantastic and it was a great result for the boys.”

Trende finished second in the 36 lap race; enough to secure the round win in the 997 Cup Class, finishing ahead of Lago in third, which handed him the inaugural Jim Richards Endurance Trophy.

“It’s a good trophy to add to the cabinet so I’m pretty honoured to win the series within the series,” said Lago.“This endurance championship is a good idea; these enduros are great. You’ve got to have the right mentality for the weekend on tyres, fitness and strategy. I’m pretty rapt with the result and I couldn’t have asked for much more really.”

Bobik finished fourth in Race 3 - and second for the round in the 997 Cup Class – ahead of Goodacre in fifth and Terry Knight in sixth for the race and second in the 996 Cup Class.

After finishing third in Race 2, Modystach finished seventh in Race 3 which was enough for third for the round in the 997 Cup Class.

Season debutant Greg Ross finished the final race in eighth ahead of Indiran Padayachee, who was third for the round in 996 Cup Class, ahead of Dean Koutsoumidis, Jon Tupou and Jinadasa in 12th.

The next round of Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia will be held at Sandown on September 10-11, while Lago will be awarded the Jim Richard Endurance Trophy at the end-of-year presentation night.

JIM RICHARDS ENDURANCE TROPHY TO BE DECIDED AT MORGAN PARK

Sun, 14 Aug 2011 23:44:00 GMT

Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia’s Jim Richards Endurance Trophy will be decided at the series' fourth round at Morgan Park this weekend. The Jim Richards Endurance Trophy will be awarded to the best point scorer from the three endurance-styles race held at three of the series’ six rounds – Wakefield Park, Mallala and Morgan Park – with Brisbane driver Roger Lago the favourite to claim the accolade.

Lago currently leads the standings for the Jim Richards Endurance Trophy by eight points over 996 Cup Class leader Terry Knight, with John Goodacre a further point behind in third.

“I’m currently leading the standings so if I keep my nose clean and finish in the points then that will hopefully be enough to win the endurance championship. The key is definitely to finish,” said Lago.

“It’s my home track so I’m looking forward to getting to Morgan Park and doing well."

While Lago currently leads the way to become Endurance Champion, eight drivers remain a mathematical chance for the title – including Lago, Terry Knight, John Goodacre, Jeff Bobik, Matt Kingsley, Phil Morriss, John Modystach and John Morriss.

Drivers returning to the series include Kingsley and Rob Knight, who were both involved in a Race 1 crash at Mallala in May. While Knight returns with a repaired racecar, Kingsley will sport a replacement Porsche 996 Cup car, formerly raced by Jon Trende. After preparing his new race car, Kingsley is ready to return to the race track at his local round.

“If the new car goes anything like it looks it should be an absolute rocket,” said Kingsley.

“I'm extremely excited to turn the key and drive it out pit lane. It will be a good challenge at Morgan Park to dial in a setup in free practice that is hopefully good enough for a good qualifying time. We have only done a quick shake-down of the car at Morgan Park on the short circuit and the results were very good straight out of the box.”

Greg Ross will return to the series at Morgan Park having not yet raced in the 2011 GT3 Cup Challenge season. Prior to this weekend’s Queensland round, Ross has raced in sports cars around the world, including this year’s Porsche Carrera World Cup at Nurburgring in Germany where he finished 67th.

Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia will hold three races over the weekend, including a 36-lap race on Sunday afternoon, which will decide the Jim Richards Endurance Trophy winner.

GOODACRE AND KNIGHT CLAIM EASTERN CREEK ROUND HONOURS

Mon, 18 Jul 2011 04:33:00 GMT

John Goodacre has taken outright round victory in Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia’s Eastern Creek round, with Terry Knight victorious in the 996 Cup Class.Goodacre entered the Eastern Creek round with a newly acquired Porsche GT3 Cup (Type 997) car after upgrading from his older model 996 Porsche after the Mallala round.

The car swap proved fruitful, claiming one race win and the outright round victory in his first appearance in the 997 Cup Class.Goodacre started Sunday with a win in Race 2, where he managed to pull away from the field before a mid-race safety car period. On the restart, he was challenged by Phil Morriss for the lead but managed to remain at the front and achieve his first GT3 Cup Challenge outright race win.Jeff Bobik finished third for Race 2, ahead of Roger Lago, Jon Trende, Jan Jinadasa and John Morriss, Brad Rankin and Peter Boylan in ninth; with Paul Bolinowsky the first 996 Cup Class driver in the placings in tenth.

Bobik went on to take the Race 3 victory; the third different race winner in as many races, finishing ahead of Goodacre, Lago, Phil Morriss, Trende, Rankin, John Morriss and Jinadasa in eighth.Goodacre’s second place in Race 3 was enough to secure the round victory in his first appearance in the 997 Cup Class.“It was great to move up into the 997 and actually win the round. It’s an unbelievable effort from everyone,” said Goodacre.“I didn’t think I’d be so quick straight away in the 997. We’d only had one practice in the car, so I thought I’d only make the top six. The win was a lot better result than I thought I would get.“My aim is to get more round wins down the track. The more I drive the car, the more I get used to it. Hopefully I get quicker in it and improve the car throughout the season.”

Knight finished the weekend with two class race wins from the three races, claiming his second consecutive round win in the 996 Cup Class.
“I’m thrilled to bits. My team have done a great job to get the car ready for me for the round,” said Knight. “It's always great to get another 996 Cup Class round win. It was also rewarding to be competing among the 997 drivers on a track that suits their style of race car."

Lago remains in the championship lead after the Eastern Creek round, ahead of Bobik, Goodacre, Morriss and Knight. Round 4 of Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia will be held at Morgan Park on August 13-14.

AUTO ACTION ISSUE 1442 PG32

Thu, 09 Jun 2011 01:51:00 GMT

Motorsport News Article Issue 406 April 2011

Thu, 09 Jun 2011 23:48:00 GMT

With the rebirth of the Porsche GT3 Cup

AUTO ACTION ARTICLE ISSUE 1442 25TH MAY 2011

Thu, 09 Jun 2011 23:44:00 GMT

An article about the Matt Kingsley in the Porsche GT3 Cup

AUTO ACTION ARTICLE ISSUE 1443 IST JUNE 2011

Tue, 07 Jun 2011 04:36:00 GMT

Matt Kinglsey, Roger Lago and David Russell 5th outright on the Mountain

Fri, 01 Apr 2011 03:46:00 GMT

TWO SERIES WINNERS of the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia presented by Mission Foods have combined to show the level of competition within the series is as strong as anything in Australia. 2009 winner Matt Kingsley and 2010 champ Roger Lago combined with Fujitsu V8 Supercar race winner and former Carrera Cup ace David Russell to contest the Armor All Bathurst 12 Hour Enduro at the weekend, finishing an outstanding fifth outright.

Driving Lago’s #23 MY08 Porsche 997 GT3 Cup Car, the trio punched well above their weight to score the top five finish – behind only two 2010-specification works Audi’s, a latest model Porsche GT3 R and a Porsche GT3 Cup S. Lago / Kingsley and Russell completed 282 laps of the famous Mount Panorama circuit, a total of 1750km, trouble free. They also won their class by 25 laps. The final results show that the pair of GT3 Cup Challenge Australia series winners placed in the top five with two former Australian GT Champions, an FIA GT3 European Champion – and V8 hero Craig Lowndes – showing the depth of talent in the domestic all-Porsche series. “It was a fantastic weekend and a fantastic race,” car owner and driver Roger Lago said. “You can’t fault the effort that the team put in and the driving we saw from Matt and David. They didn’t put a foot wrong all day despite some really challenging conditions earlier on in the race. “Before this weekend we knew that we would be competitive in our class, but to come here and finish fifth outright against the cars and drivers assembled in this field is a huge effort and a fantastic feeling.” The team – comprised of Lago’s own crew plus members from Kingsley’s Action Tyres & More crew and Porsche Centre Gold Coast Motorsport – was a truly unified effort representing a large part of the GT3 Cup Challenge family. “We knew we would be pretty competitive but I don’t think anyone expected us to finish fifth outright,” Matt Kingsley said. “It was a challenging race and the conditions were tough – you couldn’t put a foot wrong or you would come off or get in the way of another car – but everyone did a fantastic job to get us to the finish in fifth place outright and first in class. “Roger drove fantastically well all day despite really tough conditions. All three drivers were quite evenly matched and I think we formed a great team. Brought into the team for the one-off drive thanks to an existing relationship with Lago, David Russell said he was thrilled to score a class victory on the Mountain. "A brilliant result for the team, we focussed solely on our own race and kept it clean through the changing weather conditions and lapped traffic,” he said. “For me personally it is very satisfying coming off my Fujitsu Series V8 Supercar wins here last year and adding to my tally of class victories in all three Bathurst endurance race formats - the 3hour, 12 hour and 24 Hour during my career. “I'd like to thank Roger Lago for the invitation to drive with his team this year and I look forward to racing with him again in the future." Lago and Kingsley are both looking forward to the first round of the 2011 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia presented by Mission Foods Series, to be held at Wakefield Park this April.

A TALE OF TWO WINNERS AT SANDOWN

Thu, 10 Mar 2011 04:30:00 GMT

THE FINAL ROUND of the 2010 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia Series has produced a tale of two winners, as Kane Rose won the round and Roger Lago the title in a weekend of high drama.

After streaking away to a race one win on Saturday, Rose was in imperious form under blue skies on Sunday and swept both races to take his first ever GT3 Cup Challenge round win.

Meanwhile, Roger Lago did all that was needed of him to record enough points to overtake the non-starting Matt Kingsley and take his first ever title at a national level.

Though somewhat bittersweet, Lago’s title came through smart racing and consistency this year, the Queenslander keeping his #23 Falcon Property Group / Lago Coldstores 997 GT3 Cup Car out of harm’s way all season to take the title.

When the reigning champion crashed his Action Tyres 996 heavily in qualifying on Saturday the title was all but handed to Lago – assuming he finished in the points in each of the three races contested at the weekend – though it wasn’t as if the series win was not deserved.

Lago was second at Symmons Plains, Mallala and Morgan Park and brilliantly won at Eastern Creek in September to close the gap to Kingsley prior to arriving at Sandown.

Lago was realistic about his chances of beating Kingsley in a straight fight this weekend.

“I was going out to do my own thing, realistically I was never going to go and beat Matt because all he needed to do was circulate around within sight of me and he would have won it,” Lago said.

“Given I had never seen Sandown I was happy to qualify where I did. I heard Matt had crashed and expected him to be back out – I didn’t know until later that it was that big.

“We all tried really hard to get him out there in Terry’s (Knight) car but the rules wouldn’t allow it. I felt sorry for Matt because there’s no doubt he’s the fastest guy in the paddock.

“So through all of that it feels a bit strange, but you need to take things as they fall in this sport.”

Roger said his season was one of keeping out of other people’s issues, and capitalising on mistakes.

“I’m very pleased with the year overall, and that makes up a lot for the way this weekend (at Sandown) has panned out,” he added.

“My approach was to stay out of trouble and let people through if they were clearly faster. That way I finished races and collected points when others didn’t and that’s how you put together a championship.

“I’m pretty stoked with the year, overall.”

Rose’s win came ahead of a pack that was searching for last-round glory, with several cars coming unstuck in an eventful day of Safety Cars and red flags.

Race two was marred by a turn one collision between Jeff Bobik and Steve Kepper, which put Bobik out of the weekend and left Kepper down the back of the field.

The pair made light contact after Bobik’s car was also touched as the 18-strong pack charged towards turn one. The accident was determined a ‘racing incident’ and no penalties applied.

Melbournian Ivan Klasan was another to find the Sandown barriers, crashing heavily on the exit of turn four whilst battling Lago for third and fourth positions in race three. Klasan hit the wall hard enough to bring out the red flag and call the race short at 12 laps, within the required 75% of maximum distance to allow full points to be awarded.

At the end of it all Rose won the round with a perfect score, with Lago second overall and Hallmarc Developments’ Michael Loccisano a strong third outright.

Terry Knight won the battle of the 996 Class cars and was fourth outright for the second round in succession. Sven Burchartz was a quiet fifth whilst Brad Rankin ended his year on a high with a fighting sixth. Klasan, Trende, Kepper and GT3 Cup Challenge rookie Lee Castle completed the top ten.

The Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Australia Series presented by Mission Foods would like to acknowledge and thank the support of their 2010 series partners; Mission Foods, Michelin, Racer Industries, Performance Friction and Xtreme Industries.