Garth Tander will return to the TCR Australia field this weekend in the Audi previously driven by wife Leanne.
Tander takes over Melbourne Performance Centre’s #3 RS 3 LMS for the penultimate round of the season at Sandown.
His addition makes for two multiple Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 winners in the MPC ranks with Russell Ingall continuing in the #100 Audi, while young guns Aaron Cameron and Liam McAdam will pilot the team’s Volkswagen and another Audi respectively.
The drive comes just three weeks out from this year’s Bathurst 1000, in which Tander will serve as co-driver to the Red Bull Holden Racing Team’s Shane van Gisbergen.
“It is great to be back in TCR. We’d always looked at Sandown as one of the circuits that would suit the Audi, so I’m glad this opportunity has come up,” said Tander, who won Race 1 of TCR’s July round at The Bend.
“I think it will be an interesting challenging. We haven’t been to a track where you have to use the kerbs, because as we know, that’s the fastest way to get around Sandown.
“And it’s good to get some miles under my belt leading into the Bathurst 1000 next month.
“We know the pack battle in TCR is tight, the competition is tight and the competition is competitive so it’s great to get amongst that again and keep myself race fit.”
Tander will race two Audis at the Melbourne circuit given he is also slated to drive an R8 LMS Evo in the weekend’s Australian Endurance Championship round.
The 17-car TCR field will also feature factory Honda driver Nestor Girolami in a Wall Racing Civic, while Bryce Fullwood switches over to a Kelly Racing Opel (Holden) Astra after the Braeside squad opted to sideline its Subaru WRXs.
The official entry list also confirms that Jason Bright’s two Volkswagens, of which he and Alexandra Whitley are the drivers, will now be run by Melbourne Performance Centre rather than Matt Stone Racing.
Practice starts on Friday, while all three races will be telecast live on SBS and streamed online, including via Speedcafe.com.
Entry list: Round 6, Sandown International Motor Raceway
| Num | Team/Sponsor | Driver | Car |
| 2 | Melbourne Performance Centre | Aaron Cameron | Volkswagen Golf GTI |
| 3 | Audi Sport Team Valvoline | Garth Tander | Audi RS 3 |
| 7 | Garry Rogers Motorsport | Jordan Cox | Alfa Romeo Giulietta Veloce |
| 8 | Taskforce/Melbourne Performance Centre | Jason Bright | Volkswagen Golf GTI |
| 9 | Ashley Seward Motorsport | Dylan O’Keeffe | Alfa Romeo Giulietta Veloce |
| 11 | HMO Customer Racing | Nathan Morcom | Hyundai I30N |
| 24 | Wall Racing | John Martin | Honda Civic Type R |
| 30 | HMO Customer Racing | Will Brown | Hyundai I30N |
| 33 | Garry Rogers Motorsport | Chris Pither | Renault Megane RS |
| 34 | Garry Rogers Motorsport | James Moffat | Renault Megane RS |
| 35 | Melbourne Performance Centre | Alexandra Whitley | Volkswagen Golf GTI |
| 38 | Wall Racing | Néstor Girolami | Honda Civic Type R |
| 50 | Wall Racing | Tony D’Alberto | Honda Civic Type R |
| 62 | Kelly Racing | Bryce Fullwood | Holden Astra |
| 97 | Melbourne Performance Centre | Liam McAdam | Audi RS 3 |
| 100 | Melbourne Performance Centre | Russell Ingall | Audi RS 3 |
| 777 | Kelly Racing | Andre Heimgartner | Holden Astra |
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