Kumho V8s to open season with 22-car field

A 22-car field is set to take to Phillip Island for Round 1 of the Kumho Tyre Australian V8 Touring Cars series this weekend.

Last year’s series winner Jack Smith continues to race in both the Dunlop Super2 Series and the unofficial third tier of Supercars, though he has not yet confirmed if he will enter all rounds of V8 Touring Cars in 2018.

Brad Jones Racing fields Smith in both Super2 and V8 Touring Cars, with Image Racing, Matt Stone Racing, and now MW Motorsport again spread across the two series.

MWM’s two FG Falcons will both be driven by ex-Formula 4 drivers, namely Tyler Everingham and Zak Best, the former of whom was a race winner in the open-wheeler category at Phillip Island last year.

Image will run ex-Stone Brothers Racing FG Falcons for Mathew Radisich, nephew of Paul, in an ex-Tim Slade car and 18-year-old Jacob Bell in an ex-Shane van Gisbergen car.

Bradley Neill will step up from a Heritage class VS Commodore to an MSR FG Falcon in Kumho Cup, where he will be a stablemate to Chris Smerdon.

Familiar faces to the series include Michael Anderson, Geoff Emery, Jon McCorkindale, and Jim Pollicina, while three-time V8 Utes series winner Ryal Harris will make his V8 Touring Cars debut.

Action starts with two practice sessions on Friday at the WD-40 Phillip Island 500.

Entry list: Round 1, Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit