Harri Jones wins safety car-shortened Carrera Cup final

O’Keeffe started on pole position and led the majority of the race, in what was an intense battle of fastest laps and personal best sectors between he, Jones, and Marcus Amand.

Sprint Challenge graduate Tom Bewley went nowhere at the race start, with a mechanical issue forcing the EBM machine to be towed off the track as the field sped away.

Dale Wood, starting from the back after not finishing race two, set about a charge through the field, ending up in 21st position by the end of the opening lap.

Jones and Amand continued to stalk O’Keeffe at the front, while Clay Osborne held onto fourth position, circulating largely by himself.

It wasn’t until lap nine that Jones finally started to flash the headlights and look for a move on O’Keeffe for the lead.

Back in the pack, rookie Diesel Thomas was engaged in an enthralling battle for the back end of the top 10 with veteran David Russell.

The pair swapped positions lap after lap, bringing fellow rookie Ryan Casha into the battle.

By the halfway point of the race, Wood had climbed halfway through the field and was fighting with Russell.

Jones worked his way past O’Keeffe for the lead in a gutsy exchange at Turns 1 and 2 with just a handful of laps to go.

The battle allowed Amand to fight his way into second position, dropping O’Keeffe back into the clutches of Osborne in fourth.

On the penultimate lap, Pro-Am contender Richard MacDonald lost control on the exit of Turn 3, hitting the wall and damaging the right front corner of his car.

MacDonald continued around Turns 4 and 5, dropping a large amount of radiator fluid on the road.

This fluid caught out Casha, who slid sideways heavily into the turn five wall.

The safety car was drawn for the two stopped cars, allowing Jones to cruise home to victory.

Matt Belford swept the weekend in the Pro-Am class, coming home in 15th outright having fought off a hard-charging Dean Cook throughout the race.

Jones took round honours in the Pro class from O’Keeffe and Amand.

Porsche Equity-One Carrera Cup Australia goes on an extended break, returning at the Darwin Triple Crown from June 19-21.