HMO’s acquisition of its own car will see the squad run three cars in Darwin, alongside its customer relationship with Triple Eight Race Engineering.
The team has been responsible for the preparation and running of the #888 entry of Jack Perkins since the first round, and the #88 for Triple Eight junior Oli Wickham first entered at Round 3.
The TCR Australia title winning squad has secured the car that was raced by James Golding in the opening round at Phillip Island.
Garry Rogers Motorsport fielded the car for Golding, who narrowly missed victory in a photo finish in the first race, before a loose wheel derailed a strong result in Race 2.
Toyota GR Cup front-runner Brock Stinson will be behind the wheel at Hidden Valley next weekend during the Shannons SpeedSeries’ first visit to Darwin.
After a stellar start to the GR Cup season, winning the first four races in a row, Stinson’s Mustang Cup drive is, for the time being, a one-off appearance.
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Stinson is no stranger to the Barry Morcom-owned team, having worked as a data engineer and mechanic during the team’s TCR tenure.
The 22-year-old also works as a data engineer for Tigani Motorsport’s GT3 outfit, but will forgo those duties in Darwin.
“It’s great to get the opportunity to jump behind the wheel of the Mustang Dark Horse R with HMO Customer Racing,” said Stinson.
“The Mustang’s a really good car. It’s extremely powerful, and it’s on a really good tyre.
“I have not done too much driving on a slick tyre before, so to jump in there for my first real laps and work out how much grip it has and also how much power it has was really cool.
“I’m definitely looking forward to racing it in Darwin.”
Stinson has history with the HMO team as a mechanic.
“The whole experience is going to be pretty surreal for me,” he said.
“My first-ever gig working in professional motorsport was with HMO. I started out as a number two mechanic on Josh Buchan’s TCR car at Bathurst in 2021.
“I did the TCR World Tour stuff with HMO last year, going to Korea and China as a data engineer when they campaigned Will Brown and Josh.
“So it’s going to be a bit surreal to be able to go to Darwin with them, but this time as a driver and actually represent them out on the track.
“I’m extremely grateful to Barry for giving me a shot in the category up against these guys.
“It’s only a one-off at the moment, but I would definitely love to gain some more support to try and do a few more rounds later in the year.”
Team manager Aaron Grech detailed the team’s excitement to expand its operation, noting the potential of the category.
“We’ve really enjoyed running the Triple Eight Mustang Cup cars, and it’s great that Barry and the team has upped the ante to have our own car out there now too,” said Grech.
“Obviously, we’ve had a great chance to see what this category is about and its potential.
“Working with the Triple Eight guys has been really cool. Barry can see a future in the series and believes in it.
“This event worked out as an important one for Barry’s DPO business. He has a store up in Darwin, so he wanted to have a car on the grid.
“Brock is a known quantity for us, and he has been extremely keen to come and do it. He has been racing extremely well in the GR Cup and is the ideal young driver to start this program.
“It’s also exciting to move to a three-car effort, with all of the cars working together and sharing information, data and resources. It’s a great opportunity for all parties.”
Motorcraft Mustang Cup Australia continues its maiden season in Darwin on July 24-26.
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