Erebus Motorsport’s Richard Muscat has taken the Australian GT Championship title in fine style by winning both races at Highlands Park’s season finale.
The success marks Erebus’ first national championship victory and adds to the GT3 Cup Challenge crown the 22-year-old won last year.
Entering the day with a healthy 30 point advantage over Tony Quinn, Muscat led from the outset in the opening 40 minute heat, headed only during the mid-race pitstop cycle.
Aston Martin driver Quinn gave chase in the early stages but eventually finished third with co-driver Garth Tander after losing track position to John Bowe’s Ferrari in the pits.
Tander started the second heat in the Aston, resetting the circuit’s lap record as he charged away in the lead before handing over to Quinn.
Quinn eventually proved unable to hold out Muscat’s Mercedes, which slipped by just prior to the Safety Car being called inside the final 10 minutes.
Muscat pulled away at the late restart to win from Quinn and the consistent Bowe, mirroring the weekend podium result.
Klark Quinn and Shane van Gisbergen scored a fighting fourth in Race 2 aboard the former’s McLaren.
The pair drove from the rear-of-grid to fifth in the opening race after an overnight shipment of parts allowed the MP412C back on track following engine problems on Friday.
Peter Edwards completed the second heat’s top five in his new Bentley, improving from eighth in Race 1.
The Lamborghini of Steven Richards/Justin McMillan recovered from 23rd in Race 1, which came after a drive-through for stopping outside the pit window, to score sixth in Race 2.
A 21st and a 16th outright for Rod Salmon and co-driver Nathan Antunes was meanwhile enough for the former to take the season’s Trophy Class honours.
Salmon had been given a drive-through early in Race 1 for spinning the Inky Tulloch/Craig Lowndes Chevrolet.
Tulloch’s recently imported Camaro struggled to match the pace of the leading runners throughout the weekend, scoring a 19th and an eighth.
Another debutant, the Trass Ferrari, also endured a mixed showing, with Jono Lester recording sixth in Race 1 before a late incident cost a top three finish in the second encounter.
The majority of the AGTC field will return to action for the non-championship Highlands 101 endurance race tomorrow.
Muscat will be joined in the Erebus Mercedes by Craig Baird while, among other changes, Bowe steps out of the Maranello Ferrari to co-drive Edwards’ Bentley.
CLICK HERE for the full Highlands 101 entry list.
Result: Australian GT Highlands Park, Race 1
|
pos |
competitor |
car |
laps |
total time |
diff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1 |
Richard Muscat |
Mercedes-Benz |
19 |
37:07.080 |
|
|
2 |
John Bowe |
Ferrari |
19 |
37:10.517 |
03.437 |
|
3 |
Tony Quinn / Garth Tander |
Aston Martin |
19 |
37:11.024 |
03.944 |
|
4 |
Ryan Millier / Jim Manolios |
Ferrari |
19 |
37:16.055 |
08.975 |
|
5 |
Shane Van Gisbergen / Klark Quinn |
McLaren |
19 |
37:21.049 |
13.969 |
|
6 |
Jono Lester |
Ferrari |
19 |
37:22.152 |
15.072 |
|
7 |
Peter Fitzgerald |
Audi |
19 |
37:23.825 |
16.745 |
|
8 |
Peter Edwards |
Bentley |
19 |
37:24.459 |
17.379 |
|
9 |
John Magro / Ockert Fourie |
Audi |
19 |
37:27.555 |
20.475 |
|
10 |
James Winlsow / Dean Koutsoumidis |
Audi |
18 |
36:53.221 |
1 lap |
|
11 |
Cameron McConville / Adrian Deitz |
Ferrari |
18 |
36:54.062 |
1 lap |
|
12 |
Andre Heimgartner / Simon Ellingham |
Porsche |
18 |
36:54.863 |
1 lap |
|
13 |
Steven McLaughlan |
Audi |
18 |
36:56.789 |
1 lap |
|
14 |
Paul Kelly/Ross Lilley |
Lamborghini |
18 |
36:59.458 |
1 lap |
|
15 |
Daniel Gaunt / Jan Jinadasa |
Lamborghini |
18 |
37:00.225 |
1 lap |
|
16 |
Michael Hovey / Matt Campbell |
Porsche |
18 |
37:04.096 |
1 lap |
|
17 |
Andrew Macpherson / Ben Porter |
Porsche |
18 |
37:06.264 |
1 lap |
|
18 |
Ben Foessel |
Porsche |
18 |
37:08.119 |
1 lap |
|
19 |
Inky Tulloch / Craig Lowndes |
Chevrolet |
18 |
37:12.089 |
1 lap |
|
20 |
Sam Fillmore / Danny Stutterd |
Porsche |
18 |
37:12.837 |
1 lap |
|
21 |
Rod Salmon / Nathan Antunes |
Audi |
18 |
37:13.741 |
1 lap |
|
22 |
Paul Van Leonhout |
Ferrari |
18 |
37:18.028 |
1 lap |
|
23 |
Steven Richards / Justin McMillan |
Lamborghini |
18 |
37:19.449 |
1 lap |
|
24 |
Indiran Padayachee / Duvashen Padayachee |
Porsche |
17 |
36:55.758 |
2 laps |
|
25 |
Mark Griffith |
Ginetta |
17 |
37:01.906 |
2 laps |
|
26 |
Tony Martin |
Ginetta |
17 |
37:05.125 |
2 laps |
|
DNF |
Keith Kassulke |
Ascari |
13 |
23:53.448 |
|
|
DNF |
Brendan Cook / Matt Kingsley |
Porsche |
9 |
15:51.688 |
Result: Australian GT Highlands Park, Race 2
|
pos |
competitor |
car |
laps |
total time |
diff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1 |
Richard Muscat |
Mercedes-Benz |
22 |
40:03.990 |
|
|
2 |
Garth Tander / Tony Quinn |
Aston Martin |
22 |
40:06.673 |
02.683 |
|
3 |
John Bowe |
Ferrari |
22 |
40:06.976 |
02.986 |
|
4 |
Klark Quinn / Shane Van Gisbergen |
McLaren |
22 |
40:07.778 |
03.788 |
|
5 |
Peter Edwards |
Bentley |
22 |
40:16.920 |
12.930 |
|
6 |
Justin McMillan / Steven Richards |
Lamborghini |
22 |
40:17.300 |
13.310 |
|
7 |
Jan Jinadasa / Daniel Gaunt |
Lamborghini |
22 |
40:17.904 |
13.914 |
|
8 |
Craig Lowndes / Inky Tulloch |
Chevrolet |
22 |
40:28.037 |
24.047 |
|
9 |
Jim Manolios / Ryan Millier |
Ferrari |
22 |
40:29.651 |
25.661 |
|
10 |
Peter Fitzgerald |
Audi |
22 |
40:29.978 |
25.988 |
|
11 |
Dean Koutsoumidis / James Winlsow |
Audi |
22 |
40:30.714 |
26.724 |
|
12 |
Adrian Deitz / Cameron McConville |
Ferrari |
22 |
40:31.843 |
27.853 |
|
13 |
Steven McLaughlan |
Audi |
22 |
40:33.171 |
29.181 |
|
14 |
Simon Ellingham / Andre Heimgartner |
Porsche |
22 |
40:34.051 |
30.061 |
|
15 |
Matt Campbell / Michael Hovey |
Porsche |
22 |
40:41.811 |
37.821 |
|
16 |
Nathan Antunes / Rod Salmon |
Audi |
22 |
40:48.062 |
44.072 |
|
17 |
Ockert Fourie / John Magro |
Audi |
21 |
40:15.276 |
1 lap |
|
18 |
Ben Foessel |
Porsche |
21 |
40:31.519 |
1 lap |
|
19 |
Danny Stutterd / Sam Fillmore |
Porsche |
21 |
40:32.301 |
1 lap |
|
20 |
Paul Van Leonhout |
Ferrari |
21 |
40:40.247 |
1 lap |
|
21 |
Duvashen Padayachee / Indiran Padayachee |
Porsche |
21 |
40:45.987 |
1 lap |
|
22 |
Mark Griffith |
Ginetta |
21 |
40:50.704 |
1 lap |
|
DNF |
Jono Lester |
Ferrari |
17 |
30:30.606 |
|
|
DNF |
Tony Martin |
Ginetta |
7 |
14:03.799 |
|
|
DNF |
Matt Kingsley / Brendan Cook |
Porsche |
2 |
03:55.692 |
|
|
DNF |
Ross Lilley / Paul Kelly |
Lamborghini |
1 |
01:55.364 |
|
|
DNF |
Ben Porter / Andrew Macpherson |
Porsche |
|||
|
DNF |
Keith Kassulke |
Ascari |
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