Tasmania outcome crucial in Porsche penultimate round

Round 5 of six, as a support event on the Ned Whiskey Tasmanian SuperSprint, is crucial for the title contenders to position themselves before the October finale in Sydney.

Series points leader Oscar Targett won all three races at the last round, held at Queensland Raceway. Targett leads his Team Porsche NZ / Earl Bamber Motorsport teammate Brock Gilchrist by 85 points with 180 are up for grabs.

While the Kiwi Gilchrist has yet to compete at Symmons Plains while it was venue of Targett’s Sprint Challenge debut in 2023 after he missed the earlier opening round at Phillip Island.

They are in the battle for the outright and Pro championship and are also the leading in the series-within-a-series Jim Richards Endurance Trophy. Gilchrist holds the ascendancy by 18 points over his Aussie rival.

Clay Osborne sits third in the Pro championship, 178 points off the lead and will need a strong weekend to stay in contention.

Hamish Fitzsimmons, who will not race this weekend, is fourth with Aron Shields and Caleb Sumich, both close behind. The round will see the return of Conor Somers after his enormous rollover in Townsville earlier this year.

His Sonic Motor Racing team where Somers works on the tools, has re-shelled his 991.2 GT3 Cup Car between events and is back at a circuit he’s familiar with from his Formula Ford career.

In the Pro-Am class a first-time round winner is a guarantee. The class point score allows drivers to skip one round a year. The top four will be on the sidelines for Tasmania and includes championship leader Lachy Harburg and second placed Danny Stutterd.

The class success this weekend will be between Jonathan Gliksten, Eric Constantinidis, Andrew Georgiadis and John Papantoniou as they search for a maiden class round victory.

Of the 14 entries assembled for this weekend, just five drivers have raced a Porsche at Symmons Plains before in Targett, Constantinidis, Sumich, Shields and Gliksten.

After practice and qualifying on Friday, the first two races will be held on Saturday with the second the Jim Richards Endurance Championship encounter. The final race will on just after midday on Sunday. The races will be broadcast live on Fox Sports 506, Kayo Sports and Sky Sports in New Zealand.

Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge Round 5 Entry List for Symmons Plains Raceway