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2015 Australian Carrera Cup Championship

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The 2015 Australian Carrera Cup Championship was an Australian motor racing competition for Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars. It was sanctioned by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport (CAMS) as a national championship with Porsche Cars Australia Pty Ltd appointed as the Category Manager by CAMS.[1] The title, which was the eleventh Porsche Carrera Cup Australia Championship, was won by Nick Foster.

Sonic Motor Racing Services driver Foster won eight races during the season, with two runs of four consecutive victories including weekend sweeps at Townsville and Sandown. Foster finished sixty-four points ahead of Finance EZI Racing's David Russell, who took eleven podium finishes during the season but only one win, at Bathurst. Third place in the championship went to Matt Campbell (McElrea Racing), who won six races, including a weekend sweep at Surfers Paradise as part of a four-race win streak to close the season. Defending champion Steven Richards won five of the first six races, but only returned to the podium four times over the remaining sixteen races to finish fourth in the championship. Foster's teammate Nick McBride and Hamilton Autohaus driver Shane Smollen were the other race-winners, winning at Albert Park and Phillip Island respectively. Foster also won the Professional sub-classification by 46 points, while Smollen won the Elite sub-classification by 60 points ahead of Stephen Grove.

Teams and drivers

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Nick Foster won the championship driving for Sonic Motor Racing Services.
David Russell finished runner-up in the championship driving for Finance EZI Racing.
Shane Smollen won the Elite class driving for Hamilton Autohaus.

The following teams and drivers contested the championship.

Team No. Driver Rd 3 co-driver[2] Class Rounds
Steve Richards Motorsport 1 New Zealand Steven Richards Australia Dean Grant Professional All
Grove Group 4 Australia Stephen Grove New Zealand Scott McLaughlin Elite All
McElrea Racing 5 Australia Spike Goddard Professional 1–2
Australia Tony Walls Elite 7
7 Australia Matt Campbell Australia Tim Miles Professional All
56 Australia Shane Smollen Australia Nick Percat Elite All
Garth Walden Racing 6 Australia Ash Samadi Australia Dean Fiore Elite All
Porsche Centre Melbourne 8 New Zealand Craig Baird Australia Max Twigg Professional All
Hallmarc 9 Australia Marc Cini Germany Christopher Mies Elite All
Finance EZI Racing 10 Australia David Russell Australia James Koundouris Professional All
Team BRM 11 Australia Simon Hodge Australia Ray Angus Professional 1–5
Australia John Magro Professional 6
22 Australia Richard Muscat Australia Sam Walter Professional All
45 Australia Duvashen Padayachee Australia Indiran Padayachee Professional All
Porsche Centre Brighton 13 Australia James Bergmuller Australia Alex Davison Elite All
Buik Motorsport 14 Australia Cameron McConville Australia John Goodacre Professional 1–3
25 Australia John Martin[3] Professional 4–8
26 Australia Michael Almond Australia John Karytinos Professional All
AVCS 18 Australia Max Twigg Elite 2
Lago Racing 23 Australia Roger Lago Australia Steve Owen Elite 1–4
Tony Bates Racing 24 Australia Tony Bates New Zealand Daniel Gaunt Elite All
Sonic Motor Racing Services 39 Australia Adrian Mastronardo Australia Tim Slade Elite All
77 Australia Nick McBride Australia Neale Muston Professional All
777 Australia Nick Foster Australia Dylan Thomas Professional All
DNA Racing 65 Australia Fraser Ross Australia David Ryan Professional All
Koala Motorsport 69 Australia Brenton Griguol Elite 7
Scott Taylor Motorsport 88 Australia Shae Davies Australia Geoff Emery Professional 2–3, 5-6, 8
222 Australia Scott Taylor Australia Dean Canto Elite 1–5, 7–8
Australia Aaron Seton Professional 6

All vehicles were Porsche 911 GT3 Cup Type 991 cars, as mandated by the championship regulations.[1]

Race calendar

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The championship was contested over eight rounds.[4]

Round Circuit City / state Date Pole position Fastest lap Winning driver Winning team Round winner
1 R1 South Australia Adelaide Street Circuit Adelaide, South Australia 27 February Australia Nick Foster New Zealand Steven Richards New Zealand Steven Richards Steve Richards Motorsport New Zealand Steven Richards
R2 28 February Australia Nick Foster New Zealand Steven Richards Steve Richards Motorsport
R3 1 March New Zealand Steven Richards New Zealand Steven Richards Steve Richards Motorsport
2 R1 Victoria (state) Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit Melbourne, Victoria 13 March Australia Nick McBride Australia Cameron McConville Australia Nick McBride Sonic Motor Racing Services New Zealand Steven Richards
R2 14 March New Zealand Steven Richards New Zealand Steven Richards Steve Richards Motorsport
R3 15 March Australia Shae Davies New Zealand Steven Richards Steve Richards Motorsport
3 R1 Victoria (state) Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit Phillip Island, Victoria 23 May Australia Cameron McConville
Australia John Goodacre
Australia Stephen Grove
New Zealand Scott McLaughlin
Australia Shane Smollen
Australia Nick Percat
Hamilton Autohaus Australia Shane Smollen
Australia Nick Percat
R2 24 May Australia Matt Campbell
Australia Tim Miles
Australia Stephen Grove
New Zealand Scott McLaughlin
Australia Nick Foster
Australia Dylan Thomas
Sonic Motor Racing Services
4 R1 Queensland Townsville Street Circuit Townsville, Queensland 11 July Australia David Russell Australia Richard Muscat Australia Nick Foster Sonic Motor Racing Services Australia Nick Foster
R2 12 July New Zealand Steven Richards Australia Nick Foster Sonic Motor Racing Services
R3 Australia Nick Foster Australia Nick Foster Sonic Motor Racing Services
5 R1 New South Wales Sydney Motorsport Park Eastern Creek, New South Wales 22 August Australia Nick Foster Australia Matt Campbell Australia Matt Campbell McElrea Racing Australia Nick Foster
R2 Australia Nick Foster Australia Matt Campbell McElrea Racing
R3 23 August Australia Nick Foster Australia Nick Foster Sonic Motor Racing Services
6 R1 Victoria (state) Sandown Raceway Melbourne, Victoria 12 September Australia Matt Campbell Australia Nick Foster Australia Nick Foster Sonic Motor Racing Services Australia Nick Foster
R2 Australia Nick McBride Australia Nick Foster Sonic Motor Racing Services
R3 13 September Australia Nick McBride Australia Nick Foster Sonic Motor Racing Services
7 R1 New South Wales Mount Panorama Circuit Bathurst, New South Wales 9 October Australia Matt Campbell Australia Matt Campbell Australia David Russell Finance EZI Racing Australia Matt Campbell
R2 10 October Race abandoned [N 1]
R3 11 October Australia Matt Campbell Australia Matt Campbell McElrea Racing
8 R1 Queensland Surfers Paradise Street Circuit Surfers Paradise, Queensland 24 October Australia David Russell Australia Matt Campbell Australia Matt Campbell McElrea Racing Australia Matt Campbell
R2 25 October New Zealand Craig Baird Australia Matt Campbell McElrea Racing
R3 Australia Matt Campbell Australia Matt Campbell McElrea Racing

Championship standings

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Points system

Championship points were awarded at each race as per the table below:[1]

Points format Position
1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th 13th 14th 15th 16th 17th 18th 19th 20th 21st 22nd 23rd 24th 25th
Three races 60 54 48 42 36 32 29 26 23 20 18 16 14 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Two races 90 81 72 63 54 48 43.5 39 34.5 30 27 24 21 18 16.5 15 13.5 12 10.5 9 7.5 6 4.5 3 1.5

Each driver was deemed by the Category Manager to be in either the Professional Class or the Elite Class for the purpose of awarding class points.[1] For class awards, each driver in each class who was classified as a finisher received points in accordance with the above pointscore table relative to each other driver in their class.[1]

Overall

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Pos. Driver[6] No. ADE
South Australia
MEL
Victoria (state)
PHI
Victoria (state)
TOW
Queensland
SYD
New South Wales
SAN
Victoria (state)
BAT
New South Wales
SUR
Queensland
Pts.[6]
1 Australia Nick Foster 777 Ret Ret DNS Ret 10th 5th 6th 1st 1st 1st 1st 2nd 2nd 1st 1st 1st 1st 3rd 4th 3rd 3rd 3rd 956
2 Australia David Russell 10 2nd 4th 3rd 5th 8th 6th Ret 16th 3rd 2nd 17th 5th 3rd 3rd 4th 4th 5th 1st 2nd 2nd 2nd 2nd 892
3 Australia Matt Campbell 7 Ret 15th Ret 4th 7th 7th Ret 11th 4th 6th 5th 1st 1st 5th 2nd 2nd 2nd 2nd 1st 1st 1st 1st 860
4 New Zealand Steven Richards 1 1st 1st 1st 2nd 1st 1st 7th 10th 6th 3rd 2nd 3rd Ret 8th Ret 7th 4th 4th 3rd 12th 12th 11th 846.5
5 New Zealand Craig Baird 8 4th 2nd 2nd 6th 4th 2nd 9th 7th 5th 5th 3rd 6th 4th 2nd Ret 10th 6th 5th 5th 5th 4th Ret 806
6 Australia Richard Muscat 22 5th 5th 6th 8th 6th 8th 12th 3rd 2nd 4th 4th Ret DNS 9th 3rd 3rd 3rd 8th 7th 6th 5th 4th 754
7 Australia Nick McBride 77 3rd 3rd 4th 1st 3rd 23rd 4th 5th DNS 10th 7th 8th 6th 6th 17th 11th 11th 6th 6th 9th 8th 7th 692
8 Australia Michael Almond 26 7th 7th 7th 10th 9th 9th 11th Ret 7th 7th Ret 10th 7th 7th 8th 5th 8th 7th 11th 4th 7th 8th 538
9 Australia Shane Smollen 56 15th 14th 12th 17th 17th 16th 1st 2nd 12th 11th 13th 13th 13th 13th 9th 16th 14th 12th 13th 10th 15th 15th 445
10 Australia Shae Davies 88 7th 5th 4th 5th 8th 4th 5th 4th 12th 13th 9th 8th 6th 6th 438
11 Australia Stephen Grove 4 11th 13th 13th 13th 18th 18th 2nd 6th 13th 12th 11th 14th 11th 15th 13th 15th 15th 14th 14th 18th 14th 13th 388
12 Australia Duvashen Padayachee 45 Ret 11th 9th 9th 13th 12th 16th 17th 9th 16th 8th 12th 9th 12th Ret 17th 12th 9th 9th 7th 16th 10th 366.5
13 Australia Fraser Ross 65 8th 9th Ret 14th 12th 10th 15th Ret 11th 19th 12th 9th 8th 19th 10th 6th Ret 10th 10th 15th 9th 9th 359.5
14 Australia Cameron McConville 14 6th 6th 5th 3rd 2nd 3rd 3rd Ret 322
15 Australia Tony Bates 24 9th 10th 10th 15th 14th 17th 14th 19th Ret 13th 10th DNS DNS DNS 7th 14th 13th 13th 12th 11th 11th 12th 284.5
16 Australia John Martin 25 10th 9th 6th 7th Ret 10th Ret 9th 7th 11th 8th 20th 10th 5th 282
17 Australia Simon Hodge 11 10th 8th 8th Ret Ret 14th 17th 18th 8th 8th 9th 11th 10th 11th 240.5
18 Australia Ash Samadi 6 13th 17th 15th 20th 21st 20th 13th 13th 16th 15th 15th 15th 16th 16th 14th 20th 18th 16th 17th 17th 17th 18th 227
19 Australia Adrian Mastronardo 39 Ret 16th 16th 21st 20th 21st 10th 4th 18th 20th Ret Ret 14th 17th 16th 18th 17th 18th 20th 19th Ret 17th 221
20 Australia Marc Cini 9 14th Ret 14th 16th 19th 19th 18th 14th 15th 14th 16th 18th 17th Ret 15th 19th 19th 17th 19th 14th Ret 16th 191
21 Australia James Bergmuller 13 DNS DNS DNS 18th 22nd 22nd Ret 15th 14th 18th 14th 16th 12th 14th 11th 21st 16th Ret 18th 13th 13th 14th 183.5
22 Australia Roger Lago 23 12th 12th 11th Ret 15th 15th 8th 9th DNS DNS DNS 145.5
23 Australia Scott Taylor 222 16th 18th 17th 19th 23rd Ret Ret 12th 17th 17th Ret 17th 15th 18th Ret 16th 16th 18th Ret 135
24 Australia Aaron Seton 222 6th 12th 10th 68
25 Australia John Magro 11 5th 8th Ret 62
26 Australia Max Twigg 18 11th 11th 13th 50
27 Australia Spike Goddard 5 Ret DNS DNS 12th 16th 11th 44
28 Australia Tony Walls 5 15th 15th 22
29 Australia Brenton Griguol 69 19th Ret 7
Colour Result
Gold Winner
Silver Second place
Bronze Third place
Green Points finish
Blue Non-points finish
Non-classified finish (NC)
Purple Retired (Ret)
Red Did not qualify (DNQ)
Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ)
Black Disqualified (DSQ)
White Did not start (DNS)
Withdrew (WD)
Race cancelled (C)
Blank Did not practice (DNP)
Did not arrive (DNA)
Excluded (EX)

Bold - Pole position
Italics - Fastest lap

Professional

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Pos. Driver[6] Pts.[6]
1 Australia Nick Foster 971
2 Australia David Russell 925
3 Australia Matt Campbell 883.5
4 New Zealand Steven Richards 881
5 New Zealand Craig Baird 839
6 Australia Richard Muscat 778
7 Australia Nick McBride 748
8 Australia Michael Almond 557.5
9 Australia Shae Davies 478
10 Australia Duvashen Padayachee 423.5
11 Australia Fraser Ross 416.5
12 Australia Cameron McConville 340
13 Australia John Martin 292
14 Australia Simon Hodge 277
15 Australia Aaron Seton 68
16 Australia John Magro 62
17 Australia Spike Goddard 50

Elite

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Pos. Driver[6] Pts.[6]
1 Australia Shane Smollen 1178
2 Australia Stephen Grove 1118
3 Australia Tony Bates 972.5
4 Australia Ash Samadi 784
5 Australia James Bergmuller 684
6 Australia Marc Cini 675
7 Australia Adrian Mastronardo 637
8 Australia Scott Taylor 459
9 Australia Roger Lago 393
10 Australia Max Twigg 180
11 Australia Tony Walls 84
12 Australia Brenton Griguol 26

Notes

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  1. ^ Race abandoned due to heavy rain.[5]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "Sporting and Technical Regulations – 2015 CAMS Porsche Carrera Cup Australia Championship – Version 2" (PDF). Confederation of Australian Motor Sport. Confederation of Australian Motor Sport Ltd. 26 March 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-12-26. Retrieved 27 December 2015.
  2. ^ Bartholomaeus, Stefan (12 May 2015). "Full Carrera Cup Pro-Am line-up revealed". Speedcafe.com. Speedcafe. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
  3. ^ "John Martin secures Porsche Carrera Cup drive". Speedcafe.com. Speedcafe. 18 June 2015. Retrieved 21 June 2015.
  4. ^ "Results". Porsche Carrera Cup Australia Championship. Confederation of Australian Motor Sport. Archived from the original on 26 December 2015. Retrieved 18 January 2016.
  5. ^ "Second Carrera Cup race abandoned". Speedcafe.com. Speedcafe. 10 October 2015. Retrieved 13 October 2015.
  6. ^ a b c d e f "Standings – Season 2015". Porsche Carrera Cup Australia Championship. Confederation of Australian Motor Sport. Archived from the original on 26 December 2015. Retrieved 18 January 2016.
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Media related to 2015 in Porsche Carrera Cup Australia at Wikimedia Commons