Big weekend for graduates all the way up to F1
The Australian Grand Prix weekend showcased our talented graduates in all categories, from F1 to Supercars and Porsches and F2 and F3 in between.
Former champion Lando Norris gave his challenging season a boost with sixth place in the chaotic Australian Grand Prix for McLaren and there were points too for Zhou Guanyu in ninth for Alfa Romeo and Yuki Tsunoda, classified tenth for Alpha Tauri.
Callum Hedge has been a busy man after his CTFROC campaign, heading to the United States first to compete in the Formula Regional Americas championship where he got off to a great start.
Sitting second in the points there following the first round – behind fellow graduate Ryan Shehan – he headed back to Australia to begin his Porsche campaign where he showed his versatility with pole position and two third places during the Australian GP meeting at Albert Park in Melbourne. He sits third in the points, with another series graduate, Jackson Walls, leading the championship.
Staying in Melbourne, the FIA F2 and F3 championships were big draw cards and graduates performed well in both categories, with Richard Verschoor finishing tenth in the Sprint Race ahead of Clement Novalak in 11th, Amaury Cordeel in 12th, Juan Manuel Correa in 14th and Jehan Daruvala in 17th . In the feature race Daruvala headed the graduates home in sixth overall, one place ahead of Verschoor.
2020 graduate Gregoire Saucy was one of the stars of the FIA F3 round at Albert Park, taking second on the grid, eighth in the Sprint Race and a fine second in the feature race. Caio Collet, Tommy Smith and Ido Cohen are also in action in that championship this season.
Matt Payne – the 2021 champion in Castrol TRS also took a 13th place, a 17th, a 21st and a weekend best of 12th across the four Supercars races at the Melbourne meeting.
Elsewhere in the world of motorsport, Spike Kohlbecker began his championship challenge in the new GR Cup series in America with two second place finishes and a fastest lap in the first round at Sonoma Raceway.
Kiwi Liam Sceats is racing in the Japanese Formula Regional Championship after turning heads in his first CTFROC campaign and over the weekend grabbed a fourth and a fifth place.
