Competing for the 15th time at Australia’s largest Motorsport event, a 28-strong Carrera Cup field put on an incredible show across three races held across the event.
Race 1
One make Porsche champions from both sides of the globe battled for early supremacy in Race 1.
Reigning Carrera Cup Australia champion Harri Jones and Carrera Cup France and Asia champion Alessandro Ghiretti duelled for the lead in the 30-minute opener, Harri Jones coming out on top in a thrilling one-lap dash to the line.
Ghiretti crossed the line first however a five-second penalty for weaving on the restart saw the Frenchman drop down the order to finish eighth, handing Jones' his fourth consecutive race win on the hop this year.
In Pro-Am, Sam Shahin claimed a strong victory while a stout recovery drive from Adrian Flack saw the defending champion charge to second, with Rodney Jane third.
With the race held late on Thursday afternoon in bright sunshine, Jones leaped into a stunning early lead, making a perfect start and leading the first lap by more than two seconds.
Behind, Jackson Walls, Bayley Hall and Alessandro Ghiretti all battled for second place with Hall sneaking past the returning Objective Racing pilot. He was soon passed by his EMA Motorsport teammate who moved to second in pursuit of early leader Jones.
As the race settled down at the front battles built through the field with Clay Osborne a strong sixth in front of 2024 Grand Prix winner Marcos Flack.
The Safety Car was called at the half-way mark after Matt Slavin made heavy contact with the wall on the exit of Turn 2.
Slavin was passing a slow-moving Rodney Jane who was on the inside of the road, grabbing the marbles on the outside of the circuit and finding the wall.
That delivered the Safety Car to the circuit, closing Ghiretti to the back of leader Jones for a sprint to the finish.
Jones timed his restart to perfection and fended off his former Supercup rival, only for a Safety Car to be called for a second time after Indiran Padayachee found himself in the gravel trap at turn one following the restart.
That set up a thrilling one-lap dash to the line and while Jones judged his first restart to perfection, his second wasn't quite as strong as Ghiretti slipped past at turn one.
However, stewards quickly imposed a five-second penalty on the EMA Motorsport car after he was judged to have weaved following the Safety Car extinguishing his Safety Car lights.
Harri Jones and Carrera Cup France and Asia champion Alessandro Ghiretti duelled for the lead in the 30-minute opener.
That allowed Jones' to claim his fourth straight win, while Bayley Hall continued his strong start to the championship in second and Dylan O'Keeffe third.
After starting on the front row, Jackson Walls finished fourth while Michelin Junior Clay Osborne finished fifth in his best-yet Carrera Cup race.
In Pro-Am, Sam Shahin had things his own way to grab his first win of the season before he jumps to a second Porsche Supercup campaign in Europe.
Adrian Flack recovered from an opening-lap spin to finish second in class in what has been a challenging start to his championship defense, while Sydney winner Rodney Jane finished third.
Race 2
He may only be contesting a partial campaign in this year's Championship, but that's not stopping Jackson Walls' charge for success in the one-make Porsche category this year.
His Objective Racing #11 entry fielded by GWR Australia was in the right place at the right time to claim race two in Melbourne, leading home Bayley Hall and Marcos Flack to take the Equity-One Professional class in another dramatic affair.
Rodney Jane claimed a win in the Pro-Am class after race one winner Sam Shahin was ousted from the running, with Brett Boulton and Dean Cook completing the podium.
Walls pathway to victory came following early leader Harri Jones running off the road at turn one following a late-race restart in Friday evening's sprint.
The Sydneysider had survived the opening lap to climb to second and chase his former title rival early in race two and pounced the moment Jones' fell off the road at the opening corner, Walls never headed from there to claim his fifth career Carrera Cup race win and his first for his new team.
It ended Jones' - who finished 7th in the end - run of four consecutive race victories: the best start to a Carrera Cup Australia Championship since Alex Davison achieved the same feat in his title-winning 2004 season a full two decades ago.
The defending champion had led from pole to the point where a Safety Car slowed the field. With Walls trailing, his restart looked strong until the opening corner when the #1 car ran off the road - rejoining during a furious battle pack for the back half of the top 10 to salvage championship points.
Rodney Jane claimed a win in the Pro-Am class after race one winner Sam Shahin was ousted from the running.
With Walls in front, Bayley Hall's super consistent weekend continued with another second position to close the championship points margin to leader Jones, while Marcos Flack continued his love affair with Albert Park by finishing third, the first top three finish for both he and Sonic Motor Racing since the same event twelve months ago.
In Pro-Am, Rodney Jane was the key beneficiary as contact caused Sam Shahin to stop, the race one winner out of the race on lap six.
Former champion Adrian Flack was another to feel Albert Park's wrath, contact between two other cars forcing the two-time champ to the non-finishers list as well.
Through it all came Rodney Jane, who extended his series lead in the Pro-Am battle thanks to a strong win aboard his Bob Jane T-Marts Sonic entry.
Brett Boulton scored another podium in the increasingly popular Lightning Mcqueen liveried McElrea racer, while the returning Dean Cook capped off a solid day for GWR in third.
Race 3
Carrera Cup champion Alessandro Ghiretti charged to the front to claim his first win in Australia's championship on Saturday night in Melbourne, making it three winners from three races.
The EMA Motorsport driver starred in a Saturday twilight fight, working his way through the leading group to take the race three victory and end his Aussie debut on a high.
Meanwhile, Jackson Walls did enough to claim the Equity-One Professional class Round victory, the second of his career and his second at Albert Park.
Adrian Flack won the Pro-Am battle on Saturday while Rodney Jane raced his way to an extended championship lead by claiming his second successive round win in Carrera Cup's race within a race.
The race was a thriller as O'Keeffe got the jump on Walls to lead the field into turn one as the sun set on a warm Melbourne evening.
The pair battled out front while Jones slotted into third position and Ghiretti fourth in the early running, but he soon picked his way forward and engaged in a thrilling fight for the lead with O'Keeffe.
The Dexion driver was able to fend off the Italian star for several laps of hard racing before he slipped past between turns 11 and 12 to take a lead he'd never lose. O'Keeffe consolidated in second position while Walls was third, doing enough to take the round victory for the second time in his career.
There was late drama behind as a locked brake from a then fourth-placed Harri Jones saw him fall into the clutches of Bayley Hall, who was a hard charger late in the second EMA Motorsport car. The pair boxed on through the final corners with Jones running wide and dropping several spots; Hall also losing time but still crossing the line in front of his nearest title rival.
In between the leaders and them was Marcos Flack, who enjoyed his strongest Carrera Cup weekend in twelve months, and David Russell who charged home in his TekworkX Racing entry to record his best finish of the weekend.
The battle for Pro-Am was similarly competitive with Matt Belford looking to make it six winners from six races this season as he led the race mid-way through. He, however, had to deal with a resurgent Adrian Flack who had charged his way through the field following a challenging weekend for the EBM driver.
Flack slipped past after a hard and clean fight between the pair late in the race, while Shahin also passed the ID_Land car late to grab second, Belford finishing third. Through it all, however, was Mr. Consistency Rodney Jane who claimed his second round win on the trot to extend his championship lead.
Next stop
The next round of the Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia Championship will see the field head to Darwin on June 20-22. Before that, the Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia will commence its 2024 campaign at the Phillip Island Grand Prix circuit’s SRO GT Festival / SpeedSeries event on April 4-6.
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