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PETER HACKETT & DOMINIC STOREY WIN HAMPTON DOWNS 500

Peter Hackett and Dominic Storey win Australian GT Hampton Downs 500 - Photo: Rhys Vandersyde

By Bruce Williams

Peter Hackett and Dominic Storey win Australian GT Hampton Downs 500 - Photo: Rhys Vandersyde

Peter Hackett and Dominic Storey win Australian GT Hampton Downs 500 – Photo: Rhys Vandersyde

Peter Hackett and Dominic Storey took out a commanding win in the third round of the Australian GT Endurance Championship at Hampton Downs.

The pair driving the Eggleston Motorsport Mercedes Benz AMG GT-S GT3 took out the Hampton Downs 500 with a margin of 27 seconds over championship leaders Tim Miles and Jaxon Evans (Valvoline MPC Audi R8 LMS) who finished second after their car was rebuilt overnight after crashing qualifying. Tony D’Alberto and Max Twigg (WM Waste/STM Mercedes Benz AMG GT-S GT3) finished third a further 28 seconds behind. They were the only three cars left on the lead lap at the end of the race.

Brad Sheils in the AMAC Porsche 911 GT3-R made an sensational start to lead the race heading into Turn 1, but it wasn’t long before the pole sitting MEGA Racing Porsche 911 GT3-R of Liam Talbot reclaimed the lead on the way to Turn 2.

Liam Talbot and Fraser Ross battled for the lead early in the race - Photo: Rhys Vandersyde

Liam Talbot and Fraser Ross battled for the lead early in the race – Photo: Rhys Vandersyde

Talbot then held off the challenge of Fraser Ross in the McElrea Racing McLaren 650S GT3 with the pair jostling for the lead for the next 30 laps. The two cars made slight contact during the tussle with both cars suffer minor cosmetic damage in the opening stanza of the race.

It was at this time that the Eggleston crew decided to pit Hacket early, the Mercedes with higher fuel consumption needed make an extra stop to get to the end of the race. The out of sequence stop, paying dividends later during the compulsory pitstop cycle in which the Eggleston Mercedes took the lead with clever stratergy.

The only interruption to the race was one appearance of the Safety Car on Lap 33 after the Hogs Breath Mercedes Benz AMG GT-S GT3 of Mark Griffith and Scott Hookey crashed out on the Turn 10 sweeper with Hookey behind the wheel.

Both early race leaders would then strike issues during the stops. The McElrea crew were given a drive through penalty for too many people working on the car in their first stop. While the MEGA/Walkinshaw crew were pinged for speeding in pit lane after their driver change, they also received a drive through penalty. The extra trip through pit lane dropped both cars off the lead lap.

The penalties left Storey with a clear lead out in front of the field, which he held onto to take out a comfortable win when the race reached a time certain finish three laps short for scheduled distance.

Dominic Storey taking the chequered flag - Photo: Rhys Vandersyde

Dominic Storey taking the chequered flag – Photo: Rhys Vandersyde

The win moves Hackett and Storey in second in the championship 76 points behind leaders Miles and Evans who finished second. Talbot and Martin drop the third in the points after finishing fourth.

Results: Australian GT Hampton Downs 500

Pos Competitor/Team Driver Vehicle Laps Time
1 Autex Eggleston Motorsport Peter Hackett/Dominic Storey Mercedes-AMG GT3 129 3:28:28.204
2 Valvoline Jamec Pem Tim Miles/Jaxon Evans Audi R8 LMS 129 27.543
3 WM Waste Management Max Twigg/Tony D’Alberto Mercedes-AMG GT3 129 56.401
4 Mega Racing Liam Talbot/John Martin Porsche 911 GT3-R 127 2 laps
5 Darrell Lea Tony Quinn/Andrew Waite McLaren 650S GT3 127 2 laps
6 YNA Autosport/McElrea Racing Fraser Ross/Alvaro Parente McLaren 650S GT3 126 3 laps
7 100% Electrical/Whiattaker’s John Udy/Matt Whittaker Audi R8 Ultra 126 3 laps
8 AMAC Motorsport Andrew Macpherson/Brad Shiels Porsche 911 GT3-R 126 3 laps
9 Giltrap Neil Foster/Jonny Reid Audi R8 Ultra 126 3 laps
10 Bolt Master Andrew Bagnell/Matt Halliday Audi R8 LMS 125 4 laps
11 Timken Zagame Autosport Adrian Deitz/Cameron McConville Lamgorghini Huracan 124 5 laps
DNF BMW Team SRM Dylan O’Keeffe/Steve Richards BMW M6 GT3
DNF Hog’s Breath Café/Griffith Corporation Scott Hookey/Mark Griffith Mercedes-AMG GT3

Make sure you pick up the next issue of Auto Action for an in depth analysis of the Australian GT Hampton Downs 500. Also make sure you follow Auto Action on social media FacebookTwitter and Instagram for updates between issues.