Harris penalty puts Cameron on top in wild TCR sprint

The inverse grid TCR race produced plenty of madness and a penalty to Brad Harris has handed a 1-2 to GRM led by Aaron Cameron.

Although Harris crossed first, he did not receive a second career win and a 5s penalty dropped him to fourth.

The #74 was adjudged to have jumped the start in a contentious call described as “pretty harsh” by Wall Racing boss David Wall.

Instead of a Honda win, it was all Peugeot as Cameron led rookie teammate Ryan Casha across the line in a GRM 1-2, while Clay Richards stayed composed to finish on the podium and secure pole for race 3 on combined points.

The crazy 25-minute race ended under Safety Car after an untimely puncture sent Dylan O’Keeffe into the gravel.

It all happened in front of an estimated Phillip Island SpeedSeries weekend record crowd of 17,869.

The inverse top 10 grid race created a mad opening lap with a number of big names involved.

As Brad Harris led from pole, Will Harris and Cameron were banging each other onto the grass on the approach to turn 1, sparking a brutal battle that would soon end in tears.

Further back the reigning champion Josh Buchan was a major victim of the squeeze into Doohan Corner.

Buchan was on the inside of Glen Nirwan, while Jordan Cox was beneath both at the fast right hander.

Contact between the Hyundai and the Audi sent Nirwan spinning, but Buchan did not emerge unscathed.

The #1 had a flat right rear and only got as far as Southern Loop before spinning himself as well.

Up front the action did not stop as Cameron and Will Harris were once again side by side fighting for second.

The pair managed to snake their way from Siberia to Hayshed without drama, but this was not the case at Lukey Heights.

Suddenly Will Harris found himself spinning across the track and into the infield, falling from second to 10th.

Meanwhile, Brad Harris emerged from it all with a 2s advantage, but he was hit by a 5s penalty for a jump start.

Cameron’s fighting driving ensured he had a strong grip on second and the effective lead.

His GRM teammate Casha joined him in the top three by pouncing on Clay Richards with a strong move at MG.

A victim of that same corner was Tom Oliphant, who went off after contact with Ben Bargwanna.

Brad Harris had built a solid 2.5s advantage but it was wiped out by the arrival of a late Safety Car caused by an unlucky Dylan O’Keeffe.

The Lynk & Co driver suffered a flat tyre right on the exit of the final corner, which sent the Ashley Seward Motorsport machine suddenly spearing into the gravel.

Teams and drivers will regather themselves for the third and final race of the weekend at 16.10 AEST.

Image: Rebecca Hind Revved Photography

TCR Australia Phillip Island race 2 results

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