05 Feb APC READY TO LAUNCH AT SANDOWN THIS WEEKEND
The 2024 Australian Production Cars season will launch into action at Sandown International Raceway this weekend as part of a packed Shannons SpeedSeries ‘Race Sandown’ program.
Across February 9-11, Australia’s premier national production car category will see its competitors take on four x 30-minute races to officially get its 2024 season underway, which will feature a further four events across the rest of the year at The Bend Motorsport Park, Queensland Raceway, Sydney Motorsport Park and the Bathurst International.
As always, the APC competitors will be turning heads with a wide variety of cars and classes taking to the track for close and spirited racing for class and outright honours.
“If you look at the line-up of racing series’ which are regularly competing on the national platform that is the Shannons SpeedSeries, it is clear the APC provides a unique place to race,” said Troy Williams, the General Manager of APC category manager, Production Car Racing Pty Ltd.
“The APC offers not only large amounts of track time, but also a wide array of classes and a diverse range of cars – many of which have been built by our competitors themselves at their own workshops or even at home in the garage.
“Increasingly in other categories we are seeing that you need to purchase a car from a manufacturer/series to compete, and of course that is great if that is what you want to do, but for our racers a lot of the appeal of production car racing comes from being able to build and develop their cars themselves.
“They take a lot of pride in that, and we certainly love seeing the builds that come to race with us at some of the best race tracks Australia has to offer and seeing how our racers can develop their racing machines across the year.”
This ability to build their own race car is certainly a drawcard for returning APC competitor David Bailey, who will be taking to Sandown Raceway this weekend with his co-driver Matt Thewlis in the Class D #39 Tongarra Rd Preschool & Early Learning Centre Mini Cooper S R56.
Image thanks to Priceless Images. Image at top thanks to Speed Shots Photography
“The thing I love about production car racing is that it is the closest you can get to the old days of Group A and Group C with the privateers racing and bringing their own builds and cars to the track,” Bailey said.
“As much as I love driving, I enjoy building the car – it is a hobby, an expensive hobby, but one I really enjoy and the APC lines up perfectly with that.
“The Mini was a COVID-build and I had a lot of fun putting it together over that period. Post-COVID we have had it out in the NSW Production Cars twice and have been ironing out the bugs – there is always a process with turning a road car into a race car but that is half of the fun and the challenge.
“This will be our third outing with the Mini and the last one went quite well, so we are really looking forward to getting to Sandown for our first national-level event with the car, and also to the other rounds coming up for APC across the year.
“Our first aim will be to finish every race and hopefully come home with a shorter ‘to do’ list, and if we can bring home a trophy that would put the icing on the cake.”
This isn’t the first time Bailey and Thewlis have teamed up to race, with the pair taking on four Bathurst 6 Hour races together including third in Class in 2017 and runner-up for Class E in 2023.
“Matt and I always drive together when we can and we are looking forward to tackling all the APC events for 2024 outside of the Queensland Raceway event which we aren’t able to make,” said the 62-year-old Bailey.
“That is another appeal for me of the APC, the tracks that it visits. I am not getting any younger and I have a few tracks on my ‘bucket list’ for before I hang up the helmet, and Sandown and The Bend are two of them. So that is another big appeal for me as well, being able to travel around the country and visit some amazing racing facilities.
“Here is hoping we can have a great outing this weekend and put on a good showing in the Mini,” he concluded, while thanking Tongarra Rd Preschool and Early Learning Centre for their support.
In 2024 the APC is enjoying a five-round calendar, commencing at Sandown Raceway across February 9-11 (four 30-minute races), before heading to The Bend for four 1 hour races across May 31 – June 2.
Round three will be held at Queensland Raceway (July 12-14, two 2 hour races), before the penultimate round of the APC calendar for 2024 will then be held at Sydney Motorsport Park (October 18-20, four 1 hour races).
The Bathurst International will then provide a thrilling finale across November 8-10, with four 30-minute races to close out the year.
For further information on Australian Production Cars, please contact admin@ausprodcars.com.au or visit ausprodcars.com.au.
2024 AUSTRALIAN PRODUCTION CARS CHAMPIONSHIP DATES:
- Round 1 – Sandown Raceway – February 9-11, 2024 – Four 30-minute races
- Round 2 – The Bend – May 31-June 2 – Four 1 hour races
- Round 3 – Queensland Raceway – July 12-14 – Two 2 hour races
- Round 4 – Sydney Motorsport Park – 18-20 October – Four 1 hour races
- Round 5 – Bathurst International – 8-10 November – Four 30-minute races