Fabian Coulthard joins Australian Endurance Championship for Ipswich 3 Hour

An eclectic mix of makes, models and drivers will feature on the grid at the opening Australian Endurance Championship round, the Ipswich 3 Hour at Queensland Raceway.

Headlined by leading Supercars endurance driver Fabian Coulthard, Bathurst 1000 winner Paul Morris, rising GT star Tom Hayman, racing returnee Luke King and TV personality Grant Denyer, the field is incredibly strong for this new era of the Australian Endurance Championship.

AR Nineteen will enter three Mercedes-AMG GTs for the opening round led by Coulthard pairing with John Nikolovski. Jamie Arratoon is joined by King and after some impressive performances last year, Hayman will co-drive alongside Mark Griffith.

McLaren will have a presence at Queensland Raceway courtesy of a pair of 570s models. Anthony Soole pairs with regular co-driver Denyer and Chris Pappas makes a welcome return to the category alongside Morris.

Steve Jukes makes his return to national competition in a BMW F82 M4 alongside the experienced Karl Begg.

Ginetta Australia will showcase the G55 V8 and GTA in the Ipswich 3 Hour to build on the niche manufacturer’s strong local racing history.

Adding another dimension to the fight will be Cess Valstar and Dylan Lake's Porsche 996 Cup Car.

The production-based, bespoke racing entries are rounded out by the Toyota GR Supra, which Tony Quinn, owner of the Queensland Raceway circuit, and rapid New Zealander Matt McCutcheon will share.

Contesting the new time-based classes will be a mix of German BMWs, an Australian HSV and a new Audi.

After falling short of outright victory at Queensland Raceway’s Fight in the Night last year, Rob Gooley and Maika Ter Horst will be out to make amends in the Speedcafe BMW F82 M4.

Eric Ebert and Luke van Herwaarde will compete in the interesting four-wheel-drive BMW 240iX. The E92 M3 is represented by Ben Gersekwski and last year’s class winner, Richard Shinkfield.

Representing the Australian muscle car is the HSV Clubsport R8 of Jim Manteufel and Garry Beggs, while Dan Lindley will make his debut in an Audi RS3.

A new era of the Australian Endurance Championship will begin at the Ipswich 3 Hour as part of the Hi-Tec Oils Super Series 2 Days of Thunder event at Queensland Raceway on May 1-3.

SCHEDULE

Friday, May 1

Practice 1 10:15am

Practice 2 12:35pm

Practice 3 4:45pm

Saturday, May 2

Qualifying 10:50am

Ipswich 3 Hour 5:25pm