Jay Hanson claimed victory in his new Audi in the opening TCR Australia race at Phillip Island, with the Melbourne Performance Centre driver fending off an early challenge from Michael Caruso at the start.
Hanson had earlier in the day qualified on pole by just under four tenths of a second from Caruso, having gone one grid position better than at the season opener last month.
At the start, the 18-year-old was beaten away from the line by the Alfa Romeo of Caruso, but he kept the Ashley Seward Motorsport driver honest throughout the opening tour and reclaimed the lead at the very end of the lap as the drivers went along the start-finish straight.
Thereafter Hanson had a relatively untroubled run to his second win of the season, although Jordan Cox closed in towards the end in his Peugeot to end the race just 1.7 seconds adrift.
Caruso ran in second behind Hanson for the opening three laps, until contact on lap three from the Audi of Liam McAdam saw him sent spinning off the circuit at Turn 4.
McAdam had earlier jumped the start, and was subsequently given a drive-through penalty, which effectively ruled him out of the race – he was not classified after completing only 15 laps.
Cox assumed second after Caruso’s off and McAdam’s penalty, but the Peugeot driver lacked the pace to challenge for the win and came home in second, recording his third consecutive podium finish to ensure he is just four points from the championship lead.
Dylan O’Keeffe completed the podium, the GRM Peugeot driver having dropped to fifth at the start but also benefitted from the misfortune of Caruso and McAdam ahead.
Fabian Coulthard, again making a guest appearance in the Wall Racing Honda supported by Australian broadcaster Stan Sport, came through the field in the early laps, passing five cars on his way to fourth.
Zac Soutar had to settle for being the second-best Honda driver in fifth, but the independent racer now leads the overall drivers’ standings with 156 points as a result of yet another top six finish.
Aaron Cameron was seventh, ahead of the second Wall Racing Honda of Tony D’Alberto in eighth, the latter having made contact with Will Brown’s Audi on the second lap which resulted in the 2019 champion suffering from issues with his front-left tyre leading to a lengthy pit stop.
Lachlan Mineeff brought the field’s sole Volkswagen home in eighth, his best finish of the year thus far.
The battle for tenth proved to be hotly contested, as it decides the partial reverse grid for Sunday’s second race.
Early in the race the place was occupied by Nathan Morcom, but the Hyundai driver had to pull into the pits with an issue on his car.
Morcom’s team-mate Bailey Sweeny then found himself in the position, but came under pressure from Michael Clemente and Ben Bargwanna, with Clemente getting past both drivers on laps ten and eleven to claim ninth, whilst Sweeny then lost out to Bargwanna just three laps from the end, giving the Peugeot driver the reverse pole.
Sweeny claimed 11th, fending off late-race pressure from the Renault of James Moffat in 12th, who had come through from 19th on the grid.
Erstwhile points leader Josh Buchan retired from the race after three laps following inadvertent contact from Clemente.
“I literally couldn’t see the exit of the second last turn, so as I’ve seen it and saw I was going to dip a right rear onto the grass, and Moffat managed to get by,” explained Buchan.
“Then Clemente in the Honda squeezed by as well but as he did that he whacked me. I would have done the same thing, but it bent the steering in the rear and I just can’t continue.”
Race results
| POS | NO | CL | NAT | DRIVER | ENTRANT | CAR | LAPS | TIME | GAP | GD |
| 1 | 9 |  |
Jay HANSON | AWC MPC Racing | Audi RS3 LMS TCR 2021 | 16 | 26:22.4402 | 1:37.540 | 1 | |
| 2 | 33 | |
Jordan COX | Swyftx GRM | Peugeot 308 TCR | 16 | 1.716 | 1:37.964 | 5 | |
| 3 | 8 | |
Dylan O’KEEFFE | Schaeffler GRM | Peugeot 308 TCR | 16 | 4.172 | 1:38.091 | 3 | |
| 4 | 24 | |
Fabian COULTHARD | Stan Sport Wall Racing | Honda Civic Type-R FK8 TCR | 16 | 9.492 | 1:38.513 | 9 | |
| 5 | 110 | |
Zac SOUTAR | Team Soutar Motorsport | Honda Civic Type-R FK8 TCR | 16 | 11.650 | 1:38.622 | 6 | |
| 6 | 18 | |
Aaron CAMERON | Team Valvoline GRM | Peugeot 308 TCR | 16 | 12.819 | 1:38.344 | 16 | |
| 7 | 50 | |
Tony D’ALBERTO | Honda Wall Racing | Honda Civic Type-R FK8 TCR | 16 | 16.093 | 1:38.810 | 7 | |
| 8 | 14 | |
Lachlan MINEEFF | Purple Sector | Volkswagen Golf GTi TCR | 16 | 17.219 | 1:38.786 | 8 | |
| 9 | 15 | |
Michael CLEMENTE | Michael Clemente Motorsport | Honda Civic Type-R FK8 TCR | 16 | 18.451 | 1:38.816 | 15 | |
| 10 | 71 | |
Ben BARGWANNA | Burson Auto Parts Racing | Peugeot 308 TCR | 16 | 18.792 | 1:38.418 | 11 | |
| 11 | 130 | |
Bailey SWEENY | HMO Customer Racing | Hyundai i30 N TCR | 16 | 20.495 | 1:38.817 | 13 | |
| 12 | 34 | |
James MOFFAT | LCMT+ Racing GRM | Renault Mégane RS TCR | 16 | 20.841 | 1:38.812 | 19 | |
| 13 | 22 | |
Iain MCDOUGALL | Melbourne Performance Centre | Audi RS3 LMS TCR | 16 | 21.155 | 1:38.634 | 14 | |
| 14 | 333 | |
Brad SHIELS | Royal Purple Racing | Hyundai i30 N TCR | 16 | 23.136 | 1:39.139 | 21 | |
| 15 | 89 | |
Braydan WILLMINGTON | Braydan Willmington Motorsport | Alfa Romeo Giulietta TCR | 16 | 28.646 | 1:39.382 | 20 | |
| 16 | 41 | |
Kody GARLAND | Valvoline Racing GRM | Renault Mégane RS TCR | 16 | 32.284 | 1:38.541 | 18 | |
| 17 | 10 | |
Michael CARUSO | Ashley Seward Motorsport | Alfa Romeo Giulietta TCR | 16 | 32.653 | 1:38.355 | 2 | |
| 18 | 999 | |
Will BROWN | MPC Team Liqui Moly | Audi RS3 LMS TCR | 15 | + 1 LAP | 1:38.142 | 10 | |
| 19 | 11 | |
Nathan MORCOM | HMO Customer Racing | Hyundai i30 N TCR | 14 | + 2 LAPS | 1:39.061 | 12 | |
| R | 97 | |
Liam MCADAM | Forza Brakes Motorsport | Audi RS3 LMS TCR | 15 | DNF | 1:38.449 | 4 | |
| R | 30 | |
Josh BUCHAN | HMO Customer Racing | Hyundai i30 N TCR | 3 | DNF | 1:40.233 | 17 |