Hyundai’s Josh Buchan is aiming to break through for HMO Customer Racing’s first podium finish at Queensland Raceway, which hosts the fifth round of the 2024 TCR Australia Championship this weekend.
The reigning series champion enters the round hoping to continue the momentum from the previous round at The Bend Motorsport Park in South Australia, where he scored a rare triple podium result that elevated him to second place on the drivers’ championship ladder.
But the technical 3.12km circuit has never been a happy hunting ground for HMO Customer Racing and is the only circuit on the calendar where it has yet to score a top three finish from the 12 races it has hosted in four previous visits.
Buchan scored a string of top-six finishes last year in the first appearance at the circuit for the new-generation Hyundai i30 Sedan N TCR and is confident he will be among the front runners this weekend as the team has more information on how to extract the maximum from the vehicle.
However, the 29-year-old Sydneysider doesn’t underestimate the challenge ahead of him, especially considering he will carry the maximum weight penalty following his front-row qualifying position at The Bend.
Teammate Tom Oliphant will also carry a penalty into this weekend’s fifth round as the team was forced to install a new engine in his Hyundai i30 N TCR hatchback after the previous motor was damaged in the final race in South Australia.
The expat Brit, and former British Touring Car Championship race winner, will lose five places from his qualifying position but is confident he can fight back through the field despite never having raced at Queensland Raceway before.
HMO Customer Racing will have two 30-minute practice sessions at Queensland Raceway on Friday ahead of qualifying on Saturday at 8:45am and the opening race, which starts at 2:05pm. The team will return to the track on Sunday for the two remaining races, with the top-10 finishers from Saturday’s first race reversed for the second sprint.
Fans can catch all the action from Round 5 of the TCR Australia Championship at Queensland Raceway and the Motorsport Australia Shannons Speed Series live and free via 7Plus.
What the drivers said:
Car 1: i30 Sedan N TCR – Josh Buchan
“Historically, Queensland Raceway has been pretty tough on us. But I’m back in the Hyundai i30 Sedan N again this weekend and hoping to keep up the front-running form we showed at The Bend and banish the hoodoo that this track holds over us.
“I’m confident we have a great race car that can overcome the weight penalty, but I know it won’t be easy. If we can get through this weekend relatively unscathed then it puts us in a really strong position for the remaining two rounds at Sydney Motorsport Park and Mount Panorama at Bathurst, which are two of our best tracks and where we have always targeted in our push for back-to-back titles.”
Car 15: i30 N TCR – Tom Oliphant
“Queensland Raceway is the one track I missed last year as I was getting married at the time, so I’ll be heading into the unknown again this weekend. But that doesn’t concern me, as I’m confident I’ll get on top of it quite quickly in practice.
“However, I will be racing from being the eight ball with a five-place grid penalty for an engine swap after The Bend, which is a bit frustrating. But it is a track where you can overtake and the Hyundai i30 N TCR is strong under brakes, so I’m looking to recover as much as I can and, really, I have nothing to lose considering my position in the championship and will be going for it this weekend. My only goal from now until the end of the season is to win as many races as possible.”
2024 TCR Australia Championship Standings – After Round 4, The Bend, SA
| Position | Name | Car | Points |
| 1. | Zac Soutar | Audi RS3 LMS | 414 |
| 2. | Josh Buchan | Hyundai i30 N TCR | 393 |
| 3. | Ben Bargwanna | Peugeot 308 R | 383 |
| 4. | Jordan Cox | Peugeot 308 TCR | 378 |
| 5. | Ryan Casha | Peugeot 308 TCR | 366 |
| 6. | Brad Harris | Honda Civic Type R | 365 |
| 7. | Clay Richards | Cupra Leon TCR | 347 |
| 8. | Dylan O’Keefe | Lynk & Co 03 TCR | 343 |
| 9. | Tony D’Alberto | Honda Civic Type R | 315 |
| 10. | Aaron Cameron | Peugeot 308 TCR | 306 |
| 11. | Tom Oliphant | Hyundai i30 N TCR | 238 |
2024 TCR Australia Championship, Round 5: Queensland Raceway
| Track Facts | |
| Location | Willowbank, Queensland |
| Length | 3.126 km |
| TCR Pole Record | 1:12.5223sec, Tony D’Alberto (Honda Civic Type R) – 2022 |
| TCR Lap Record | 1:13.9090sec, Jay Hanson (Audi RS3 LMS) – 2022 |
TCR Schedule – Round 5: Queensland Raceway, QLD
| Friday August 2 | Saturday August 3 | Sunday August 4 |
| Practice 1: 9:00am | Qualifying: 8:45am | Race 2: 1:45pm |
| Practice 2: 1:40pm | Race 1: 2:05pm | Race 3: 4:15pm |